Είμαι (To Be) in Greek

In Brief

The Greek verb είμαι means “to be.” In the present tense its forms are είμαι, είσαι, είναι, είμαστε, είστε, είναι, and the subject pronoun is usually omitted because the verb ending already points to the person: Είμαι καλά means “I am well.” Use είμαι for identity, descriptions, location, origin, age, time, and many everyday states.

Overview

Είμαι is one of the first verbs you meet at A1 because it supports so many basic conversations. You need it to introduce yourself, describe people and things, say where someone is, and ask whether a place is open. It is an irregular verb—a verb whose forms do not follow the usual conjugation pattern—so learn its short set of forms as a unit.

English and Greek both change the verb “to be” according to the subject: compare English am, is, are with Greek είμαι, είναι, είστε. The major practical difference is that English normally requires an explicit subject such as I or we, while Greek commonly leaves the subject pronoun unstated. Είμαστε έτοιμοι is a complete sentence: “We are ready.”

The form of είμαι does not reveal gender. Είναι may mean “he is,” “she is,” “it is,” or “they are.” Gender and number often become visible in a following noun or adjective: κουρασμένος for a tired man, κουρασμένη for a tired woman, and κουρασμένοι for a mixed or all-male group.

How It Works

Present-tense forms

In a verb table, person means who the subject is: first person is the speaker (I/we), second person is the person addressed (you), and third person is anyone or anything else.

Person	Optional pronoun	Form of είμαι	English
1st singular	εγώ	είμαι	I am
2nd singular	εσύ	είσαι	you are (one person, informal)
3rd singular	αυτός / αυτή / αυτό	είναι	he / she / it is
1st plural	εμείς	είμαστε	we are
2nd plural	εσείς	είστε	you are (more than one person, or polite singular)
3rd plural	αυτοί / αυτές / αυτά	είναι	they are

The third-person singular and plural are identical. The surrounding words show the difference:

• Ο Γιώργος είναι εδώ. — George is here.
• Οι φίλοι μου είναι εδώ. — My friends are here.

The accent marks belong to the spelling. Write είμαι, είσαι, and είναι, not unaccented versions.

Usually omit the subject pronoun

Greek is a pro-drop language, meaning that it can omit a subject pronoun when the verb or context makes the subject clear. Neutral conversation therefore usually favors the shorter version.

Neutral wording	With emphasis or contrast	Meaning
Είμαι έτοιμος.	Εγώ είμαι έτοιμος.	I am ready.
Είσαι από εδώ;	Εσύ είσαι από εδώ;	Are you from here?
Είμαστε φίλοι.	Εμείς είμαστε φίλοι.	We are friends.

Add the pronoun to correct an assumption, contrast people, or remove ambiguity: Εγώ είμαι από την Αθήνα, αλλά αυτή είναι από την Πάτρα. “I am from Athens, but she is from Patras.” Repeating εγώ in every sentence sounds more emphatic than repeating I in English.

Identity, names, and occupations

Use είμαι to say who someone is or what they do:

• Είμαι η Σοφία. — I’m Sofia.
• Αυτός είναι ο γιατρός. — He is the doctor.
• Είμαι μηχανικός. — I’m an engineer.

Greek normally has no indefinite article equivalent to English a/an. That is why an occupation can stand by itself after the verb: Είναι δασκάλα, literally “She is teacher,” but naturally “She is a teacher.” A definite article such as ο or η is appropriate when identifying a particular person or giving a name: Είμαι ο Πέτρος.

Descriptions and adjective agreement

An adjective is a describing word such as tired or ready. A Greek adjective agrees with the person or thing it describes in gender and number. The verb remains unchanged; the adjective changes.

Subject	Greek	English
one man	Είναι κουρασμένος.	He is tired.
one woman	Είναι κουρασμένη.	She is tired.
one neuter thing	Είναι κρύο.	It is cold.
several men or a mixed group	Είναι κουρασμένοι.	They are tired.
several women	Είναι κουρασμένες.	They are tired.
several neuter things	Είναι κρύα.	They are cold.

A speaker describing themself chooses the form matching their own gender: a man says Είμαι έτοιμος, while a woman says Είμαι έτοιμη.

Location, origin, age, and time

For location, use είμαι with a place expression:

• Είμαστε στο σπίτι. — We are at home.
• Το μουσείο είναι κοντά. — The museum is nearby.

