Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Eric: Hi everyone, and welcome back to GreekPod101.com. This is Upper Intermediate Season 1 Lesson 14 - Another Day, Another Greek Excursion! Eric here.
Chrissi: Γεια σας. I'm Chrissi.
Eric: In this lesson, you’ll learn about the verbs that have archaic forms in the conjugation of their passive voice.
Chrissi: The conversation takes place in the village of Lindos (Λίνδος) on Rhodes Island. It's between Katerina and Eva.
Eric: The speakers are colleagues and friends, so they’ll use informal Greek. Okay, let's listen to the conversation.

Lesson conversation

Κατερίνα: (αγκομαχώντας) Τι την ήθελα τη Λίνδο πρωινιάτικα; Με πονάνε και τα πόδια μου από χτες. Στάσου να πάρω μια ανάσα.
Εύα: Εσύ είσαι εδώ εθελοντικά. Οπότε σκαρφάλωνε τώρα και μη μιλάς!
: Εγώ τι να πω, που έχω στερηθεί τον ύπνο και παρόλα αυτά κάθε μέρα τρέχω σε εκδρομές.
Κατερίνα: Η αλήθεια είναι ότι δεν σε ζηλεύω καθόλου αγαπητή μου! Εσύ τραβάς μεγάλο ζόρι κάθε μέρα.
: Να σου πω, όταν θα φτάσουμε επάνω στον αρχαιολογικό χώρο, η θέα τουλάχιστον είναι καλή;
Εύα: Σου εγγυώμαι ότι αξίζει τον κόπο! Όταν φτάσουμε επάνω, θα δεις πιάτο όλη τη Λίνδο.
Κατερίνα: Ρε συ... κοίτα αυτόν με το γαϊδούρι που κατηφορίζει...
Εύα: Μα καλά, δεν βλέπει ότι δεν χωράει να περάσει; Το μονοπάτι είναι πολύ στενό. Πρέπει να περιμένει.
Κατερίνα: Βέβαια, προηγούνται οι τουρίστες που ανεβαίνουν. Τι κάνει;
Εύα: Τρέχει μάλλον να πάει να πάρει άλλους τουρίστες από κάτω για να τους ανεβάσει πάνω στο κάστρο.
Κατερίνα: Ωχ, χτύπησε μια κυρία!
Εύα: Εμ, δεν θέλει πολύ για να γίνει το κακό... τρέχα τώρα να δούμε αν είναι καλά.
Eric: Listen to the conversation with the English translation.
Katerina: (gasping) Why did I ever want to come to Lindos in the early morning? My feet have been hurting me since yesterday. Wait, let me catch my breath.
Eva: You are here voluntarily. So keep walking up and don't talk! What can I say?
: I'm sleep deprived yet every day I go on all these excursions.
Katerina: The truth is that I'm not jealous of you at all dear! You have a tough time each day.
: So, when we go up and reach the archaeological area, is the view any good at least?
Eva: I guarantee you that it's worth it! When we reach up, you will have the whole of Lindos at your feet.
Katerina: Hey... check out this guy coming down with the donkey.
Eva: Doesn't he see that there's not enough space for him to go through? The path is very narrow. He needs to wait.
Katerina: Of course, the tourists that go up have priority. What is he doing?
Eva: He is probably running down to get more tourists and take them up to the castle.
Katerina: Oh, a lady is hurt!
Eva: Well, it doesn't take much for something bad to happen... now run and let's check if she's alright.
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Eric: So our characters are in Lindos.
Chrissi: Yes. Lindos is a small village located on the east side of the island of Rhodes, at the foot of a steep rock. On the top lies a magnificent, centuries-old acropolis overlooking the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea and the white cubic houses of the village.
Eric: I know that the acropolis of Lindos is a major archaeological site, competing with Delphi for the title of the second most visited archeological site in Greece.
Chrissi: Well, there is a lot to see there. The medieval Castle of the Knights of St. John, the Greek Orthodox church of St. John, the Doric Temple of Athena Lindia (Λινδία), the Propylaea (Προπύλαια) of the sanctuary, and an ancient theatre situated beneath the Temple of Athena.
Eric: The small alleys of the village, which sit below the acropolis, are covered with large stones and form a labyrinth that was supposed to confuse the pirates.
Chrissi: Today of course, it only confuses the tourists who are there to enjoy the beautiful beaches near the village as well!
Eric: Listeners, if you have the chance, you should definitely check out Lindos. It's worth staying at least one night in order to fully enjoy what it has to offer. Okay, now onto the vocab.
VOCAB LIST
Eric: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is...
Chrissi: πρωινιάτικα [natural native speed]
Eric: in the middle of the early morning (said with annoyance)
Chrissi: πρωινιάτικα [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: πρωινιάτικα [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have...
