The one word for "which": που
English has who, whom, which and that. Greek has one word, που, and it never changes: ο φίλος που τηλεφωνεί, η αδελφή που τηλεφωνεί, τα παιδιά που τηλεφωνούν. Only the verb after it moves. For example: “Αυτό είναι το μήνυμα που σου έστειλα” — This is the message I sent you. A rule from the Greek course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
English has who, whom, which and that. Greek has one word, που (pu), and it never changes: ο φίλος που τηλεφωνεί, η αδελφή που τηλεφωνεί, τα παιδιά που τηλεφωνούν. Only the verb after it moves.
Since που does not bend, the job of the noun is shown separately — by a short pronoun inside the clause. Ο φίλος που του έστειλα μήνυμα (o fílos pu tu éstila mínima) — the friend I sent a message to. Word for word: "the friend that to-him I sent".
One trap. The question word for "where" is also που, but with the dash: πού (pu). Πού είναι ο φορτιστής (pu íne o fortistís); — where is the charger? Ο φορτιστής που αγόρασα (o fortistís pu agórasa) — the charger I bought.
The same pair sits behind πώς (how) and πως (that). A missing dash turns a question into a link, and the other way round.
Table
| in English | in Greek | what can be seen |
|---|---|---|
| the friend who is calling | ο φίλος που τηλεφωνεί | που does not change |
| the sister who is calling | η αδελφή που τηλεφωνεί | the form is the same |
| the children who are calling | τα παιδιά που τηλεφωνούν | only the verb changes |
| the message I received | το μήνυμα που έλαβα | no extra word needed |
| the friend I wrote to | ο φίλος που του έγραψα | the job is shown by του |
| Where is the phone? | Πού είναι το τηλέφωνο; | a question — with the accent |
By example
- Αυτό είναι το μήνυμα που σου έστειλαaftó íne to mínima pu su éstilaThis is the message I sent you
- Πού είναι ο φορτιστής που αγόρασα;pu íne o fortistís pu agórasa?Where is the charger that I bought?
- Ο φίλος που του τηλεφώνησα δεν απάντησεo fílos pu tu tilefónisa den apándiseThe friend I called didn't answer
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Που or πού: where the accent goes?
English has who, whom, which and that. Greek has one word, που, and it never changes: ο φίλος που τηλεφωνεί, η αδελφή που τηλεφωνεί, τα παιδιά που τηλεφωνούν. Only the verb after it moves.
Που vs πού?
Since που does not bend, the job of the noun is shown separately — by a short pronoun inside the clause. Ο φίλος που του έστειλα μήνυμα — the friend I sent a message to. Word for word: "the friend that to-him I sent".
How to say which in Greek?
One trap. The question word for "where" is also που, but with the dash: πού. Πού είναι ο φορτιστής; — where is the charger? Ο φορτιστής που αγόρασα — the charger I bought.
How to say the friend I wrote to in Greek?
The same pair sits behind πώς (how) and πως (that). A missing dash turns a question into a link, and the other way round.
What πώς and πως mean in Greek?
The same pair sits behind πώς (how) and πως (that). A missing dash turns a question into a link, and the other way round.
What does it look like in an example sentence Greek?
“Αυτό είναι το μήνυμα που σου έστειλα” (aftó íne to mínima pu su éstila) — This is the message I sent you. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.