Learn how to handle impolite speech in Greek
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Michael: Hi everyone, and welcome back to GreekPod101.com. This is Upper Beginner, Season 1, Lesson 9 - Arguing In Greece. Michael here. |
| Chrissi: Γεια σας. I'm Chrissi. |
| Michael: In this lesson, you'll learn about casual and impolite speech. The conversation takes place at an apartment. |
| Chrissi: The conversation is between Thanasis and Anneta, the parents of Rea and Alexis. |
| Michael: The speakers are husband and wife; therefore, they will be speaking in informal Greek. Let's listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Θανάσης: Τι έγινε; Φτάσανε τα παιδιά; |
| Αννέτα: Ναι, μόλις τώρα με πήρε η Ρέα απ' το ξενοδοχείο. Θα πάνε να φάνε έξω. |
| Θανάσης: Άντε να φάμε κι εμείς. Τι έχει να φάμε; |
| Αννέτα: Τίποτα. Πού να προλάβω, βρε Θανάση! Όλο το πρωί έτρεχα με τον δικηγόρο για το οικόπεδο. |
| Θανάσης: Ρε Αννέτα, κι εμείς τι θα φάμε τώρα; Άδειο είναι το ψυγείο! |
| Αννέτα: Τι; Ήθελες να πάω και για ψώνια, βρε ακαμάτη, που είμαι στους πέντε δρόμους απ' το πρωί να τρέχω για την κληρονομιά; |
| Θανάσης: Μπα! Στους πέντε δρόμους; Αφού πήρε τηλέφωνο η Ζανέτ και σε έψαχνε. |
| Αννέτα: Ναι ε; |
| Θανάσης: Είπε ότι είχατε κανονίσει να πάτε για καφέ και μπιρίμπα με την Καίτη στο σπίτι της Δέσποινας, και επειδή δεν σε έβρισκε στο κινητό για να πηγαίνατε μαζί, πήρε σπίτι. |
| Αννέτα: Εεε... πώς να με βρει; Αφού σου είπα ότι έτρεχα! |
| Θανάσης: Δηλαδή εσύ δεν πήγες τελικά να βρεις τις φίλες σου; |
| Αννέτα: Εεε… όχι βέβαια! Πού να προλάβω! |
| Θανάσης: Είσαι ψεύτρα, κυρα-Αννέτα! Με πήρε μετά από 5 λεπτά η γυναίκα να μου πει πως είχες ήδη φτάσει τελικά στο σπίτι της Δέσποινας ήδη, για να μην ανησυχώ... τρομάρα σου! |
| Αννέτα: Ώχου, σταμάτα πια, μωρέ Θανάση! Άσε με ήσυχη, με κουράζει αυτή η γκρίνια σου. Αμάν! Θα παραγγείλω εγώ κάτι να φάμε τέλος πάντων. Αχ, άτιμη Ζανέτ, μ' έκαψες! |
| Michael: Let's hear the conversation one time slowly. |
| Θανάσης: Τι έγινε; Φτάσανε τα παιδιά; |
| Αννέτα: Ναι, μόλις τώρα με πήρε η Ρέα απ' το ξενοδοχείο. Θα πάνε να φάνε έξω. |
| Θανάσης: Άντε να φάμε κι εμείς. Τι έχει να φάμε; |
| Αννέτα: Τίποτα. Πού να προλάβω, βρε Θανάση! Όλο το πρωί έτρεχα με τον δικηγόρο για το οικόπεδο. |
| Θανάσης: Ρε Αννέτα, κι εμείς τι θα φάμε τώρα; Άδειο είναι το ψυγείο! |
| Αννέτα: Τι; Ήθελες να πάω και για ψώνια, βρε ακαμάτη, που είμαι στους πέντε δρόμους απ' το πρωί να τρέχω για την κληρονομιά; |
| Θανάσης: Μπα! Στους πέντε δρόμους; Αφού πήρε τηλέφωνο η Ζανέτ και σε έψαχνε. |
| Αννέτα: Ναι ε; |
| Θανάσης: Είπε ότι είχατε κανονίσει να πάτε για καφέ και μπιρίμπα με την Καίτη στο σπίτι της Δέσποινας, και επειδή δεν σε έβρισκε στο κινητό για να πηγαίνατε μαζί, πήρε σπίτι. |
| Αννέτα: Εεε... πώς να με βρει; Αφού σου είπα ότι έτρεχα! |
| Θανάσης: Δηλαδή εσύ δεν πήγες τελικά να βρεις τις φίλες σου; |
| Αννέτα: Εεε… όχι βέβαια! Πού να προλάβω! |
| Θανάσης: Είσαι ψεύτρα, κυρα-Αννέτα! Με πήρε μετά από 5 λεπτά η γυναίκα να μου πει πως είχες ήδη φτάσει τελικά στο σπίτι της Δέσποινας, για να μην ανησυχώ... τρομάρα σου! |
| Αννέτα: Ώχου, σταμάτα πια, μωρέ Θανάση! Άσε με ήσυχη, με κουράζει αυτή η γκρίνια σου. Αμάν! Θα παραγγείλω εγώ κάτι να φάμε τέλος πάντων. Αχ, άτιμη Ζανέτ, μ' έκαψες! |
| Michael: Listen to the conversation with the English translation. |
| Θανάσης: Τι έγινε; Φτάσανε τα παιδιά; |
| Thanasis: What's up? Did the kids arrive? |
