Relative Clauses in Greek

In Brief

Modern Greek normally uses the unchanging word που for English “who,” “which,” or “that”: Ο άντρας που μένει εδώ means “The man who lives here.” In more formal language, Greek can use ο οποίος, η οποία, το οποίο; this pronoun changes to show gender, number, and case. Learn που as the everyday default, then use the longer forms when a preposition, possession, formality, or clarity makes them useful.

Overview

A relative clause is a group of words that describes or identifies a noun. In “the book that I read,” that I read tells us which book is meant. Greek joins the noun and this description with a relative pronoun (a connecting word that points back to the noun): το βιβλίο που διάβασα.

Relative clauses are a major step toward natural B1 Greek. They let you combine short statements: Γνώρισα έναν άντρα. Ο άντρας μένει εδώ. (“I met a man. The man lives here.”) becomes Γνώρισα έναν άντρα που μένει εδώ (“I met a man who lives here”). You will hear this structure constantly in conversation and see it in messages, descriptions, stories, and news reports.

For an English-speaking learner, που is pleasantly economical. English makes choices among “who,” “which,” “that,” “whom,” and sometimes no relative word at all; everyday Greek usually keeps που, whether the noun is a person or a thing and whether it performs or receives the action. The fuller relative pronoun ο οποίος is more demanding because it declines—that is, its ending changes for gender, number, and case (the form showing a word’s role, such as subject, object, or possession).

How It Works

The everyday pattern with που

The core structure is:

noun + που + relative clause

Role of the described noun inside the clause	Greek	English
It performs the action (subject)	ο άνθρωπος που περιμένει	the person who is waiting
It receives the action (object)	το βιβλίο που διάβασα	the book that I read
It indicates a place	η πόλη που γεννήθηκα	the city where I was born

A subject is who or what performs the action. In Ο άντρας που μένει εδώ, the man performs the action μένει (“lives”). An object is who or what the action affects. In Το βιβλίο που διάβασα, the book is what I read.

που never changes form:

• ο φίλος που τηλεφώνησε — the male friend who called
• η φίλη που τηλεφώνησε — the female friend who called
• το παιδί που τηλεφώνησε — the child who called
• οι φίλοι που τηλεφώνησαν — the friends who called

The verb still agrees with its own subject. Compare ο φίλος που μένει εδώ (“the friend who lives here”) with οι φίλοι που μένουν εδώ (“the friends who live here”). It is the verb ending—not a change in που—that marks singular or plural.

Object relatives: do not copy the English omission

English may omit “that” when the described noun is the object: “the film I saw.” Standard Greek retains the connector:

• η ταινία που είδα — the film (that) I saw
• ο άνθρωπος που συνάντησες — the person (whom) you met

No extra object pronoun is normally needed in these neutral examples. The missing object position is understood through που.

The declinable form ο οποίος

The more formal or explicit alternative consists of the article plus οποίος. It agrees in gender and number with the noun it refers back to. Its case, however, comes from its role inside the relative clause—not necessarily from the noun’s role in the main sentence.

Number	Case	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Singular	Nominative (subject)	ο οποίος	η οποία	το οποίο
Singular	Genitive (possession/relationship)	του οποίου	της οποίας	του οποίου
Singular	Accusative (object/after many prepositions)	τον οποίο	την οποία	το οποίο
Plural	Nominative	οι οποίοι	οι οποίες	τα οποία
Plural	Genitive	των οποίων	των οποίων	των οποίων
Plural	Accusative	τους οποίους	τις οποίες	τα οποία

Consider Μίλησα με τη γυναίκα η οποία εργάζεται εδώ (“I spoke with the woman who works here”). τη γυναίκα is accusative because it follows με in the main clause, but η οποία is nominative because the woman is the subject of εργάζεται inside the relative clause.

Now compare Η γυναίκα την οποία συνάντησα εργάζεται εδώ (“The woman whom I met works here”). The main noun η γυναίκα is nominative, but την οποία is accusative because she is the object of συνάντησα.

Relative clauses after prepositions

The longer pronoun is especially useful after a preposition. The preposition and the pronoun’s case form one unit:

• το σπίτι στο οποίο μένουμε — the house in which we live
• ο συνάδελφος με τον οποίο συνεργάζομαι — the colleague with whom I work
• η εταιρεία για την οποία δουλεύει — the company for which she works
• οι λόγοι για τους οποίους έφυγε — the reasons for which he left

Forms such as στον οποίο, στην οποία, στο οποίο contain σε + the article. Agreement still follows the earlier noun: σπίτι is neuter singular, so “in which” is στο οποίο.

Everyday speech often prefers a construction with που, especially when the relationship is obvious: το σπίτι που μένουμε (“the house where we live”). With other relationships, Greek may retain a pronoun or adverb within the clause: ο άνθρωπος που μίλησα μαζί του (“the person I spoke with,” literally “the person that I spoke with him”). The formal equivalent is ο άνθρωπος με τον οποίο μίλησα.

