What work do you do? in Greek
A talk about work in Greek. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Τι δουλειά κάνεις;» — What do you do?; «Είμαι προγραμματίστρια και δουλεύω εξ αποστάσεως.» — I'm a programmer and I work remotely. Every line can be played right on the page. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a talk about work. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- Τι δουλειά κάνεις;ti duliá kánis?What do you do?
- Είμαι προγραμματίστρια και δουλεύω εξ αποστάσεως.íme programatístria ke dulévo eks apostáseosI'm a programmer and I work remotely.
- Ωραία! Και η εργάσιμη μέρα είναι μεγάλη;oréa! ke i ergásimi méra íne megáli?Nice! And is the working day long?
- Οκτώ ώρες, αλλά χωρίς μετακίνηση.októ óres, alá khorís metakínisiEight hours, but no commute.
- Και το αφεντικό; Είναι εντάξει;ke to afendikó? íne endáksi?And the boss? All right?
- Ναι, καλός. Έχουμε συνάντηση κάθε Δευτέρα.ne, kalós. ékhume sinándisi káthe DeftéraYes, good. We have a meeting every Monday.
- Και οι διακοπές; Πότε;ke i diakopés? póte?And vacation? When?
- Τον Αύγουστο. Όλη η Ελλάδα κάνει διακοπές τον Αύγουστο.ton Ávgusto. óli i Eláda káni diakopés ton ÁvgustoIn August. All of Greece rests in August.
Lines one by one
| Greek | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Τι δουλειά κάνεις; | ti duliá kánis? | What do you do? |
| Είμαι προγραμματίστρια και δουλεύω εξ αποστάσεως. | íme programatístria ke dulévo eks apostáseos | I'm a programmer and I work remotely. |
| Ωραία! Και η εργάσιμη μέρα είναι μεγάλη; | oréa! ke i ergásimi méra íne megáli? | Nice! And is the working day long? |
| Οκτώ ώρες, αλλά χωρίς μετακίνηση. | októ óres, alá khorís metakínisi | Eight hours, but no commute. |
| Και το αφεντικό; Είναι εντάξει; | ke to afendikó? íne endáksi? | And the boss? All right? |
| Ναι, καλός. Έχουμε συνάντηση κάθε Δευτέρα. | ne, kalós. ékhume sinándisi káthe Deftéra | Yes, good. We have a meeting every Monday. |
| Και οι διακοπές; Πότε; | ke i diakopés? póte? | And vacation? When? |
| Τον Αύγουστο. Όλη η Ελλάδα κάνει διακοπές τον Αύγουστο. | ton Ávgusto. óli i Eláda káni diakopés ton Ávgusto | In August. All of Greece rests in August. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Greek in this situation?
“Τι δουλειά κάνεις;” (ti duliá kánis?) — What do you do?. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.