Written by Themios Harmantzis
Why pairs matter
Greek is phonetic, but certain pairs of letters make a single sound that is not the sum of their parts. The word και is not “ka-i”, it is one syllable, “ke”. Miss these pairs and you will sound out words letter by letter and still get them wrong. Learn them and the last gap between the alphabet and real reading closes.
Vowel pairs
| Pair | Sounds like | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| αι | e, as in bet | και (ke, and), ναι (ne, yes), παιδί (pe-DHI, child) |
| ει | i, as in machine | είναι (I-ne, is), ειρήνη (i-RI-ni, peace) |
| οι | i, as in machine | οικογένεια (i-ko-YE-ni-a, family) |
| ου | u, as in food | ούζο (U-zo), μου (mu, my), τουρίστας (tourist) |
Notice that ει, οι, and even a lone η, ι, or υall land on the same “i” sound. That is why Greek spelling has to be learned by eye: the sound does not always tell you which letters to write.
The shape-shifters: αυ and ευ
These two are the only tricky ones. They switch between a “v” and an “f” sound depending on the letter that follows. Before a soft sound you get “av” and “ev”: αύριο (AV-ri-o, tomorrow), Ευρώπη (ev-RO-pi, Europe). Before a hard sound they turn to “af” and “ef”: αυτός (af-TOS, he), ευχαριστώ (ef-ha-ri-STO, thank you). Say both versions out loud a few times and your mouth learns the switch on its own.
Consonant pairs
Greek has no single letter for the sounds b, d, and hard g. It builds them from pairs. As a rough rule, the pair is the plain sound at the start of a word and picks up a light “n” in the middle.
| Pair | Sounds like | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| μπ | b (start of word), mb (middle) | μπύρα (BI-ra, beer), αμπέλι (am-BE-li, vineyard) |
| ντ | d (start), nd (middle) | ντομάτα (do-MA-ta, tomato), πέντε (PEN-de, five) |
| γκ / γγ | g (start), ng (middle) | γκολ (gol, goal), άγγελος (AN-ge-los, angel) |
| τζ | like the ds in beds | τζατζίκι (dza-DZI-ki) |
| τσ | ts, as in cats | τσάι (TSA-i, tea) |
When a pair is not a pair
Sometimes two vowels really should be read separately. Greek marks this with two dots above the second vowel, called a diaeresis. In Μάιος (MA-i-os, May) the dots on the ι tell you not to read αι as one sound. It is a small mark that saves you from mispronouncing a word, so it is worth noticing.
Put the sounds together
With the alphabet and these pairs you can read almost any Greek word aloud, even before you know what it means. Next, get the stress right with Greek accents, polish the tricky sounds in Greek pronunciation, then read an A1 story with the audio on.
Generate your first story