Possession: “whose”

For formal, compact possession, use the genitive of ο οποίος:

• Η γυναίκα της οποίας ο γιος σπουδάζει εδώ... — The woman whose son studies here...
• Ο συγγραφέας του οποίου διάβασα το βιβλίο... — The author whose book I read...
• Τα παιδιά των οποίων οι γονείς εργάζονται... — The children whose parents work...

The genitive form agrees with the owner, not with the thing owned. In η γυναίκα της οποίας ο γιος, της οποίας is feminine singular because the owner is η γυναίκα; ο γιος being masculine does not change it.

In ordinary conversation, a resumptive possessive pronoun is often more natural: η γυναίκα που ο γιος της σπουδάζει εδώ—literally, “the woman that her son studies here.” English does not normally build “whose” clauses this way, so learn the whole Greek pattern rather than translating word by word.

Defining and extra-information clauses

A defining relative clause identifies which person or thing is meant:

• Οι φοιτητές που πέρασαν την εξέταση θα πάρουν πιστοποιητικό. — The students who passed the exam will receive a certificate.

This refers specifically to the students who passed. An extra-information (non-defining) clause adds a comment about someone or something already identified:

• Ο Νίκος, που μένει δίπλα, είναι γιατρός. — Nikos, who lives next door, is a doctor.

In writing, commas mark the extra-information clause. Do not add commas to every relative clause: punctuation changes the meaning, much as it does in English.

που and πού are not the same in writing

The relative word που has no accent: το μέρος που μένω (“the place where I live”). Interrogative πού means “where?” and carries an accent when it is a direct or indirect question: Πού μένεις; (“Where do you live?”), Δεν ξέρω πού μένει (“I do not know where he lives”). They sound alike, so the sentence’s function determines the spelling.

Examples in Context

Greek	English	Note
Ο άντρας που μένει εδώ είναι γιατρός.	The man who lives here is a doctor.	που introduces a subject relative.
Το βιβλίο που διάβασα ήταν πολύ ενδιαφέρον.	The book that I read was very interesting.	The book is the object of “read.”
Αυτή είναι η φίλη που σου έλεγα.	This is the friend I was telling you about.	Natural everyday use of που.
Ψάχνω ένα ξενοδοχείο που να έχει πισίνα.	I’m looking for a hotel that has a pool.	να presents a desired, not yet identified, hotel.
Ο Νίκος, που δουλεύει στο νοσοκομείο, λείπει σήμερα.	Nikos, who works at the hospital, is away today.	Commas mark extra information.
Η πόλη που γεννήθηκα έχει αλλάξει πολύ.	The city where I was born has changed a lot.	Everyday place relative.
Αυτός είναι ο καθηγητής με τον οποίο μίλησα.	This is the professor with whom I spoke.	Formal/explicit preposition pattern.
Το σπίτι στο οποίο μένουμε είναι παλιό.	The house in which we live is old.	σε + το οποίο → στο οποίο.
Η εταιρεία για την οποία εργάζεται είναι διεθνής.	The company she works for is international.	The formal form keeps the preposition before the pronoun.
Η γυναίκα της οποίας ο γιος κέρδισε είναι γειτόνισσά μου.	The woman whose son won is my neighbor.	Genitive feminine singular marks the owner.
Γνώρισα δύο παιδιά των οποίων οι γονείς ζουν στην Κρήτη.	I met two children whose parents live in Crete.	των οποίων is genitive plural.
Οι λόγοι για τους οποίους έφυγε δεν είναι γνωστοί.	The reasons why he left are not known.	Masculine plural after για.
Το λεωφορείο που περιμένουμε έχει αργήσει.	The bus we are waiting for is late.	Greek retains που where English omits the connector.
Το χωριό από το οποίο κατάγεται είναι μικρό.	The village he comes from is small.	Formal source/origin phrase.

Common Mistakes

Changing που for gender or number

• Wrong: η γυναίκα η που μένει εδώ
• Right: η γυναίκα που μένει εδώ
• Why: που is invariable and takes no article. Gender and number appear elsewhere in the sentence.

Omitting που because English can omit “that”

• Wrong: Το βιβλίο διάβασα ήταν δύσκολο.
• Right: Το βιβλίο που διάβασα ήταν δύσκολο.
• Why: English allows “the book I read,” but Greek normally needs που or a form of ο οποίος to connect the clauses.

Choosing the case from the main clause

• Wrong: Μίλησα με τη γυναίκα την οποία εργάζεται εδώ.
• Right: Μίλησα με τη γυναίκα η οποία εργάζεται εδώ.
• Why: Inside the relative clause, the woman performs εργάζεται, so the relative pronoun must be nominative η οποία. The accusative τη γυναίκα belongs to the main clause.

