In the new era of technology and constant texting through the internet, a wide variety of Greek slang words and phrases has emerged, aiming to simplify everyday communications. Some of them are abbreviations of Greek words, whereas others are English words adjusted to the Greek language.
Communicating in Greek through various messaging applications, such as Messenger, Viber, Instagram, and so on, has become more and more popular amongst youngsters. In this regard, most Greeks tend to write Greek with English characters, based on the pronunciation of each word. That’s how Greeklish was born: A new form of communication.
So, wondering what internet slang in Greek means? Or the Greek definition for slang?
In this article, we’ve gathered the most popular Greek internet slang words and phrases, along with examples of their use. At GreekPod101.com, we focus on real cases and dialogues, bringing you easy-to-learn examples of Greek expressions and text slang.
1. Τι λέει;
Greek Abbreviation: – not applicable –
Full Greek Expression: Τι λέει;
Romanization: Ti léi?
Meaning: “How is it going?”
This phrase is commonly used as a conversation opener when people are communicating through instant messaging (Messenger App, Viber App, etc.). Here’s an example of dialogue to help you understand what this internet slang in Greek means:
Greek:
A: Τι λέει;
B: αλά, εσύ;
Romanization:
A: Ti léi?
B: Kalá, esí?
Translation:
A: “How is it going?”
B: “Good, you?”
Literally, Τι λέει; translates as, “What does it say?” However, it’s been established as “How is it going?” and has thus become one of the most common Greek slang phrases.
2. τέσπα
Greek Abbreviation: τέσπα
Full Greek Expression: τέλος πάντων
Romanization: télos pándon
Meaning: “Nevermind; anyway; whatever”
This is one of many Greek internet slangs that’s basically a Greek abbreviation that emerged from the need for short and easy messaging. An example dialogue is shown below.
Greek:
A: Θα έρθεις αύριο;
B: Δυστυχώς δεν μπορώ.
A: Τέσπα. (Τέλος πάντων.)
Romanization:
A: Tha érthis ávrio?
B: Distihós den boró.
A: Téspa. (Télos pándon.)
Translation:
A: “Will you come tomorrow?”
B: “Unfortunately, I can’t.”
A: “Nevermind.”
At this point, note that even if it’s written as an abbreviation, τέσπα is almost never pronounced this way out loud. When reading a text or a message, it’s pronounced as its full version: τέλος πάντων.
3. αναπ
Greek Abbreviation: αναπ
Full Greek Expression: αναπάντητη (κλήση)
Romanization: anapánditi (klísi)
Meaning: “Missed (call)”
During the decade of the 2000s, mobile phones began to spread around Greece. Of course, using a mobile phone requires an SIM card, which is offered by a telecommunications company.
There are two choices: You can either sign a contract and pay a monthly bill, based on the total duration of your calls, or load the SIM card with a specific amount of money, which corresponds to a specific duration of calling time.
Back then, signing a contract was quite expensive, so most people preferred the latter option. Therefore, once somebody had only a few calling minutes left, an outgoing unanswered call was widely used, as part of everyday communication with a pre-arranged meaning.
Sounds too complicated? Let’s have a look at an example dialogue.
Greek:
A: Να περάσω να σε πάρω;
B: Ναι, ευχαριστώ.
A: Δεν έχω πολύ χρόνο ομιλίας. Θα σου κάνω αναπ για να βγεις έξω.
B: ΟΚ.
Romanization:
A: Na peráso na se páro?
B: Ne, efharistó.
A: Den ého polí hróno omilías. Tha su káno anap ya na vyis éxo.
B: Okéi.
Translation:
A: “Should I come over to pick you up?”
B: “Yes, thank you.”
A: “I don’t have much calling time left. I will ring you (implying once) so you can come out.”
B: “OK.”
As shown in the above dialogue, the individuals have arranged that the unanswered call will mean that the other person should come out. Similarly, this can be used in a wide variety of situations and it’s still used today.
4. μνμ
Greek Abbreviation: μνμ
Full Greek Expression: μήνυμα
Romanization: mínima
Meaning: “Message”
A popular Greek slang in social media, this is another Greek abbreviation which is used in messaging. It represents the word μήνυμα and it’s created by using the consonants of the word only, thus leading to μνμ. Here’s an example of how to use it:
Greek:
A: Σου έστειλα ένα μνμ χθες. Γιατί δεν απάντησες;
B: Δεν το είδα.
A: Α, οκ.
Romanization:
A: Su éstila éna mnm (mínima) hthes. Yatí den apándises?
B: Den to ída.
A: A, okéi.
Translation:
A: “I sent you a message yesterday. Why didn’t you answer?”
B: “I didn’t see it.”
A: “Oh, ok.”
5. ασαπ
Greek Abbreviation: ασαπ
Full Greek Expression: – not applicable –
Romanization: asap
Meaning: “ASAP” (As Soon As Possible)
One of the most commonly used Greek text slang in social media and texting, this is a Greek slang word which is…not that much Greek. It derives from the English abbreviation “ASAP,” which means “as soon as possible.” It’s just written with Greek characters, and has the same meaning.
