Did you see it in the news? in Greek
A talk about a news story and what to believe in Greek. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Το είδες στις ειδήσεις; Λένε ότι κλείνει το εργοστάσιο.» — Did you see the news? They say the factory is closing.; «Πού το είδες; Ποια είναι η πηγή;» — Where did you see that? What source? 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 a news story and what to believe. 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.
- Το είδες στις ειδήσεις; Λένε ότι κλείνει το εργοστάσιο.to ídes stis idísis? léne óti klíni to ergostásioDid you see the news? They say the factory is closing.
- Πού το είδες; Ποια είναι η πηγή;pu to ídes? pia íne i piyí?Where did you see that? What source?
- Σε μια ανάρτηση. Είχε χίλια λάικ.se mia anártisi. íkhe khília láikIn a post. It had a thousand likes.
- Τα λάικ δεν είναι πηγή. Έλεγξες την πληροφορία;ta láik den íne piyí. élenkses tin pliroforía?Likes are not a source. Did you check the information?
- Όχι ακόμα. Μάλλον είναι απλώς φήμη.ókhi akóma. málon íne aplós fímiNot yet. It's probably just a rumor.
- Δες τι γράφει το επίσημο κανάλι. Εκεί δεν υπερβάλλουν.des ti gráfi to epísimo kanáli. ekí den iperválunLook at what the official channel writes. They don't exaggerate there.
- Έχεις δίκιο. Θα το ελέγξω πριν το πω σε άλλους.ékhis díkio. tha to elénkso prin to po se álusYou're right. I'll check before telling others.
Lines one by one
| Greek | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Το είδες στις ειδήσεις; Λένε ότι κλείνει το εργοστάσιο. | to ídes stis idísis? léne óti klíni to ergostásio | Did you see the news? They say the factory is closing. |
| Πού το είδες; Ποια είναι η πηγή; | pu to ídes? pia íne i piyí? | Where did you see that? What source? |
| Σε μια ανάρτηση. Είχε χίλια λάικ. | se mia anártisi. íkhe khília láik | In a post. It had a thousand likes. |
| Τα λάικ δεν είναι πηγή. Έλεγξες την πληροφορία; | ta láik den íne piyí. élenkses tin pliroforía? | Likes are not a source. Did you check the information? |
| Όχι ακόμα. Μάλλον είναι απλώς φήμη. | ókhi akóma. málon íne aplós fími | Not yet. It's probably just a rumor. |
| Δες τι γράφει το επίσημο κανάλι. Εκεί δεν υπερβάλλουν. | des ti gráfi to epísimo kanáli. ekí den iperválun | Look at what the official channel writes. They don't exaggerate there. |
| Έχεις δίκιο. Θα το ελέγξω πριν το πω σε άλλους. | ékhis díkio. tha to elénkso prin to po se álus | You're right. I'll check before telling others. |
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?
“Το είδες στις ειδήσεις; Λένε ότι κλείνει το εργοστάσιο.” (to ídes stis idísis? léne óti klíni to ergostásio) — Did you see the news? They say the factory is closing.. 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.