QCAA Modern Greek (SEE) cheat sheet

Greek stress placement changes meaning, so record the stressed syllable of unfamiliar words heard in the recording rather than the spelling you expect.

Register cues in speech: singular εσύ forms signal informal or peer address; plural εσείς and the vocative κύριε/κυρία signal formal or polite address.

Numbers, dates and times are frequent listening targets; note that Greek uses a comma as the decimal marker and a full stop for thousands (1.000,50).

Discourse markers carry the argument structure: λοιπόν (so/then), όμως (however), δηλαδή (that is), τελικά (finally/in the end), γι' αυτό (that is why).

Negation is doubled in Greek for emphasis and is still negative: Δεν είπα τίποτα means 'I said nothing', not 'I did not say something'.

The subjunctive after να marks intention, wish or request; hearing να plus a verb usually signals a plan, hope or instruction rather than a fact.

Tense listening: the aorist (έγραψα) reports a completed event, the imperfect (έγραφα) an ongoing or repeated past background - this distinction is a standard comprehension question.

When a question asks for the speaker's attitude, the evidence is in intonation and in evaluative adjectives/adverbs (δυστυχώς, ευτυχώς, φυσικά, σίγουρα), not in the topic words.

Genre decides layout: a ρεκλάμα/αγγελία is telegraphic and omits articles and verbs, while a personal letter (Αγαπητέ/Αγαπητή) uses full sentences and direct address.

Skim for cognates and international vocabulary first (τηλέφωνο, μουσική, πρόγραμμα); they anchor the topic before you decode grammar.

Accents are obligatory in print and distinguish homographs: πότε (when?) vs ποτέ (never), πού (where?) vs που (relative 'that/which'), ή (or) vs η (the).

The final -ν is kept before vowels and before μπ, ντ, γκ, τσ, τζ, ξ, ψ (την πόλη, δεν είναι) and dropped otherwise (τη γη, δε θέλω).

Passive voice -μαι/-ομαι forms are common in notices and instructions (απαγορεύεται, πωλείται, νοικιάζεται); read them as impersonal rules or offers.

Pronoun clitics attach before the verb (μου, σου, τον, την, το, μας) and their referent is usually the nearest preceding noun phrase - track it to answer 'to whom/what' questions.

Connectives that mark contrast or cause in written text: ενώ (whereas), επειδή/γιατί (because), αν και (although), επομένως/άρα (therefore).

Inference questions require joining two sentences; a single sentence rarely states the answer, so locate the linked cause, condition or contrast before choosing.

Text types and their conventions: informal email (Γεια σου + closing Φιλιά), formal letter (Αξιότιμε κύριε/Αξιότιμη κυρία + Με εκτίμηση), article with headline, notice with imperative verbs.

Register must stay consistent: use εσύ/σου throughout an informal text and εσείς/σας throughout a formal one; mixing them is a register error.

Accents and breathings are part of correctness: all polysyllabic words take one accent, and the accent never falls further back than the antepenultimate syllable.

The subjunctive after να is the normal way to express wishes, requests and purpose: Θα ήθελα να σας ρωτήσω, Γράφω για να ζητήσω πληροφορίες.

Polite formulas for formal writing: Θα ήθελα να..., Σας γράφω σχετικά με..., Παρακαλώ να με ενημερώσετε..., Ευχαριστώ εκ των προτέρων.

Word order is flexible but the verb-second pattern holds in main clauses; put the time expression first for emphasis (Την Κυριακή θα πάμε...).

Cohesion devices to place between paragraphs: Πρώτον, Επίσης, Επιπλέον, Ωστόσο, Από την άλλη πλευρά, Τέλος/Συμπερασματικά.

Future is formed with θα plus subjunctive: θα γράψω (once), θα γράφω (habitually); the choice signals aspect and should match the meaning intended.

Three genders with article pairs: ο (masculine), η (feminine), το (neuter); the article must agree with the noun in case and number, not just gender.

Four cases: nominative (subject), genitive (possession, 'of', indirect object with verbs like δίνω), accusative (direct object, after most prepositions), vocative (address).

Articles by case: masc ο/του/τον/-, fem η/της/την/-, neut το/του/το/-; plural masc οι/των/τους, fem οι/των/τις, neut τα/των/τα.

Prepositions take the accusative (σε, με, για, από, προς, κατά) or the genitive in fixed phrases (μετά από, λόγω, χάρη σε); none governs the nominative.

Verb endings, present active: -ω, -εις, -ει, -ουμε, -ετε, -ουν(ε); past active -α, -ες, -ε, -αμε, -ατε, -αν(ε) - the person is carried by the ending, so subject pronouns are optional.

Aspect pairs: γράφω/γράψω, λέω/πω, βλέπω/δω; the aorist stem appears after να and after θα for single completed actions.

Personal pronouns in the genitive are the indirect objects: μου, σου, του/της/του, μας, σας, τους - placed before the verb or after an imperative (Πες μου).

Comparatives and superlatives: -τερος/-τερη/-τερο for the comparative, ο/η/το πιο + adjective for the superlative; irregulars include καλός → καλύτερος/άριστος and μεγάλος → μεγαλύτερος.

