At the hospital in Greek
An appointment with a physician, referral in hand in Greek. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Καλημέρα. Έχω παραπεμπτικό από τον παθολόγο.» — Good morning. I have a referral from my physician.; «Πείτε μου τα συμπτώματα.» — Tell me your symptoms. 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: an appointment with a physician, referral in hand. 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.
- Καλημέρα. Έχω παραπεμπτικό από τον παθολόγο.kaliméra. ékho parapemptikó apó ton pathológoGood morning. I have a referral from my physician.
- Πείτε μου τα συμπτώματα.píte mu ta simptómataTell me your symptoms.
- Έχω ψηλό πυρετό τρεις μέρες και ρίγος το βράδυ.ékho psiló piretó tris méres ke rígos to vrádiThree days of high fever and chills in the evenings.
- Πονάει ο λαιμός σας;ponái o lemós sas?Does your throat hurt?
- Πονάει, και δεν μπορώ να καταπιώ. Είναι κολλητικό;ponái, ke den boró na katapió. íne kolitikó?It hurts, and I can't swallow. Is it contagious?
- Μοιάζει με αμυγδαλίτιδα. Θα σας γράψω θεραπεία.miázi me amigdalítida. tha sas grápso therapíaIt looks like tonsillitis. I'll prescribe a treatment.
- Πόσες μέρες αναρρωτική άδεια θα χρειαστώ;póses méres anarotikí ádia tha khriastó?How many days of sick leave will I need?
Lines one by one
| Greek | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Καλημέρα. Έχω παραπεμπτικό από τον παθολόγο. | kaliméra. ékho parapemptikó apó ton pathológo | Good morning. I have a referral from my physician. |
| Πείτε μου τα συμπτώματα. | píte mu ta simptómata | Tell me your symptoms. |
| Έχω ψηλό πυρετό τρεις μέρες και ρίγος το βράδυ. | ékho psiló piretó tris méres ke rígos to vrádi | Three days of high fever and chills in the evenings. |
| Πονάει ο λαιμός σας; | ponái o lemós sas? | Does your throat hurt? |
| Πονάει, και δεν μπορώ να καταπιώ. Είναι κολλητικό; | ponái, ke den boró na katapió. íne kolitikó? | It hurts, and I can't swallow. Is it contagious? |
| Μοιάζει με αμυγδαλίτιδα. Θα σας γράψω θεραπεία. | miázi me amigdalítida. tha sas grápso therapía | It looks like tonsillitis. I'll prescribe a treatment. |
| Πόσες μέρες αναρρωτική άδεια θα χρειαστώ; | póses méres anarotikí ádia tha khriastó? | How many days of sick leave will I need? |
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?
“Καλημέρα. Έχω παραπεμπτικό από τον παθολόγο.” (kaliméra. ékho parapemptikó apó ton pathológo) — Good morning. I have a referral from my physician.. 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.