The verb μένω

The verb μένω (μένω, μένεις, μένει, μένουμε, μένετε, μένουν) has two different meanings.


Elementary students of Greek learn this basic meaning of μένω:

• μένω = live, stay

Examples


Μένω στην Αθήνα (I live in Athens)


Μένω στον αδερφό μου για λίγο καιρό  (I am staying at my brother's for a while)

• μένω = remain, be left

Examples


Μένει λίγος χρόνος για να τελειώσω αυτό (There is little time left to finish this)


Δέν έμεινε τίποτα από το κέικ (There was nothing left from the cake) *έμεινε: past tense of μένω - έμεινα, έμεινες, έμεινε, μείναμε, μείνατε, έμειναν


Μένω εγώ να αποφασίσω (There's only me left to decide)


Έμειναν μόνο τρείς άνθρωποι στο τέλος του πάρτι (There were only three people left at the end of the party)






Tip: try memorising the examples above. This will help you to use the verb correctly (in the right contexts, using the right word combinations and grammar).

See you next time. Ta leme!

Introduction: What I mean by "vocabulary"

I do not perceive vocabulary as the act of learning single words. Yes, sometimes, you do need to memorise single words, if you have no choice. Yet if you want to develop fluency in Greek, you need to learn word groups, i.e., words that go together and sound natural when pronounced together. If you learn word groups instead of single words, you will soon develop a bank of phrases, which you will be able to revert to, whenever you need to produce language quickly. The process of speech becomes easier. You do not need to think too much about what individual words to use, because you have already learned many small groups.

For example, if I am learning English, I can choose to study this word group: I am looking forward to.
By knowing this verbal phrase (or group), I can easily produce more sentences such as I am looking forward to my class/the trip, etc. Yet if I study this group as individual words, then I have to study all these words on a list: I am (= είμαι) + look (κοιτάζω) + forward (μπροστά) + to (προς).  Worse, I do not have the "ready-made" phrase to use when I need to.

So, in this blog, you will not only learn about individual words but also about sets of words, i.e., words that naturally go together. Perhaps this is not the "traditional" way that you learned a foreign language at school, but it is an effective way to develop a vocabulary bank and fluency.