Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Notes

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Lesson Transcript

Introduction
Eric: Welcome to 3-Minute Greek Season 1, Lesson 4 - Asking How Someone Is. In this lesson, you’ll learn how to ask and answer the question ‘How are you?’ in Greek.
Body
Eric: Here's the informal way to ask 'How are you?' in Greek.
Chrissi: [Normal] Τι κάνεις; (Ti kánis)
Eric: First is an interrogative pronoun meaning 'what'
Chrissi: [Normal] τι [Slow] τι (ti)
Eric: Last is the verb meaning 'you do'
Chrissi: [Normal] κάνεις [Slow] κάνεις (kánis)
Eric: Note the rising intonation. Listen again to the informal question meaning 'How are you?'
Chrissi: [Slow] Τι κάνεις; [Normal] Τι κάνεις;
Eric: Now, imagine you're speaking to a stranger. Here's the formal way to ask, 'How are you?'
Chrissi: [Normal] Τι κάνετε; (Ti kánete)
Eric: First is an interrogative pronoun meaning 'what'
Chrissi: [Normal] τι [Slow] τι (ti)
Eric: Last is the verb meaning 'you do'
Chrissi: [Normal] κάνετε [Slow] κάνετε (kánete)
Eric: Listen again to the formal question meaning 'How do you do?'
Chrissi: [Slow] Τι κάνετε; [Normal] Τι κάνετε;
Eric: Here's a response meaning 'Fine, thank you.'
Chrissi: [Normal] Καλά, ευχαριστώ. (Kalá, efharistó.)
Eric: First is an adverb meaning 'fine'
Chrissi: [Normal] καλά [Slow] καλά (kalá)
Eric: Last is the verb meaning 'I thank'
Chrissi: [Normal] ευχαριστώ [Slow] ευχαριστώ (efharistó)
Eric: Listen again to the response, 'Fine, thank you.'
Chrissi: [Slow] Καλά, ευχαριστώ. [Normal] Καλά, ευχαριστώ.
Eric: Here's a response meaning, 'Not so well.'
Chrissi: [Normal] Όχι τόσο καλά. (óhi tóso kalá)
Eric: First is a particle meaning 'no'
Chrissi: [Normal] όχι [Slow] όχι (óhi)
Eric: Next is the adverb meaning 'so'
Chrissi: [Normal] τόσο [Slow] τόσο (tóso)
Eric: Last is the adverb meaning 'well'
Chrissi: [Normal] καλά [Slow] καλά (kalá)
Eric: Listen again to the response, 'Not so well.'
Chrissi: [Slow] Όχι τόσο καλά. [Normal] Όχι τόσο καλά.
Cultural Insight
Eric: Now it's time for a quick cultural insight.
Chrissi: In some situations, the question "Τι κάνεις" or "Τι κάνετε;" can also mean more generally "What are you doing?" since the verb "κάνω" in Greek means "to do." In the case of "How are you?" though, the verb "κάνω" is not used literally. This is a quite common greeting, so when you are in Greece, you will hear it many times. Another way to ask "How are you?" in informal Greek is "Πώς είσαι" while in formal Greek, it's "Πώς είστε;".

Outro

Eric: And that’s all for this lesson. Don’t forget to check out the lesson notes, and we’ll see you in the next lesson!
Chrissi: Γεια χαρά!

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