Agreeing “whose” with the possessed item

• Wrong: η γυναίκα του οποίου ο γιος...
• Right: η γυναίκα της οποίας ο γιος...
• Why: της οποίας agrees with the female owner, η γυναίκα, not with her masculine son.

Leaving out the preposition in formal constructions

• Wrong: το σπίτι το οποίο μένουμε
• Right: το σπίτι στο οποίο μένουμε
• Also natural in conversation: το σπίτι που μένουμε
• Why: The formal pronoun explicitly shows the relationship: one lives in a house, so Greek uses σε + το οποίο.

Confusing relative που with question πού

• Wrong: Δεν ξέρω που μένει.
• Right: Δεν ξέρω πού μένει.
• Why: This means “I don’t know where he lives” and contains an indirect question. A relative clause would be το σπίτι που μένει.

Usage Notes

που is the normal, high-frequency choice in both speech and much everyday writing. It is not careless or incorrect. Because it does not display gender or case, it lets a sentence move quickly and usually sounds less heavy than repeated forms of ο οποίος.

ο οποίος / η οποία / το οποίο is common in formal writing, careful explanations, journalism, administration, and academic prose. It is also useful in speech when που could leave the relationship unclear. After a preposition, the longer form often gives the neatest standard written sentence: η απόφαση με την οποία διαφωνώ (“the decision with which I disagree”).

The longer form can help identify the intended earlier noun when two candidates are nearby. Still, agreement alone does not resolve every ambiguity, especially when both nouns share gender and number. Rewording is often better than forcing a complicated relative clause.

English distinguishes people from things with “who” and “which”; Greek που does not. Conversely, English often puts a preposition at the end—“the colleague I work with”—where formal Greek places it before the declined pronoun: ο συνάδελφος με τον οποίο συνεργάζομαι. Avoid mapping English word order mechanically onto Greek.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

Indefinite or desired antecedents with να

An antecedent is the noun a relative pronoun points back to. When that noun is indefinite, hypothetical, wanted, or not yet known to exist, Greek often uses να plus an appropriate verb form:

• Θέλω ένα δωμάτιο που να βλέπει στη θάλασσα. — I want a room that overlooks the sea.
• Δεν υπάρχει κανείς που να ξέρει την απάντηση. — There is nobody who knows the answer.
• Ψάχνουμε κάποιον που να μιλάει ιαπωνικά. — We are looking for someone who speaks Japanese.

Here να marks the situation as sought, possible, or non-specific. Compare Ξέρω έναν γιατρό που μιλάει αγγλικά (“I know a doctor who speaks English”), where the doctor is a known real person. This use builds on the Greek subjunctive system—the patterns with να rather than a separate infinitive.

Resumptive pronouns in everyday Greek

Greek can state που and then include a short pronoun inside the relative clause to show possession or a prepositional relationship:

• η κοπέλα που μίλησα μαζί της — the woman I spoke with
• ο φίλος που πήγα σπίτι του — the friend whose house I went to
• το παιδί που του έδωσα το βιβλίο — the child to whom I gave the book

These structures are especially natural in conversation. The pronouns της, του and phrases such as μαζί της make the grammatical relationship explicit. More formal alternatives are η κοπέλα με την οποία μίλησα and το παιδί στο οποίο έδωσα το βιβλίο.

Other relative words

Not every relative meaning requires που or ο οποίος. More advanced Greek also uses forms such as:

• όπου — where: Το χωριό όπου γεννήθηκε... (“The village where he was born...”)
• όποιος / όποια / όποιο — whoever / whichever: Όποιος θέλει μπορεί να έρθει. (“Whoever wants can come.”)
• ό,τι — whatever / anything that: Πάρε ό,τι θέλεις. (“Take whatever you want.”)

Do not confuse όποιος (“whoever/whichever,” free choice or an unspecified person) with ο οποίος (“who/which,” referring back to a stated noun). The comma in ό,τι also distinguishes it in writing from ότι, the conjunction meaning “that.” These forms belong to the wider relative system but are not substitutes in every ordinary noun-description clause.

Practice Tips

1. Combine pairs of sentences. Start with Έχω μια φίλη. Η φίλη μένει στην Πάτρα. Then join them: Έχω μια φίλη που μένει στην Πάτρα. Repeat once with the shared noun as subject and once as object.
2. Use a two-stage routine. First make ten everyday clauses with the unchanged που. Then rewrite three using ο οποίος, checking agreement with the earlier noun and case inside the relative clause.
3. Collect preposition chunks. Learn με τον οποίο, στην οποία, για τους οποίους, and από τα οποία as complete units. When listening, also note conversational alternatives with που and a resumptive phrase such as μαζί του.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Subjunctive Mood — helps explain relative clauses such as κάποιος που να ξέρει when the person or thing is wanted or indefinite.
• Next step: Indirect Speech — contrasts clause connectors such as relative που with ότι/πως, which introduce reported statements.
• Next step: Causal and Purpose Clauses — expands sentence building with reasons and purposes using επειδή, για να, and related connectors.