Chrissi: ανάσα [natural native speed]
Eric: breath
Chrissi: ανάσα [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: ανάσα [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have...
Chrissi: σκαρφαλώνω [natural native speed]
Eric: to climb
Chrissi: σκαρφαλώνω [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: σκαρφαλώνω [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have...
Chrissi: στερούμαι [natural native speed]
Eric: to be deprived of, to not have
Chrissi: στερούμαι [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: στερούμαι [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have...
Chrissi: ζόρι [natural native speed]
Eric: strain, pressure, difficulty, force, tough time
Chrissi: ζόρι [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: ζόρι [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have...
Chrissi: εγγυώμαι [natural native speed]
Eric: to guarantee
Chrissi: εγγυώμαι [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: εγγυώμαι [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have...
Chrissi: πιάτο [natural native speed]
Eric: dish, plate
Chrissi: πιάτο [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: πιάτο [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have...
Chrissi: κατηφορίζω [natural native speed]
Eric: to go downhill, to slope down
Chrissi: κατηφορίζω [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: κατηφορίζω [natural native speed]
Eric: Next we have...
Chrissi: μονοπάτι [natural native speed]
Eric: path, pathway, trail, track
Chrissi: μονοπάτι [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: μονοπάτι [natural native speed]
Eric: And last...
Chrissi: προηγούμαι [natural native speed]
Eric: to be ahead, to precede, to lead
Chrissi: προηγούμαι [slowly - broken down by syllable]
Chrissi: προηγούμαι [natural native speed]
KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES
Eric: Let's take a closer look at some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first phrase is...
Chrissi: Παίρνω μια ανάσα. This consists of the verb παίρνω meaning “to take,” and μια ανάσα which means “a breath.”
Eric: So all together it has the same meaning and structure as English- “to take a breath.”
Chrissi: Right. Παίρνω μια ανάσα has an additional, more metaphorical meaning.
Eric: Yes. Like in English, it can also mean “to stop,” “to pause,” or “to rest.” Can you give us an example using this phrase?
Chrissi: Sure. For example, you can say: Σήμερα έχω πολλή δουλειά. Δεν έχω πάρει μια ανάσα!
Eric: Which means “Today I have a lot of work. I haven't caught a breath yet!” Okay, what's the next phrase?
Chrissi: Τραβάω ζόρι. This is a slang expression. It consists of the verb τραβάω meaning “to pull” and of the noun ζόρι which has no exact equivalent in English. It means something like “difficulty” or “tough time.”
Eric: So all together it means “to have a difficult time" or "to have a problem.”
Chrissi: You can use τραβάω ζόρι in informal situations, usually with friends and family.
Eric: Since this is a slang expression, don't use it in formal conversations.
Chrissi: Another way you might hear this expression is as an aggressive question: Τραβάς κανένα ζόρι; or Τραβάς κάνα ζόρι;
Eric: This is something very rude to say to someone as it's similar to saying “Is there a problem?” in the sense of “Do you want a piece of me?” Ok, Chrissi, can you give us another example using our phrase, but, now, in a polite way?
Chrissi: Sure. For example: Τράβηξα μεγάλο ζόρι για να μπορέσω να τελειώσω τις σπουδές μου.
Eric: “I had a tough time finishing my studies.” Okay, what's the last phrase?
Chrissi: The idiom βλέπω πιάτο. This consists of the verb βλέπω, “to see” and the noun πιάτο, “plate” or “dish,” which in this case is used as an adverb.
Eric: With this idiom, we’re saying that we can see something like a plate, a panoramic view from a higher point.
Chrissi: So all together it means “to see a panoramic view from a high point.” You should avoid using this in a very formal conversation though.
Eric: Chrissi, can you give us an example using this phrase?
Chrissi: Here's one: Aνεβήκαμε στον πύργο του Άιφελ και είδαμε πιάτο όλο το Παρίσι.
Eric: “We went up the Eiffel Tower and we saw a view of the whole of Paris.” Okay, now onto the lesson focus.

