Questions: Ποιος;

Aside from yes/no questions, the other main type of question in Greek is those which use interrogatives, or ‘question words’, like Τι; Πώς; or Πού;

• Τι ώρα είναι; (What time is it?)
• Πώς είσαι; (How are you?) – this is basically the same as asking Τι κάνεις;
• Πού μένεις; (Where do you live?)

You can hear examples of both types of question in this Easy Greek video. Pay special attention to the sounds each interrogative starts with:

Interrogatives

In English, most question words start with ‘wh‘ (like why, when, what, who).

In Greek, most question words start with π (like πώς, πότε, πόσο, ποιος).

You may have noticed that Yiorgo mentions that the word for ‘who’ in Greek has three different versions, depending on gender:

Don’t worry – you don’t need to remember all three of these just yet.

Masculine = default

As in many languages, the masculine is considered default in Greek. So, if someone is knocking at the door, you’re far more likely to call out Ποιος είναι; than Ποια είναι; (unless, perhaps, you’re in a women’s-only bathroom or changing room). The situations in which you would use Ποιο είναι; are even more limited.

For now, it is sufficient to remember that ποιος = who, and to keep in the back of your mind that Greek words can change depending on the gender of whom you’re talking about.

You can listen to people asking Πώς είσαι; and Ποιος είναι; along with responses on the Nostos website. Make sure to follow along with the activities on page 26 of Ελληνικά Τώρα (Greek Now) 1+1.