Learn how to use essential social expressions
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| Welcome to Can-Do Greek by GreekPod101.com. |
| In this lesson, you’ll learn how to use essential social expressions in Greek. |
| For example, "Excuse me" is |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| Jenny Asimakis is on the train. A fellow passenger drops his wallet as he exits the train. Jenny picks up the wallet and chases after the man. |
| Before you listen to the dialogue, let's preview some of its key components. |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| "Excuse me" |
| Με συγχωρείτε. |
| Με συγχωρείτε. |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| "You're welcome." |
| Παρακαλώ. |
| Παρακαλώ. |
| Ευχαριστώ. (Efharistó.) |
| "Thank you." |
| Ευχαριστώ. |
| Ευχαριστώ. |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| "It's alright." |
| Δεν πειράζει. |
| Δεν πειράζει. |
| Listen to the following three short dialogues between Jenny and the man. |
| Ready? |
| Jenny is chasing the man on the platform with the wallet in her hand. |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| Ναι; (Ne?) |
| Jenny hands the wallet to the man. |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| Jenny turns to board the train, but the doors shut. |
| Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.) |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| Once more with the English translation. |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| "Excuse me." |
| Ναι; (Ne?) |
| "Yes?" |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| "Thank you very much." |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| "You're welcome." |
| Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.) |
| "I'm sorry." |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| "It's alright." |
| Let's break down the conversations. |
| First, do you remember how Jenny Asimakis says, |
| "Excuse me." |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| First is με (me), "me." Με . Με. |
| Next is συγχωρείτε (sinhoríte), "[you] excuse." Συγχωρείτε . Συγχωρείτε. |
| Συγχωρείτε is from the verb συγχωρώ (sinhoró), "to excuse" or "to forgive." Συγχωρώ. |
| All together, it’s Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) “Excuse me.” Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| Note: This expression can also be used as a mild apology, but here Jenny uses it to get the attention of the person she’s chasing after. |
| Do you remember how the passenger acknowledges Jenny by saying, |
| "Yes?" |
| Ναι; (Ne?) |
| Ναι; (Ne?) "Yes?" Ναι; . |
| Ναι; (Ne?) |
| The second part of the conversation takes place after Jenny returns the passenger's wallet. |
| Do you remember how the passenger politely says, |
| "Thank you very much." |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| First is ευχαριστώ (efcharistó), "thank you." Ευχαριστώ . Ευχαριστώ. |
| Next is πάρα πολύ (pára polí), "very much." Πάρα πολύ . Πάρα πολύ. You use this to add more emphasis to your appreciation. |
| All together, Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) "Thank you very much." |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| Do you remember how Jenny says, |
| "You're welcome." |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| Παρακαλώ (Parakaló), "You're welcome," in this context. Παρακαλώ . Παρακαλώ. |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| After the train doors shut and Jenny misses her train, do you remember how the passenger apologies to Jenny by saying, |
| "I'm sorry." |
| Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.) |
| Συγγνώμη (signómi), literally means "apology," but translates as "I'm sorry" in this context. Συγγνώμη . |
| Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.) |
| Do you remember how Jenny replies, |
| "It's alright." |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| First is δεν (den), "not." Δεν . Δεν. |
| Next is πειράζει (pirázi), "[it] matters." Πειράζει . Πειράζει. |
| Note: πειράζει (pirázi) is a shortened form of αυτό πειράζει (aftó pirázi), "it bothers." |
| In Greek, αυτό (aftó) is usually omitted, as it can be understood from context. |
| Πειράζει (pirázi) is from the verb πειράζω (pirázo), "to bother." Πειράζω. |
| All together, Δεν πειράζει (Den pirázi) literally translates as "[It] doesn’t bother [me]," but it translates as "It's alright." |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| This is a common phrase used to express that things are alright. |
| Let’s look at the expressions once more. Listen and repeat, or speak along. |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| “Excuse me.” |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| Ναι; (Ne?) |
| “Yes?” |
| Ναι; (Ne?) |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| “Thank you very much.” |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| “You’re welcome.” |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.) |
| “I’m sorry.” |
| Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.) |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| “It’s alright.” |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| Let's review. |
| Respond to the prompts by speaking aloud. Then repeat after the native speaker, focusing on pronunciation. |
| Ready? |
| Do you remember how Jenny Asimakis says, |
| "Excuse me." |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| And how the passenger says, |
| "Yes?" |
| Ναι; (Ne?) |
| Ναι; (Ne?) |
| Do you remember how to say, |
| "Thank you." |
| Ευχαριστώ. (Efharistó.) |
| Ευχαριστώ. (Efharistó.) |
| Do you remember how to say, |
| "Thank you very much." |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| And how to say, |
| "You're welcome." |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| Do you remember how the passenger says, |
| "I'm sorry." |
| Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.) |
| Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.) |
| And how Jenny says, |
| "It's alright." |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| Let's practice. |
| Imagine you're Martha Asimakis , and you receive a popular Greek candy from your Greek teacher. |
| Say, "Thank you very much." |
| Ready? |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| Παρακαλώ. (Parakaló.) |
| Listen again and repeat. |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| Ευχαριστώ πάρα πολύ. (Efharistó pára polí.) |
| Let's try another. |
| Imagine you're Pericles Asimakis , , and a passenger bumps into you. |
| Respond by saying, "It's alright." |
| Ready? |
| Συγγνώμη. (Signómi.) |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| Listen again and repeat. |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| Δεν πειράζει. (Den pirázi.) |
| Let's try one more. |
| Imagine you're Pericles Asimakis , and you see a man drop his wallet. |
| Get his attention. |
| Ready? |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| Ναι; (Ne?) |
| Listen again and repeat. |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| Με συγχωρείτε. (Me sinhoríte.) |
| Well done! This is the end of the lesson and the Can Use Essential Social Expressions unit of this course. |
| Remember, these Can Do lessons are about learning practical language skills. |
| What's next? |
| Show us what you can do. |
| When you're ready, take your assessment. |
| You can take it again and again, so try anytime you like. |
| Our teachers will assess it, and give you your results. |
| Keep practicing — and move on to the next lesson! |
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