Learn how to render the English modal verbs can, could, may, might and must in Greek using a formal conversation as an example
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Eric: Hi everyone, and welcome back to GreekPod101.com. This is Upper Intermediate Season 1 Lesson 21 - Don’t Rock the Boat in Greece! Eric here. |
| Chrissi: Γεια σας. I'm Chrissi. |
| Eric: In this lesson you will learn how to express English modal verbs in Greek. The conversation takes place at the check-in counter of a cruise terminal. |
| Chrissi: It's between Katerina and a female guest. |
| Eric: The speakers are not friends, so they’ll be using formal Greek. Okay, let's listen to the conversation. |
Lesson conversation |
|---|
| Κατερίνα: Ο επόμενος παρακαλώ... Καλησπέρα σας! |
| Πελάτισσα: Καλησπέρα σας. |
| Κατερίνα: Μπορώ να έχω το διαβατήριό σας, παρακαλώ; (...) Ευχαριστώ. Μέχρι να σας κάνω το check-in, παρακαλώ συμπληρώστε αυτό το ερωτηματολόγιο υγείας. |
| : Θα πρέπει να το παρουσιάσετε στην κυρία στο βάθος. Είναι η νοσοκόμα του πλοίου μας. |
| Πελάτισσα: Μάλιστα. Μπορώ να χρησιμοποιήσω το στιλό σας; |
| Κατερίνα: Ναι, βεβαίως. |
| Πελάτισσα: Μια ερώτηση μόνο, παρακαλώ. Ξέρετε πώς θα μπορούσα να βρω περισσότερες πληροφορίες σχετικά με τις εκδρομές που προσφέρονται; |
| Κατερίνα: Θα πρέπει να επισκεφθείτε το γραφείο εκδρομών που θα βρίσκεται στο κατάστρωμα 5, απέναντι από τη ρεσεψιόν. |
| : Επίσης θα γίνει μια ενημερωτική συνάντηση για όλους τους επιβάτες σχετικά με τις εκδρομές. Οι πληροφορίες για την ώρα και το μέρος θα αναφέρονται στο πρόγραμμα που θα λάβετε κατά την επιβίβαση. |
| Πελάτισσα: Μάλιστα. Άκουσα ότι μπορεί να υπάρχουν θυελλώδεις άνεμοι το Σαββατοκύριακο. Νομίζετε ότι αυτό θα είναι ένα πρόβλημα για το πλοίο; |
| Κατερίνα: Τέτοια πλοία είναι παντός καιρού. Δεν τίθεται θέμα ασφαλείας. Ίσως να κουνήσει λίγο. Αν σας πιάσει ναυτία, ο γιατρός του πλοίου θα μπορεί να σας δώσει δραμαμίνη. |
| Πελάτισσα: Ωχωχωχ! |
| Eric: Listen to the conversation with the English translation. |
| Katerina: Next please... Good afternoon! |
| Guest: Good afternoon. |
| Katerina: May I have your passport, please? (...) Thank you. While I'll be checking you in, please fill in this public health questionnaire. |
| : You must present this to the lady at the back. She is our ship nurse. |
| Guest: Can I use your pen? |
| Katerina: Yes, of course. |
| Guest: Just one question, please. Do you know how could I get more information about the excursions offered? |
| Katerina: You will need to visit the shore excursion office that is located on deck number 5, right opposite the reception. |
| : There will also be a briefing for all passengers about the excursions. The information about the time and place will be mentioned in the program you will receive upon boarding the ship. |
| Guest: I see. I heard there might be stormy winds this weekend. Do you think that would be a problem for the ship? |
| Katerina: Ships like that are for all weather conditions. There is no safety issue. Maybe it will rock a bit. If you get seasick, the ship doctor will be able to give you Dramamine. |
| Guest: Uh oh! |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Eric: Chrissi, are pharmacies easy to find in Greece? |
| Chrissi: Yes. They’re everywhere and you can easily spot them by their green equal-armed crosses. |
| Eric: What are their business hours? |
| Chrissi: It depends on the area. But if a pharmacy is closed, you’ll find a notice on the door listing other nearby pharmacies and mentioning their names, addresses, and working hours for that particular day. |
| Eric: Are prescriptions necessary? |
| Chrissi: Not always. Many drugs that require prescriptions in other countries are sold over the counter in Greece, usually at a fraction of the price paid elsewhere. Just be careful of customs regulations when bringing drugs into your home country. You might be asked for a prescription. |
| Eric: And do pharmacists speak English? |
| Chrissi: Many of them, yes. If you get sick while in Greece and need some simple medical advice, your friendly neighborhood pharmacist will be a very decent diagnostician. If you’re looking for a specific medication, knowing the actual drug name will help pharmacists find the Greek equivalent for you. |
| Eric: Okay, that's good to know. Now onto the vocab. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Eric: Let’s take a look at the vocabulary from this lesson. The first word is... |
| Chrissi: διαβατήριο [natural native speed] |
| Eric: passport |
| Chrissi: διαβατήριο [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: διαβατήριο [natural native speed] |
| Eric: Next we have... |