Greek:
A: Θα έρθεις αύριο;
B: Δεν ξέρω. Θα σου πω ασαπ.
Romanization:
A: Tha érthis ávrio?
B: Den kséro. Tha su po asap.
Translation:
A: Will you come tomorrow?
B: I don’t know. I will let you know ASAP.
6. τπτ
Greek Abbreviation: τπτ
Full Greek Expression: τίποτα
Romanization: típota
Meaning: “Nothing”
A common Greek slang in text messages is Τπτ, which is a Greek abbreviation of the word τίποτα, meaning “nothing.” Let’s have a look at how it can be used in everyday messaging.
Greek:
A: Τι θα κάνεις αύριο;
B: Τπτ. Θες να βγούμε έξω για ένα ποτό;
Romanization:
A: Ti tha kánis ávrio?
B: Tpt (Típota). Thes na vgúme éxo ya éna potó?
Translation:
A: “What are you doing tomorrow?”
B: “Nothing. Do you want to go out for a drink?”
7. λολ
Greek Abbreviation: λολ
Full Greek Expression: – not applicable –
Romanization: lol
Meaning: “lol” or “laughing out loud”
This is another slang word which has been integrated into the Greek language from English. It’s just the abbreviation “lol,” meaning “laughing out loud,” written in Greek characters and with the same meaning.
Greek:
A: Χα χα! Τι αστείο που ήταν αυτό που είπες!
B: Λολ!
Romanization:
A: Ha ha! Ti astío pu ítan aftó pu ípes!
B: Lol!
Translation:
A: “Haha! What you’ve said was hilarious!”
B: “Lol!”
8. γτ
Greek Abbreviation: γτ
Full Greek Expression: γιατί
Romanization: yatí
Meaning: “Why/Because”
This is just another case of a common Greek slang word, which is used in everyday communications. The same idea of using only its consonants applies here. This way, γιατί becomes γτ, meaning either “why” or “because,” based on the context.
Greek:
A: Δεν είναι καλή ημέρα για μπάνιο στη θάλασσα σήμερα.
B: Γτ το λες αυτό;
A: Επειδή φυσάει πολύ.
Romanization:
A: Den íne kalí iméra ya bánio sti thálasa símera.
B: Yt (Yatí) to les aftó?
A: Epidí fisái polí.
Translation:
A: “It’s not a good day today to go swimming in the sea.”
B: “Why do you say that?”
A: “Because it’s very windy.”
9. ΣΚ
Greek Abbreviation: ΣΚ
Full Greek Expression: Σαββατοκύριακο
Romanization: Savatokíriako
Meaning: “Weekend”
This slang word is a Greek abbreviation which derives from the Greek compound word Σαββατοκύριακο, which translates as “weekend.” It consists of two words: Σάββατο (Sávato) meaning “Saturday” and Κυριακή (Kiriakí) meaning “Sunday.” So, ΣΚ represents the initials of these two words.
Greek:
A: Πότε θα έχεις λίγο χρόνο να μιλήσουμε;
B: Αυτό το ΣΚ.
Romanization:
A: Póte tha éhis lígo hróno na milísume?
B: Aftó to SK (Savatokíriako).
Translation:
A: “When will you have some time to talk?”
B: “This weekend.”
10. φλκ
Greek Abbreviation: φλκ
Full Greek Expression: φιλάκια
Romanization: filákia
Meaning: “Kisses”
Sending some virtual kisses is a sign of affection and politeness. Only the consonants are used again, and therefore φιλάκια becomes φλκ. This word is normally used for closing a conversation among good friends or people who know each other pretty well.
Greek:
A: Πότε θα έχεις λίγο χρόνο να μιλήσουμε;
B: Αυτό το σκ.
A: Οκ. Φλκ
Romanization:
A: Póte tha éhis lígo hróno na milísume?
B: Aftó to sk (savatokíriako).
A: Okéi. Flk (filákia)
Translation:
A: “When will you have some time to talk?”
B: “This weekend.”
A: “Ok. Kisses.”
11. δλδ
Greek Abbreviation: δλδ
Full Greek Expression: δηλαδή
Romanization: diladí
Meaning: “That is”
For the sake of easier and quicker communication, δηλαδή has become δλδ and it’s used in order to explain something. A characteristic example is shown in the following dialogue.
Greek:
A: Γιατί είναι καλό να τρώμε λαχανικά;
B: Επειδή είναι θρεπτικά.
A: Τι σημαίνει αυτό;
B: Είναι θρεπτικά, δλδ έχουν πολλές βιταμίνες.
Romanization:
A: Yatí íne kaló na tróme lahaniká?
B: Epidí íne threptiká.
A: Ti siméni aftó?
B: Íne threptiká, dld (diladí) éhoun polés vitamínes.
Translation:
A: “Why is it good to eat vegetables?”
B: “Because they are nutritious.”
A: “What does this mean?”
B: “They are nutritious, that is, they contain many vitamins.”
Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed this lesson on Greek words and internet slang! These Greek phrases and text slang will help you sound more fluent and add some flair to your Greek communication skills.
Greek slang words might easily confuse Greek language learners. However, we’re sure that you’re now a little bit more confident, aren’t you?
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