For origin, από means “from”: Είμαι από την Ελλάδα. Greek also uses είμαι to state age, unlike English’s direct “I am twenty”: Είμαι είκοσι χρονών, literally “I am twenty years [old].” Do not omit χρονών in a standard age statement.

For clock time, the normal expression is singular είναι even when the hour number looks plural: Είναι τρεις. “It is three.” Use είναι in general time and date statements too: Σήμερα είναι Δευτέρα. “Today is Monday.”

Negation

Put δεν directly before the verb to make a negative statement:

Positive	Negative	English
Είμαι απασχολημένος.	Δεν είμαι απασχολημένος.	I am not busy.
Είναι ανοιχτό.	Δεν είναι ανοιχτό.	It is not open.
Είμαστε αργά.	Δεν είμαστε αργά.	We are not late.

Δεν does not change for person. In everyday pronunciation its final ν may be weak, but the standard written form here is always δεν.

Questions

Greek can turn a statement into a yes/no question without changing word order. Your voice rises, and writing uses the Greek question mark ;, which looks like an English semicolon:

• Είσαι καλά; — Are you okay?
• Είναι ανοιχτό; — Is it open?
• Είστε η κυρία Νικολάου; — Are you Mrs. Nikolaou?

With a question word, place that word naturally before the verb: Πού είσαι; “Where are you?” and Ποιος είναι; “Who is it/he?” There is no equivalent of English do in these questions.

Polite and plural “you”

Είσαι addresses one person informally. Είστε addresses several people and also one person politely. Modern usage varies by situation and relationship, but είστε is the safe choice with an unfamiliar adult in a formal interaction:

• Είσαι έτοιμη; — Are you ready? (one friend)
• Είστε έτοιμοι; — Are you ready? (a group)
• Είστε ο κύριος Παπαδόπουλος; — Are you Mr. Papadopoulos? (polite singular)

The common past forms

Although the core A1 target is the present, the past of είμαι is frequent enough to recognize early. It is the imperfect, a past form used here for a state or situation that held at a past time.

Person	Form	English
εγώ	ήμουν	I was
εσύ	ήσουν	you were
αυτός / αυτή / αυτό	ήταν	he / she / it was
εμείς	ήμασταν	we were
εσείς	ήσασταν	you were
αυτοί / αυτές / αυτά	ήταν	they were

As in the present, pronouns are usually unnecessary: Ήμασταν στο σπίτι. “We were at home.” The third-person form ήταν serves both singular and plural.

Examples in Context

Greek	English	Note
Είμαι δάσκαλος.	I am a teacher.	Occupation; no indefinite article
Είμαι η Άννα.	I’m Anna.	Name with the feminine definite article
Είσαι καλά;	Are you okay?	Informal singular question
Είναι κουρασμένη.	She is tired.	Feminine adjective gives the gender clue
Είναι κρύο σήμερα.	It is cold today.	Neuter adjective in an impersonal weather statement
Είμαστε από τον Καναδά.	We are from Canada.	Origin with από
Είστε ελεύθερος αύριο;	Are you free tomorrow?	Polite singular address to a man
Τα παιδιά είναι στο σχολείο.	The children are at school.	Third-person plural είναι
Δεν είμαι σίγουρη.	I’m not sure.	Said by a woman; negation with δεν
Πού είναι η στάση;	Where is the bus stop?	Location question
Είμαι τριάντα χρονών.	I am thirty years old.	Age with χρονών
Σήμερα είναι Παρασκευή.	Today is Friday.	Day of the week
Είναι τρεις και μισή.	It is half past three.	Clock time
Εγώ είμαι έτοιμος, αλλά ο Νίκος δεν είναι.	I’m ready, but Nikos isn’t.	Pronoun marks contrast; the complement is understood after δεν είναι
Ήμασταν στο σπίτι όλο το βράδυ.	We were at home all evening.	Past state

Common Mistakes

Adding a subject pronoun automatically

• Awkward: Εγώ είμαι κουρασμένος. Εγώ είμαι στο σπίτι.
• Natural: Είμαι κουρασμένος. Είμαι στο σπίτι.
• Why: Greek verb forms normally make the subject clear. Use εγώ when you genuinely mean “I, as opposed to someone else,” not merely because English requires I.

Using είναι for every person

• Wrong: Εγώ είναι φοιτητής.
• Right: Εγώ είμαι φοιτητής. / Είμαι φοιτητής.
• Why: Είναι is only third person. The first-person singular form is είμαι.

