Δεν νιώθω καλά
“Δεν νιώθω καλά” (den niótho kalá) — I feel bad in Greek. Phrase, level A1, topic — phrases that save you. niótho means to feel. Literally 'I do not feel well'. In a live sentence: “Δεν νιώθω καλά” — I feel bad. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters Δ, ε, ν, ν, ι, θ, ω, κ, α, λ. One of 15 words in the set “phrases that save you” in the Greek course.
In short
| Written in Greek | Δεν νιώθω καλά |
| Read in Latin letters | den niótho kalá |
| Translation | I feel bad |
| Part of speech | phrase |
| Level | A1 |
- Δεν νιώθω καλάden niótho kaláI feel bad
Why it looks that way
niótho means to feel. Literally 'I do not feel well'
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- Δεν νιώθω καλάden niótho kaláI feel bad
Nearby words: phrases that save you
“I don't understand”, “say that again”, “slower, please”, “help”. They are learned first for a reason: they bring back a conversation that has already gone wrong.
- Δεν καταλαβαίνωden katalavénoI don't understandnegation is a separate word, den, placed before the verb — no prefixes here. Remove den and you get I understand
- Επαναλάβετε, παρακαλώepanalávete, parakalóplease repeatthe polite plural imperative of 'repeat'. In conversation people more often say Páli, parakaló — again, please
- αργάargáslowlyboth 'slowly' and 'late': argá to vrádi — late in the evening. The classic request: pio argá, parakaló — more slowly, please
- Βοήθεια!voíthiahelp!shouted as a noun — help! — not as a verb. The β reads v: vo-EE-thia
- ΧάθηκαkháthikaI'm lostfrom chánome, to get lost, about a person. About a thing you say it differently: ékhasa to klidí — I lost the key
- Περιμένετε λίγοperiménete lígowait a minuteliterally 'wait a little'. To your own people: perímene lígo
- Δεν μπορώ να ανοίξωden boró na aníksoI can't open itGreek has no infinitive: after boró comes na plus a personal form
- Χρειάζομαι γιατρόkhriázome yatróI need a doctorkhriázome means to need; the accusative follows straight away, with no preposition
- Προσοχή!prosokhí!cautionprinted on signs and announced in the metro. Literally 'attention'
- επικίνδυνοepikíndinodangerfrom kíndynos, danger. On signs it stands in the neuter
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “phrases that save you”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “I feel bad” in Greek?
niótho means to feel. Literally 'I do not feel well'
- How do you say “I can't open it” in Greek?
Greek has no infinitive: after boró comes na plus a personal form
- How do you say “slowly” in Greek?
both 'slowly' and 'late': argá to vrádi — late in the evening. The classic request: pio argá, parakaló — more slowly, please
- How do you say “danger” in Greek?
from kíndynos, danger. On signs it stands in the neuter
- How do you say “wait a minute” in Greek?
literally 'wait a little'. To your own people: perímene lígo
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “I feel bad” in Greek?
«Δεν νιώθω καλά», read “den niótho kalá”. In a live sentence: “Δεν νιώθω καλά” — I feel bad. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Phrase, level A1, from the set “phrases that save you”; written with the characters Δ, ε, ν, ν, ι, θ, ω, κ, α, λ.
How is “Δεν νιώθω καλά” written in Latin letters?
den niótho kalá. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
niótho means to feel. Literally 'I do not feel well'. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.