This cheat sheet covers the Modern Greek alphabet and common everyday phrases students can use when reading, speaking, or beginning a Greek course. It helps students connect Greek letters to familiar sounds and recognize words more easily. A clear alphabet reference is important because many Greek letters look like English letters but are pronounced differently.
Common phrases give students a practical starting point for greetings, politeness, and simple conversation.
The core ideas are letter recognition, pronunciation, transliteration, and phrase meaning. Modern Greek has 24 letters, including familiar forms like Α, Β, and Μ and less familiar forms like Ξ, Ψ, and Ω. Some letters and letter pairs make sounds that differ from English expectations, such as β sounding like v and αι sounding like e.
Useful phrases include Γεια σας for formal hello, Ευχαριστώ for thank you, and Παρακαλώ for please or you are welcome.
Key Facts
- The Modern Greek alphabet has 24 letters, from Α α alpha to Ω ω omega.
- Greek is usually read from left to right, just like English.
- The letter β is called vita in Modern Greek and is pronounced like v, not like English b.
- The letter γ is called gamma and often sounds like a soft g or y sound before certain vowels.
- The letter δ is called delta and is pronounced like th in this, not like English d.
- The phrase Γεια σας means hello in a polite or plural form, while Γεια σου means hello to one person informally.
- The phrase Ευχαριστώ means thank you, and Παρακαλώ can mean please or you are welcome.
- The question Τι κάνεις; means How are you? when speaking informally to one person.
Vocabulary
- Alphabet
- A set of letters used to write a language in a fixed order.
- Transliteration
- Writing words from one alphabet using the letters of another alphabet to show pronunciation.
- Vowel
- A speech sound made with an open voice, such as α, ε, η, ι, ο, υ, and ω in Greek.
- Consonant
- A speech sound made with some closing or blocking of airflow, such as β, γ, δ, κ, and μ.
- Formal speech
- A polite way of speaking used with adults, strangers, groups, or people you do not know well.
- Informal speech
- A familiar way of speaking used with friends, family, or one person you know well.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Pronouncing β like English b is wrong in Modern Greek because β usually sounds like v.
- Using Γεια σου with a teacher or group is too informal because Γεια σας is the polite or plural form.
- Reading Greek letters as if they always match English letters is misleading because letters like Ρ, Η, and Χ do not have the same sounds as their English lookalikes.
- Forgetting accent marks can change pronunciation because the accent shows which syllable receives stress.
- Assuming Παρακαλώ only means please is incomplete because it can also mean you are welcome depending on the situation.
Practice Questions
- 1 How many letters are in the Modern Greek alphabet?
- 2 If Α is the 1st Greek letter and Ω is the 24th Greek letter, what number is Μ in the alphabet order?
- 3 Choose the more polite greeting for speaking to a teacher: Γεια σου or Γεια σας.
- 4 Explain why transliteration is helpful but not a perfect replacement for learning the Greek alphabet.