How to Ask If a Store Has a Specific Item

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Lesson Transcript

Welcome to Can-Do Greek by GreekPod101.com.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to ask if a store has something in Greek.

For example, "Excuse me, do you have salt?" is

Συγγνώμη, έχετε αλάτι; (Signómi, éhete aláti?)

Alex Asimakis is at a small grocery store and wants to buy some salt.

He gets the clerk's attention and asks if the store has some salt.

Before you hear the conversation, let's preview some of its key components.

Listen to the conversation.

αλάτι (aláti)

"salt"

αλάτι

εδώ (edó)

"here"

εδώ

Συγγνώμη, έχετε αλάτι; (Signómi, éhete aláti?)

Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.)

Once more with the English translation.

Συγγνώμη, έχετε αλάτι; (Signómi, éhete aláti?)

"Excuse me, do you have salt?"

Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.)

"Yes, it's here."

Let's break down the conversation.

Do you remember how Alex asks,

"Excuse me, do you have salt?"

Συγγνώμη, έχετε αλάτι; (Signómi, éhete aláti?)

First is συγγνώμη (signómi), literally "apology," but translates as "pardon me" or "excuse me," in this context. Συγγνώμη . Συγγνώμη.

Next is έχετε (éhete), "you have (plural)." Έχετε . Έχετε.

Έχετε (éhete) is a shortened form of εσείς έχετε (esís éhete), "you have," where "you" is plural, as in "you all." The εσείς is usually omitted, as it’s understood from context.

Note, the plural form, εσείς (esís), is used because Alex is addressing the clerk as the representative of a group — in this case the business.

Έχετε (éhete) is from the verb έχω (ého), the dictionary form of the verb "to have." Έχω.

Last is αλάτι (aláti), "salt." Αλάτι . Αλάτι.

Αλάτι (aláti) is in the accusative because it’s the object of έχετε (éhete).

All together, Συγγνώμη, έχετε αλάτι; (Signómi, éhete aláti?) This literally means "Excuse me, [you] have salt?" but translates as "Excuse me, do you have salt?"

Συγγνώμη, έχετε αλάτι; (Signómi, éhete aláti?)

Let’s take a closer look at the response.

Do you remember how the shop clerk says,

"Yes, it's here."

Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.)

First is ναι (ne), "yes." Ναι . Ναι.

Next is εδώ (edó), "here." Εδώ . Εδώ.

Last is είναι (íne), "is." Είναι . Είναι.

Είναι (íne) is from the verb είμαι (íme), the dictionary form of the verb "to be." Είμαι.

All together, it's Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.), literally "Yes, here [it] is," but it translates as "Yes, it's here."

Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.)

The pattern is

Έχετε (Éhete) ITEM ;

"Do you have ITEM?"

Έχετε ITEM ;

To use this pattern, simply replace the {ITEM} placeholder with the thing you’re looking for.

Note: This pattern requires a noun in the accusative case, the case used when a noun is the direct object of a verb, in this case "have."

Imagine you're looking for milk, γάλα (gála). Γάλα . Γάλα.

Say

"Do you have milk?"

Ready?

Έχετε γάλα; (Éhete gála?)

"Do you have milk?"

Έχετε γάλα; (Éhete gála?)

In Greek, all nouns are either singular or plural. Unlike English, they also have grammatical gender and case.

For this lesson, let’s review Greek singular nouns in the accusative case.

Neuter nouns keep the dictionary form.

For example, αλάτι (aláti), "salt," is the dictionary form and also the accusative form. Αλάτι (aláti) . Αλάτι.

Feminine nouns keep the dictionary form.

For example, ζάχαρη (záhari), "sugar" is the dictionary form and also the accusative form.

Ζάχαρη (záhari) . Ζάχαρη.

Masculine singular nouns change in the accusative case, as they drop the final -ς (sígma).

For example, καφές (kafés), "coffee," is the dictionary form, but καφέ (kafé) is the accusative form.

In Greek, there are some rules of thumb for the gender of nouns.

Nouns that end in -ς (sígma) tend to be masculine.

καφές (kafés), "coffee,"

Nouns that end in -α (álfa) or -η (éta) tend to be feminine.

μπανάνα (banána), "banana,"

ζάχαρη (záhari), "sugar,"

Nouns that end in -ι (yóta) or -ο (ómikron) tend to be neuter.

αλάτι (aláti), "salt,"

βιβλίο (vivlío), "book."

Again, the key pattern is

Έχετε (Éhete) ITEM;

"Do you have ITEM?"

Έχετε ITEM;

Let's look at some examples.

Listen and repeat or speak along with the native speakers.

Έχετε αλάτι; (Éhete aláti?)

“Do you have salt?”

Έχετε αλάτι; (Éhete aláti?)

Έχετε γάλα; (Éhete gála?)

“Do you have milk?”

Έχετε γάλα; (Éhete gála?)