| Αννέτα: Ναι, μόλις τώρα με πήρε η Ρέα απ' το ξενοδοχείο. Θα πάνε να φάνε έξω. |
| Anneta: Yes, Rea just called me from the hotel. They are going out to eat. |
| Θανάσης: Άντε να φάμε κι εμείς. Τι έχει να φάμε; |
| Thanasis: Okay, let's eat too. What's there to eat? |
| Αννέτα: Τίποτα. Πού να προλάβω, βρε Θανάση! Όλο το πρωί έτρεχα με τον δικηγόρο για το οικόπεδο. |
| Anneta: Nothing. I didn't have time, Thanasis! I was busy all morning with the lawyer talking about the lot. |
| Θανάσης: Ρε Αννέτα, κι εμείς τι θα φάμε τώρα; Άδειο είναι το ψυγείο! |
| Thanasis: So, Anneta, what are we supposed to eat now? The fridge is empty! |
| Αννέτα: Τι; Ήθελες να πάω και για ψώνια, βρε ακαμάτη, που είμαι στους πέντε δρόμους απ' το πρωί να τρέχω για την κληρονομιά; |
| Anneta: What? You wanted me to go grocery shopping as well, you lazy man? All while being out in the streets since the morning dealing with the inheritance? |
| Θανάσης: Μπα! Στους πέντε δρόμους; Αφού πήρε τηλέφωνο η Ζανέτ και σε έψαχνε. |
| Thanasis: Oh really?! Out in the streets? But Jeanette called looking for you. |
| Αννέτα: Ναι ε; |
| Anneta: Really? |
| Θανάσης: Είπε ότι είχατε κανονίσει να πάτε για καφέ και μπιρίμπα με την Καίτη στο σπίτι της Δέσποινας, και επειδή δεν σε έβρισκε στο κινητό για να πηγαίνατε μαζί, πήρε σπίτι. |
| Thanasis: She said that you had arranged to go for some coffee and biriba with Cate over at Despina's, and since she couldn't reach you on the phone to go together, she called home. |
| Αννέτα: Εεε... πώς να με βρει; Αφού σου είπα ότι έτρεχα! |
| Anneta: Uuuh… how could she reach me? I told you I was busy! |
| Θανάσης: Δηλαδή εσύ δεν πήγες τελικά να βρεις τις φίλες σου; |
| Thanasis: So you didn't go to meet your friends in the end? |
| Αννέτα: Εεε… όχι βέβαια! Πού να προλάβω! |
| Anneta: Uuuh… of course not! I didn't have time! |
| Θανάσης: Είσαι ψεύτρα, κυρα-Αννέτα! Με πήρε μετά από 5 λεπτά η γυναίκα να μου πει πως είχες ήδη φτάσει τελικά στο σπίτι της Δέσποινας ήδη, για να μην ανησυχώ... τρομάρα σου! |
| Thanasis: You are a liar, Anneta! That woman called me 5 minutes later to tell me that you had already arrived at Despina's house in the end, so I wouldn't worry… shame on you! |
| Αννέτα: Ώχου, σταμάτα πια, μωρέ Θανάση! Άσε με ήσυχη, με κουράζει αυτή η γκρίνια σου. Αμάν! Θα παραγγείλω εγώ κάτι να φάμε τέλος πάντων. Αχ, άτιμη Ζανέτ, μ' έκαψες! |
| Anneta: Oh, will you stop it, Thanasis? Leave me alone; your nagging tires me. Enough! I'll order something so we can finally eat. Oh, Jeanette, you wicked thing, you gave me away! |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Michael: What is biriba? |
| Chrissi: Biriba is a type of card game that is very popular in Greece. |
| Michael: How many people can usually play together? |
| Chrissi: Usually, two to six people play together. |
| Michael: When do people play this card game in Greece? |
| Chrissi: It is very popular on New Year's Eve, especially among the older folks. |
| Michael: And is it possible to bet money? |
| Chrissi: This game can keep people up till the early morning hours! |
| Michael: What would you say to organize a match with your friends? |
| Chrissi: Θα μαζευτούμε να παίξουμε καμιά παρτίδα μπιρίμπα; |
| Michael: which means "Are we going to gather to play a game of biriba?" |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Michael: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is... |