| Chrissi: συμπληρώνω [natural native speed] |
| Eric: to complete, to fill out, to fill in, to add, to supplement |
| Chrissi: συμπληρώνω [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: συμπληρώνω [natural native speed] |
| Eric: Next we have... |
| Chrissi: ερωτηματολόγιο [natural native speed] |
| Eric: questionnaire |
| Chrissi: ερωτηματολόγιο [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: ερωτηματολόγιο [natural native speed] |
| Eric: Next we have... |
| Chrissi: βάθος [natural native speed] |
| Eric: depth, profundity, back |
| Chrissi: βάθος [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: βάθος [natural native speed] |
| Eric: Next we have... |
| Chrissi: προσφέρομαι [natural native speed] |
| Eric: to offer, to volunteer, to be right or suitable for |
| Chrissi: προσφέρομαι [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: προσφέρομαι [natural native speed] |
| Eric: Next we have... |
| Chrissi: αναφέρομαι [natural native speed] |
| Eric: to refer, to talk about, to be mentioned, to report to somebody |
| Chrissi: αναφέρομαι [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: αναφέρομαι [natural native speed] |
| Eric: Next we have... |
| Chrissi: άνεμος [natural native speed] |
| Eric: wind |
| Chrissi: άνεμος [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: άνεμος [natural native speed] |
| Eric: Next we have... |
| Chrissi: πας (as pronoun) [natural native speed] |
| Eric: all, everyone, each, every |
| Chrissi: πας (as pronoun) [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: πας (as pronoun) [natural native speed] |
| Eric: Next we have... |
| Chrissi: θέτω [natural native speed] |
| Eric: to put, to place, to establish |
| Chrissi: θέτω [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: θέτω [natural native speed] |
| Eric: And last... |
| Chrissi: δραμαμίνη [natural native speed] |
| Eric: dramamine |
| Chrissi: δραμαμίνη [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chrissi: δραμαμίνη [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES |
| Eric: Let's have a closer look at some of the words and phrases from this lesson. The first phrase is... |
| Chrissi: στο βάθος... |
| Eric: ...which means “at the back, in the background.” |
| Chrissi: Στο βάθος consists of the neuter noun βάθος meaning “depth” or “profundity.” However, when we add before it the prepositional article στο and say στο βάθος, it may also mean “at the back” or “in the background.” |
| Eric: You can use this expression in any situation. Chrissi, can you give us an example using this phrase? |
| Chrissi: Sure. For example, Στον πίνακα ένας γελωτοποιός απεικονίζεται στο βάθος. |
| Eric: Which means “In the painting a jester is depicted in the background.” Okay, what's the next phrase? |
| Chrissi: Παντός καιρού. |
| Eric: Which means “for all weather conditions.” |
| Chrissi: Παντός καιρού consists of the ancient Greek indefinite pronoun πας, πάσα, παν in masculine, feminine, and neuter accordingly... |
| Eric: ...which mean “all,” “everyone,” “each,” “every”... |
| Chrissi: …and of the masculine noun καιρός... |
| Eric: ...meaning “weather.” The whole expression is in the genitive case and means “for all weather conditions.” |
| Chrissi: Although the use of πας makes the expression sound scholarly, you can use παντός καιρού in any situation. Listeners, in our lesson notes, we have included a table with the declension of the pronoun πας for you to study. |
| Eric: Chrissi, can you give us an example using this pronoun? |
| Chrissi: Sure. Κατά πάσα πιθανότητα δεν θα μπορέσω να έρθω. |
| Eric: “Most probably I won't be able to make it.” Okay, what's the next word? |
| Chrissi: Θέτω. |
| Eric: This means “to put, to place, to establish.” |
| Chrissi: Θέτω is an irregular verb. In the passive voice, its form changes a lot and becomes τίθεμαι, which resembles its ancient Greek predecessor, the verb τίθημι. |
| Eric: In the dialogue, we came across this verb in its passive voice form. |
| Chrissi: Right. Δεν τίθεται θέμα ασφαλείας. |
| Eric: It's hard to translate this literally, but the meaning is “There is no safety issue.” You can use this verb in any situation. The translation also depends on the context. |
| Chrissi: The passive voice sounds more scholarly than the active voice and is also difficult even for Greeks to conjugate correctly. |
| Eric: Can you give us an example using this word? |
| Chrissi: Sure. For example, you can say Η πυρκαγιά τέθηκε υπό έλεγχο. |
| Eric: Which means “The fire was brought under control.” Okay, now onto the lesson focus. |
Lesson focus |
| Eric: In this lesson you will learn how to express English modal verbs in Greek. |