Έχετε καφέ; (Éhete kafé?)

“Do you have coffee?”

Έχετε καφέ; (Éhete kafé?)

Έχετε σοκολάτα; (Éhete sokoláta?)

“Do you have chocolate?”

Έχετε σοκολάτα; (Éhete sokoláta?)

Πού είναι η ζάχαρη; (Pú íne i záhari?)

“Where is the sugar?”

Πού είναι η ζάχαρη; (Pú íne i záhari?)

Did you notice how the last speaker used a different pattern?

Πού είναι η ζάχαρη; (Pú íne i záhari?)

"Where is the sugar?"

First is πού (pú), "where." Πού . Πού.

Next is είναι (íne), "is." Είναι.

Είναι (íne) is from the verb είμαι (íme), the dictionary form of the verb "to be."

After this is η ζάχαρη (i záhari), "the sugar." Η ζάχαρη.

Ζάχαρη (záhari), "sugar". Ζάχαρη . Ζάχαρη.

In Greek, all nouns have grammatical gender and case, and are either singular or plural.

Ζάχαρη (záhari) is feminine and singular.

Before this is η (i), "the." Η . Η.

Η is feminine singular, and in the nominative case to agree with ζάχαρη (záhari).

This pattern is:

Πού είναι (Pú íne) ITEM;

"Where is ITEM?"

To use this pattern, simply replace the {ITEM} placeholder with the thing you’re looking for.

Note: This pattern requires a noun preceded by the corresponding definite article.

You should be aware of this pattern, but you won’t need it for this lesson.

Let’s review the new words.

καφές (kafés)

"coffee"

καφές

σοκολάτα (sokoláta)

"chocolate"

σοκολάτα

ζάχαρη (záhari)

"sugar"

ζάχαρη

Let's review.

Respond to the prompts by speaking aloud. Then repeat after the native speaker, focusing on pronunciation.

Ready?

Do you remember the formal way to say,

"Excuse me."

Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.)

And how to say "salt?"

αλάτι (aláti)

Do you remember how Alex Asimakis asks,

"Excuse me, do you have salt?"

Συγγνώμη, έχετε αλάτι; (Signómi, éhete aláti?)

Do you remember how to say "yes?"

ναι (ne)

And how to say "here?"

εδώ (edó)

Do you remember how the clerk says,

"Yes, it's here."

Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.)

Do you remember how to say "milk?"

γάλα (gála)

And how to say "coffee?"

καφές (kafés)

Do you remember the form the word for "coffee" takes when it is the object of a verb?

καφέ (kafé)

And how to say "sugar?"

ζάχαρη (záhari)

Let's practice.

Imagine you're Alex Asimakis, and you're at the grocery store. Get the shopkeeper's attention and ask if they have milk, or γάλα (gála).

Ready?

Συγγνώμη, έχετε γάλα; (Signómi, éhete gála?)

Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.)

Listen again and repeat.

Συγγνώμη, έχετε γάλα; (Signómi, éhete gála?)

Let's try another.

Now you want to buy coffee, or καφέ (kafé).

Ready?

Συγγνώμη, έχετε καφέ; (Signómi, éhete kafé?)

Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.)

Listen again and repeat.

Συγγνώμη, έχετε καφέ; (Signómi, éhete kafé?)

Let’s try one more.

Finally, you’d like to buy sugar, or ζάχαρη (záhari).

Ready?

Συγγνώμη, έχετε ζάχαρη; (Signómi, éhete záhari?)

Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.)

Listen again and repeat.

Συγγνώμη, έχετε ζάχαρη; (Signómi, éhete záhari?)

In this lesson, you learned how to ask if a store has something. This plays an essential role in the larger skill of shopping at a grocery store. Let’s review.

Do you remember how to say "please?"

παρακαλώ (parakaló)

And do you remember how to say,

"This, please."

Αυτό, παρακαλώ. (Aftó, parakaló.)

Imagine you're Jack Jones , and you're at a grocery store, and you'd like to buy an Item located away from you. You point at it and request "that."

Do you remember how to say "that" in Greek?

εκείνο (ekíno)

Request "that" from the waiter.

Εκείνο, παρακαλώ. (Ekíno, parakaló.)

Ορίστε. (Oríste.)

Listen again and repeat.

Εκείνο, παρακαλώ. (Ekíno, parakaló.)

You remembered that you also wanted to buy milk

Do you remember how to say "milk" in Greek?

γάλα (gála)

Now ask the clerk if the store has milk.

Ready?

Έχετε γάλα; (Éhete gála?)

Ναι, εδώ είναι. (Ne, edó íne.)

Listen again and repeat.

Έχετε γάλα; (Éhete gála?)

This is the end of this lesson.

In this lesson, you learned how to ask if a store has something, an essential skill for shopping at a grocery store.

Remember, these Can Do lessons are about learning practical language skills.

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