| Chrissi: φτάνω |
| Michael: to reach, to arrive |
| Chrissi: φτάνω |
| Michael: Next |
| Chrissi: προλαβαίνω |
| Michael: to make it on time |
| Chrissi: προλαβαίνω |
| Michael: Next |
| Chrissi: άδειος |
| Michael: empty |
| Chrissi: άδειος |
| Michael: Next |
| Chrissi: ψυγείο |
| Michael: fridge |
| Chrissi: ψυγείο |
| Michael: Next |
| Chrissi: ακαμάτης |
| Michael: lazy man |
| Chrissi: ακαμάτης |
| Michael: Next |
| Chrissi: κληρονομιά |
| Michael: inheritance |
| Chrissi: κληρονομιά |
| Michael: Next |
| Chrissi: κανονίζω |
| Michael: to arrange |
| Chrissi: κανονίζω |
| Michael: Next |
| Chrissi: ψεύτης |
| Michael: liar |
| Chrissi: ψεύτης |
| Michael: Next |
| Chrissi: γκρίνια |
| Michael: nagging |
| Chrissi: γκρίνια |
| Michael: Next |
| Chrissi: άτιμος |
| Michael: wicked |
| Chrissi: άτιμος |
| Michael: Let’s have a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. |
| VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE |
| Michael: The first phrase we'll look at is |
| Chrissi: Πού να προλάβω! |
| Michael: which means "I didn't have time!" This structure uses the location adverb |
| Chrissi: πού (pú) |
| Michael: meaning "where" and a verb in the subjunctive mood using |
| Chrissi: να (na). |
| Michael: You shouldn't take this structure literally, as its function is to negate the main verb. So although the verb is in the affirmative mode, it turns the phrase into a strong negation. It's like saying, "How on Earth would I have all the time for that?" Let's hear another similar sentence: |
| Chrissi: Πού να με ακούσει! |
| Michael: which means "He just didn't listen to me!" |
| Our next phrase is |
| Chrissi: Στους πέντε δρόμους |
| Michael: This literally means "in the five streets;" however, it is just an expression to mean that you were out, surrounded by many streets. It's more commonly used to emphasize the sense of being alone and possibly without a home, for example, when talking about homeless people. In the dialogue, the speaker is exaggerating and using the expression to show the inconvenience of being out all day. Let's hear a sentence that uses this phrase. |
| Chrissi: Έχασε τη δουλειά του και το σπίτι του και τώρα ζει στους πέντε δρόμους. |
| Michael: "He lost his job and home, and now he lives out in the streets." |
| The last phrase we'll look at is |
| Chrissi: πώς να με βρει; |
| Michael: which means "how could she reach me?" Similar to the first phrase, this structure uses the adverb of manner |
| Chrissi: πώς (pós) meaning "how" |
| Michael: and a verb in the subjunctive mood. This structure again implies a strong negation of the main verb. In this case, it is implied that the speaker was NOT being reached by her friend. This expression is like saying "How on Earth could she reach me?" |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Michael: The focus of this lesson is casual and impolite speech. By now, you should be familiar with polite speech in Greek. In this lesson, we'll hear a few expressions that people often use to express their anger or frustration at someone. |
| Throughout the dialogue, we heard many expressions that, although not impolite by themselves, can be rude if you use them with a stranger or with the wrong tone of voice. |
| Let's examine some lines from the dialogue. Let's start with |
| Chrissi: Άντε να φάμε κι εμείς. |