| Chrissi: Eric, first of all, let's remind our listeners, about what modality is. |
| Eric: Modality is a speaker’s or a writer’s subjective attitude or opinion that expresses certainty, possibility, willingness, obligation, necessity, desire, permissibility, prohibition, ability and more expressed by using modal verbs or modal expressions. |
| Chrissi: In Greek there are no modal verbs, so English modal verbs may get rendered in different ways depending on the context. Usually they’re paraphrased, with either normal verbs like μπορώ meaning "can," special verb forms or even with the help of adverbs. |
| Eric: Ok, let's start with the modal verb “can.” “Can” can be used to express ability in Greek. For example… |
| Chrissi: Μπορώ να κάνω ποδήλατο. |
| Eric: “I can ride a bicycle.” You can also use it to express opportunity. |
| Chrissi: For example, Μπορούμε να μείνουμε στο σπίτι του φίλου μου, όταν θα είμαστε στην Αθήνα. |
| Eric: This means “We can stay at my friend's house when we are in Athens.” You can also use “can” in Greek to express possibility or impossibility. |
| Chrissi: Right. For example, Οποιοσδήποτε επιβάτης μπορεί να ζητήσει αναβάθμιση. |
| Eric: “Any customer can request an upgrade.” |
| Chrissi: So far we have been rendering “can” with its equivalent verb μπορώ in Greek. But μπορώ is not always used when we say "can" in English. For example, “It can't be!” in Greek is Δεν είναι δυνατόν! or Αποκλείεται! |
| Eric: Listeners, please check the lesson notes for more explanations and examples. Now, let's move on to the modal verb “could.” You can use “could” to make suggestions or requests and to express possibility or past ability. “Could” is also commonly used in conditional sentences as the conditional form of “can.” |
| Chrissi: Whenever we talk about an event that happened in the past, we translate “can” with μπορώ in the simple or continuous past tense. For example, Η Πέγκυ μπορούσε να κάνει πατινάζ στον πάγο σαν επαγγελματίας μέχρι τα δέκα της. |
| Eric: “Peggy could ice skate like a pro by the age of 10.” In this sentence, we express past ability. |
| Chrissi: Whenever we talk about an event that is hypothetical or that has not happened yet, we use the particle θα + μπορώ in the past tense. For example, Η υπερβολική βροχή θα μπορούσε να προκαλέσει πλημμύρα στην περιοχή. |
| Eric: “Extreme rain could flood the area.” Here we’re expressing a possibility. Let's see an example expressing a request. |
| Chrissi: Θα μπορούσα να χρησιμοποιήσω το τηλέφωνό σας; |
| Eric: “Could I use your phone?” Our next modal verb is “may.” |
| Chrissi: In English, “may” is most commonly used to express possibility. It can also be used to give or request permission, although this usage is becoming less common. |
| Eric: Some sample sentences, please? |
| Chrissi: Okay, here’s one that expresses possibility. Η Τζούλια ίσως να είναι αναστατωμένη. |
| Eric: “Julia may be upset.” |
| Chrissi: Or Ο Λουκάς ίσως είναι στη δουλειά. |
| Eric: “Lucas may be at work.” |
| Chrissi: Here, the possibility in Greek is expressed with the adverb ίσως, meaning “maybe” or “perhaps,” but the verb μπορώ could also be used instead. For example, Ο Λουκάς μπορεί να είναι στη δουλειά. |
| Eric: This version sounds more casual. |
| Chrissi: In the next example, we are requesting permission, and for that we use the verb μπορώ again. Μπορώ να χρησιμοποιήσω την τουαλέτα σας; |
| Eric: “May I use your toilet?” Now, our next modal verb is “might.” It’s most commonly used to express possibility. It’s also often used in conditional sentences. |
| Chrissi: For example, Ίσως να είναι σπίτι. OR Μπορεί να είναι σπίτι. |
| Eric: “She might be in the house.” |
| Chrissi: Here again, we can have either μπορώ or the adverb ίσως in order to express possibility. |
| Eric: Our last modal verb for this lesson is “must.” “Must” is most commonly used to express certainty. It can also be used to express necessity or strong recommendations. |
| Chrissi: “Must not” expresses prohibition, although this sounds very strict. |
| Eric: Chrissi, can you give us some sample sentences? |
| Chrissi: Sure. Αυτό πρέπει να είναι το σωστό κουμπί! |
| Eric: “This must be the right button!” |
| Chrissi: Πρέπει να πιεις λίγο σιρόπι για τον βήχα. |
| Eric: “You must take some cough syrup.” |
| Chrissi: Γιάννη, δεν πρέπει να παίζεις στον δρόμο. |
| Eric: “John, you must not play in the street!” |
| Chrissi: "Must" is usually rendered with the word πρέπει, an impersonal verb followed by να and a verb in the subjunctive mood. |
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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