Greek stress placement changes meaning, so record the stressed syllable of unfamiliar words heard in the recording rather than the spelling you expect.

Register cues in speech: singular εσύ forms signal informal or peer address; plural εσείς and the vocative κύριε/κυρία signal formal or polite address.

Numbers, dates and times are frequent listening targets; note that Greek uses a comma as the decimal marker and a full stop for thousands (1.000,50).

Discourse markers carry the argument structure: λοιπόν (so/then), όμως (however), δηλαδή (that is), τελικά (finally/in the end), γι' αυτό (that is why).

Negation is doubled in Greek for emphasis and is still negative: Δεν είπα τίποτα means 'I said nothing', not 'I did not say something'.

The subjunctive after να marks intention, wish or request; hearing να plus a verb usually signals a plan, hope or instruction rather than a fact.

Tense listening: the aorist (έγραψα) reports a completed event, the imperfect (έγραφα) an ongoing or repeated past background - this distinction is a standard comprehension question.

When a question asks for the speaker's attitude, the evidence is in intonation and in evaluative adjectives/adverbs (δυστυχώς, ευτυχώς, φυσικά, σίγουρα), not in the topic words.

Genre decides layout: a ρεκλάμα/αγγελία is telegraphic and omits articles and verbs, while a personal letter (Αγαπητέ/Αγαπητή) uses full sentences and direct address.

Skim for cognates and international vocabulary first (τηλέφωνο, μουσική, πρόγραμμα); they anchor the topic before you decode grammar.

Accents are obligatory in print and distinguish homographs: πότε (when?) vs ποτέ (never), πού (where?) vs που (relative 'that/which'), ή (or) vs η (the).

The final -ν is kept before vowels and before μπ, ντ, γκ, τσ, τζ, ξ, ψ (την πόλη, δεν είναι) and dropped otherwise (τη γη, δε θέλω).

Passive voice -μαι/-ομαι forms are common in notices and instructions (απαγορεύεται, πωλείται, νοικιάζεται); read them as impersonal rules or offers.

Pronoun clitics attach before the verb (μου, σου, τον, την, το, μας) and their referent is usually the nearest preceding noun phrase - track it to answer 'to whom/what' questions.

Connectives that mark contrast or cause in written text: ενώ (whereas), επειδή/γιατί (because), αν και (although), επομένως/άρα (therefore).

Inference questions require joining two sentences; a single sentence rarely states the answer, so locate the linked cause, condition or contrast before choosing.

Text types and their conventions: informal email (Γεια σου + closing Φιλιά), formal letter (Αξιότιμε κύριε/Αξιότιμη κυρία + Με εκτίμηση), article with headline, notice with imperative verbs.

Register must stay consistent: use εσύ/σου throughout an informal text and εσείς/σας throughout a formal one; mixing them is a register error.

Accents and breathings are part of correctness: all polysyllabic words take one accent, and the accent never falls further back than the antepenultimate syllable.

The subjunctive after να is the normal way to express wishes, requests and purpose: Θα ήθελα να σας ρωτήσω, Γράφω για να ζητήσω πληροφορίες.

Polite formulas for formal writing: Θα ήθελα να..., Σας γράφω σχετικά με..., Παρακαλώ να με ενημερώσετε..., Ευχαριστώ εκ των προτέρων.

Word order is flexible but the verb-second pattern holds in main clauses; put the time expression first for emphasis (Την Κυριακή θα πάμε...).

Cohesion devices to place between paragraphs: Πρώτον, Επίσης, Επιπλέον, Ωστόσο, Από την άλλη πλευρά, Τέλος/Συμπερασματικά.

Future is formed with θα plus subjunctive: θα γράψω (once), θα γράφω (habitually); the choice signals aspect and should match the meaning intended.

Three genders with article pairs: ο (masculine), η (feminine), το (neuter); the article must agree with the noun in case and number, not just gender.

Four cases: nominative (subject), genitive (possession, 'of', indirect object with verbs like δίνω), accusative (direct object, after most prepositions), vocative (address).

Articles by case: masc ο/του/τον/-, fem η/της/την/-, neut το/του/το/-; plural masc οι/των/τους, fem οι/των/τις, neut τα/των/τα.

Prepositions take the accusative (σε, με, για, από, προς, κατά) or the genitive in fixed phrases (μετά από, λόγω, χάρη σε); none governs the nominative.

Verb endings, present active: -ω, -εις, -ει, -ουμε, -ετε, -ουν(ε); past active -α, -ες, -ε, -αμε, -ατε, -αν(ε) - the person is carried by the ending, so subject pronouns are optional.

Aspect pairs: γράφω/γράψω, λέω/πω, βλέπω/δω; the aorist stem appears after να and after θα for single completed actions.

Personal pronouns in the genitive are the indirect objects: μου, σου, του/της/του, μας, σας, τους - placed before the verb or after an imperative (Πες μου).

Comparatives and superlatives: -τερος/-τερη/-τερο for the comparative, ο/η/το πιο + adjective for the superlative; irregulars include καλός → καλύτερος/άριστος and μεγάλος → μεγαλύτερος.