Forgetting adjective agreement

• Wrong: Η Μαρία είναι κουρασμένος.
• Right: Η Μαρία είναι κουρασμένη.
• Why: The adjective must match Maria’s feminine gender. The unchanged verb είναι does not carry that information.

Copying the English indefinite article

• Wrong: Είμαι ένας δάσκαλος. when simply stating your occupation
• Right: Είμαι δάσκαλος.
• Why: Greek has no direct indefinite article a/an, and professions normally appear without ένας/μία in a neutral statement. Ένας can be used when “one” or a special contrast is intended, but it is not the default here.

Building questions with English word order rules

• Wrong: Κάνεις είσαι έτοιμος;
• Right: Είσαι έτοιμος;
• Why: Greek does not add a verb equivalent to English do. The statement order can remain unchanged; intonation and ; mark the question.

Mixing up informal and polite “you”

• Wrong: Είσαι ο κύριος Παπαδόπουλος; in a deliberately formal exchange
• Right: Είστε ο κύριος Παπαδόπουλος;
• Why: Είστε can be polite singular as well as plural. Είσαι is singular and informal.

Usage Notes

In relaxed speech, pronoun omission is not a shortcut or slang; it is normal Greek grammar. An explicit pronoun can sound contrastive: Εσύ είσαι γιατρός; may carry the sense “Are you the doctor?” Context and voice determine how strong that emphasis feels.

Greek often uses είμαι καλά for “I am well/okay.” To ask after someone, Τι κάνεις; (“How are you?” informally) is extremely common, and Πώς είσαι; (“How are you feeling/doing?”) is also possible. Not every English phrase containing be maps word for word onto είμαι, so learn common expressions as complete phrases.

For weather, you will hear both constructions with είναι, such as Είναι κρύο, and other verbs in expressions such as Κάνει κρύο (“It is cold,” literally “It makes cold”). The first is fully natural and keeps the focus on the state; the second is another common weather pattern to learn separately.

Beyond the Basics

You do not need to master these forms at A1, but they complete the most useful outline of the verb.

Future and clauses with να

Greek builds the future with θα plus a present-like form:

Person	Future	English
εγώ	θα είμαι	I will be
εσύ	θα είσαι	you will be
αυτός / αυτή / αυτό	θα είναι	he / she / it will be
εμείς	θα είμαστε	we will be
εσείς	θα είστε	you will be
αυτοί / αυτές / αυτά	θα είναι	they will be

Example: Αύριο θα είμαι στην Αθήνα. “Tomorrow I will be in Athens.”

After words expressing wishes, necessity, purpose, or possibility, Greek often uses να with the same set of person forms: Θέλω να είμαι ειλικρινής “I want to be honest.” This να construction is called the subjunctive—a verb pattern commonly used for wanted, possible, or dependent actions. Modern Greek does not use an infinitive equivalent to English to be in sentences like this; it says, in effect, “I want that I be.”

Instructions and wishes

Rather than a regular imperative form of είμαι, Greek commonly uses να plus the appropriate form:

• Να είσαι προσεκτικός! — Be careful! (to one man)
• Να είστε καλά! — Be well! / All the best! (polite singular or plural)

The adjective still agrees with the person addressed. Να είσαι καλά is a frequent friendly response of thanks or goodwill, not merely a literal health statement.

Leaving the complement understood

A complement is the information that completes the idea after “be,” such as ready in “I am ready.” Greek can omit it when the meaning is obvious:

• Είσαι έτοιμη; — Ναι, είμαι. — “Are you ready?” — “Yes, I am.”
• Ο Κώστας δεν είναι εδώ, αλλά η Μαρία είναι. — “Kostas isn’t here, but Maria is.”

This resembles English short answers, but Greek still chooses the verb form that matches the understood subject.

Practice Tips

1. Learn the forms in three pairs. Say είμαι–είμαστε, είσαι–είστε, είναι–είναι. Then make one sentence for each form without a pronoun.
2. Build a personal mini-profile. Write six true lines about your name, occupation, origin, age, location, and current state. Change each positive sentence into a negative or a question.
3. Train agreement aloud. Reuse one adjective with different people: είμαι έτοιμος/έτοιμη, είναι έτοιμος, είναι έτοιμη, είμαστε έτοιμοι/έτοιμες. This keeps the unchanged verb separate from the changing adjective.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Personal Pronouns — learn the Greek words for “I,” “you,” “he,” “she,” and “we,” and when they can be omitted.