| Michael: which means "Okay, let's eat too." The word |
| Chrissi: άντε (áde) |
| Michael: has no exact translation in English. It just intensifies the intention of performing the action of the verb. It's like a stronger "let's" or "go ahead". When used among friends and family it is not impolite, per se, unless the tone of voice conveys negative emotions. However, using this with a stranger would be very rude! For example, nobody would ask for the bill in a restaurant by saying: |
| Chrissi: Άντε φέρτε μου τον λογαριασμό! |
| Michael: which means something like "Go bring me the bill!" Now let's hear two ways of addressing someone you're very familiar with: |
| Chrissi: βρε, ρε, and μωρέ. |
| Michael: You can use these words addressing someone either with their name in the vocative case, for example |
| Chrissi: μωρέ Θανάση |
| Michael: which translates as "Hey, Thanassis," or with an adjective in the vocative case, for example |
| Chrissi: βρε ακαμάτη. |
| Michael: which means as "you lazy man." These three words don't have a direct translation in English. Their use among friends and family, which is extremely common, indicates closeness but when used with strangers shows you don't respect them. For example: |
| Chrissi: Ρε οδηγέ, πού μας πας; |
| Michael: means something like "Hey driver, where are you taking us?" and would definitely sound rude if you used it with someone you don't know well. Next, we have the interjection |
| Chrissi: Μπα! |
| Michael: which is a rude way in all situations to express doubt especially when you know someone is lying. It roughly means "Oh really?!" |
| Regarding impolite speech, apart from calling someone a name, such as lazy or a liar, there are many other ways you can be rude to someone. For example, you can show rudeness by openly expressing your frustration over a situation you are fed up with. The interjections |
| Chrissi: ώχου and αμάν |
| Michael: respectively meaning "Oh!" and "Enough!" come off as rude or very rude depending on the voice tone in such situations. |
| Also using a verb in the imperative without saying please and with a strong voice tone will always come off as rude. For example: |
| Chrissi: Ώχου, σταμάτα πια, μωρέ Θανάση! Άσε με ήσυχη… |
| Michael: which means "Oh stop it! Will you, Thanasis? Leave me alone..." In addition, little words such as |
| Chrissi: πια or τέλος πάντων, |
| Michael: meaning roughly "will you" and "finally" respectively, if added after a verb in the imperative, also intensifies the show of frustration. Lastly, we have the expression |
| Chrissi: τρομάρα σου! |
| Michael: literally meaning "Scare of yours!" It roughly corresponds to "shame on you" when someone wants to talk in a condescending way to someone. You can also use it in a condescending way when you want to express to someone that their expectations are unreasonable, or that they have a great idea of themselves. The correct translation always depends on the context. For example: |
| Chrissi: Ήθελες να πας και εκδρομή με αυτόν τον καιρό... τρομάρα σου! |
| Michael: which means "And you wanted to go on an excursion with this weather... yeah right!" |
Outro |
| Michael: Now you know certain words and phrases that people use to express their anger and frustration. That just about does it for today. See you in the next lesson! |
| Chrissi: Γεία σας. |
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