το κατώφλι
“το κατώφλι” (to katófli) — threshold in Greek. Noun, level A1, topic — home and things. from káto, below. Both the strip at the door and the phrase 'on the threshold of change'. In a live sentence: “Μη στέκεσαι στο κατώφλι” — Don't stand on the threshold. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters τ, ο, κ, α, τ, φ, λ, ι. One of 188 words in the set “home and things” in the Greek course.
In short
| Written in Greek | το κατώφλι |
| Read in Latin letters | to katófli |
| Translation | threshold |
| Part of speech | noun |
| Level | A1 |
- το κατώφλιto katóflithreshold
Why it looks that way
from káto, below. Both the strip at the door and the phrase 'on the threshold of change'
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.
- Μη στέκεσαι στο κατώφλιmi stékese sto katófliDon't stand on the threshold
Nearby words: home and things
Room, key, water, electricity. You will need them on your first day in a rented flat.
- σπίτιspítihouseneuter: to spíti. 'At home' and 'home' are the same sto spíti — the verb carries the difference
- η κατοικίαi katikíahousingfrom katoikó, to reside. Rental ads use exactly this word
- το δωμάτιοto domátiorooma room in a flat and a room in a hotel alike. The apartment is to diamérisma
- η κουζίναi kuzínakitchenthe room, the stove and cooking as an art — one word for all three
- το μπάνιοto bániobathroomμπ reads as b: Greek has no letter of its own for that sound, nor for g and d
- το μπαλκόνιto balkónibalconyμπ as b again. In a Greek flat the balcony is almost a room in its own right
- ο όροφοςo órofosfloorthe ground level counts as floor zero — the isóyio
- το ασανσέρto asansérliftfrom French. The bookish anelkystíras stands on the signs
- η σκάλαi skálastaircasethe staircase in a house and a step-ladder alike. One step is to skalí
- το τραπέζιto trapézitablefrom trápeza, the money-changer table — the same word that names the bank
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “home and things”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “threshold” in Greek?
from káto, below. Both the strip at the door and the phrase 'on the threshold of change'
- How do you say “floor” in Greek?
the ground level counts as floor zero — the isóyio
- How do you say “room” in Greek?
a room in a flat and a room in a hotel alike. The apartment is to diamérisma
- How do you say “table” in Greek?
from trápeza, the money-changer table — the same word that names the bank
- How do you say “balcony” in Greek?
μπ as b again. In a Greek flat the balcony is almost a room in its own right
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 “threshold” in Greek?
«το κατώφλι», read “to katófli”. In a live sentence: “Μη στέκεσαι στο κατώφλι” — Don't stand on the threshold. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Noun, level A1, from the set “home and things”; written with the characters τ, ο, κ, α, τ, φ, λ, ι.
How is “το κατώφλι” written in Latin letters?
to katófli. 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?
from káto, below. Both the strip at the door and the phrase 'on the threshold of change'. 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.