Lesson focus

Eric: In this lesson you’ll learn about verbs that have archaic forms in the conjugation of their passive voice.
Chrissi: These are the ones that in the passive voice end in -ώμαι with ωμέγα and -ούμαι. As you know, -ούμαι is the standard ending of conjugation B verbs that belong to the second class. -ώμαι with ωμέγα ending verbs belong here too…
Eric: ... but their present tense forms in the indicative and subjunctive mood, the future progressive and the past progressive tense don't follow the traditional conjugation model when in the passive voice. The present tense endings actually resemble ancient Greek verb endings. Chrissi, can you give us some examples of such verbs?
Chrissi: Sure. For example ανακλώμαι...
Eric: ...“to be reflected”...
Chrissi: ...εγγυώμαι...
Eric: ...“to guarantee”...
Chrissi: ...and ερευνώμαι...
Eric: ...“to be researched”. The archaic tenses are the present tense, the past progressive, and the future progressive tense.
Chrissi: Right. All the other tenses and forms follow the second class conjugation B model that verbs ending in -ούμαι follow.
Eric: Chrissi, let's conjugate an archaic verb in the present tense.
Chrissi: Okay. Let's take the verb εγγυώμαι, “to guarantee.” In the present tense it will be: εγγυώμαι, εγγυάσαι, εγγυάται, εγγυόμαστε or εγγυώμεθα, εγγυάστε or εγγυάσθε and εγγυούνται or εγγυώνται. For the future progressive tense, you just add the particle θα in front of these forms.
Eric: Ok, and the past progressive tense?
Chrissi: It becomes: εγγυόμουν, εγγυόσουν, εγγυόταν, εγγυόμασταν, εγγυόσασταν, εγγυόνταν or εγγυούνταν.
Eric: Ok, now let's move to the verbs with the ending…
Chrissi: -ούμαι. As you may remember from previous lessons, the past progressive tense for such verbs are very problematic, because some first and second person conjugations sound weird and unnatural in the singular and plural, even to native Greek speakers.
Eric: Their use in the past progressive tense is very difficult even for native Greek speakers, so you don't have to worry if you can't get them right.
Chrissi: No grammar police this time! Ok, let's give an example of an -ούμαι ending verb in the present tense. Let's take the verb στερούμαι, “to be deprived.” In the present tense it will be στερούμαι, στερείσαι, στερείται, στερούμαστε or στερούμεθα, στερείστε or στερείσθε and στερούνται.
Eric: Great! Now let's move on to the past progressive tense.
Chrissi: As was mentioned before, the forms for the 1st and 2nd person singular and plural, for example στερούμουν, στερούσουν and στερούμασταν, στερούσασταν respectively, sound a bit ugly, so you should avoid using them.
Eric: Greeks would generally use a synonym or a phrase instead.
Chrissi: However, the third person singular, στερούνταν or στερείτο, and the same person in plural, στερούνταν or στερούντο, sounds OK.
Eric: How's it possible that there's such an issue in the Greek grammar?
Chrissi: Well, the Greek language is very old and very vast. It has been developing non-stop for the last 4000 years, so not everything can fit and follow rigid and absolute rules.
Eric: I see.
Chrissi: Listeners, for more details on these verbs, check out our lesson notes.

Outro

Eric: Okay, that’s all for this lesson. Thank you for listening, everyone, and we’ll see you next time! Bye!
Chrissi: Γεια χαρά!

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