πιο σιγά, παρακαλώ
“πιο σιγά, παρακαλώ” (pio sigá parakaló) — quieter, please in Greek. Phrase, level A2, topic — home and things. Sigá means both quiet and slow — the request to speak more slowly sounds the same. In a live sentence: “Δεν καταλαβαίνω, πιο σιγά, παρακαλώ” — I don't understand, quieter please. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters π, ι, ο, σ, ι, γ, π, α, ρ, α, κ, α.
In short
| Written in Greek | πιο σιγά, παρακαλώ |
| Read in Latin letters | pio sigá parakaló |
| Translation | quieter, please |
| Part of speech | phrase |
| Level | A2 |
- πιο σιγά, παρακαλώpio sigá parakalóquieter, please
Why it looks that way
Sigá means both quiet and slow — the request to speak more slowly sounds the same
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 καταλαβαίνω, πιο σιγά, παρακαλώden katalavéno, pio sigá, parakalóI don't understand, quieter please
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 “quieter, please” in Greek?
Sigá means both quiet and slow — the request to speak more slowly sounds the same
- 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 “quieter, please” in Greek?
«πιο σιγά, παρακαλώ», read “pio sigá parakaló”. In a live sentence: “Δεν καταλαβαίνω, πιο σιγά, παρακαλώ” — I don't understand, quieter please. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Phrase, level A2, from the set “home and things”; written with the characters π, ι, ο, σ, ι, γ, π, α, ρ, α, κ, α.
How is “πιο σιγά, παρακαλώ” written in Latin letters?
pio sigá parakaló. 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?
Sigá means both quiet and slow — the request to speak more slowly sounds the same. 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.