The five Greek phrases that do 80% of the work
First time? Do this
- Audio is built in. Tap any phrase to hear it in a native voice — pre-recorded and cached, so it just works offline, no setup. (The voice bar can still pick a phone voice as a backup.)
- Phrases — drilled by situation: the taverna, bars, directions, the boat. Hit play, then say it back out loud.
- Sounds — the whole alphabet, tap to hear every letter. Ten minutes here pays off the most.
- Customs — the unspoken rules. This is where tourists actually give themselves away.
- Practice — hear / read / recall / speak. Use it on the plane.
Right thing, right moment.
Tap a chip to jump to a scene — or just search. Common holds the go-anywhere basics (hello, thanks, where's the toilet); a few phrases like drinks live under more than one scene.
Common — useful everywhere · greetings · basics · the toilet
Greetings & manners · the social handshake
At the taverna (restaurant) · ordering & dining
taverna tah-VEHR-nah — a family-run restaurant, simple plates and long lunches
Bars & nights out · your scene
At the winery · tasting & buying
Finding your way · asking directions
Taxis & getting around · rides & fares
On the boat · island-hopping
Shops & getting by · everyday
Sea & scenery · quick vocab
Numbers 1–10 · prices & ordering
- Tens and ones join with και (and), not by bare juxtaposition. 21 is είκοσι ένα, often fuller as είκοσι και ένα ("twenty and one"). In fast speech the και is dropped for two-digit numbers, but it reappears once a hundreds or thousands word precedes: 121 is εκατόν είκοσι ένα.
- 200-900 are fused, gender-agreeing compounds — 100 alone is not. 100 alone is εκατό, but 200-900 are single words that shift ending for gender: διακόσια/διακόσιοι (200), τριακόσια (300)... For prices (ευρώ), the -οι ending is used: διακόσιοι ευρώ.
- χίλια takes no leading "one"; εκατό takes a linking -ν before a vowel. 1,000 is bare χίλια, never ένα χίλια. When a hundred-compound is directly followed by a number with no word between, εκατό gains -ν before a vowel: 101 is εκατόν ένα.
- 1, 3 and 4 change form for gender right before a noun. Ένα (1) has forms ένας/μία/ένα; τρία/τέσσερα become τρεις/τέσσερις before most nouns. Ευρώ mostly sidesteps this (ένα ευρώ, τρία ευρώ), but expect ένας/μία elsewhere.
- εκατομμύριο is an ordinary noun and pluralizes. Ένα εκατομμύριο (1,000,000), and 2+ million pluralizes regularly: δύο εκατομμύρια, πέντε εκατομμύρια — the -ο becomes -α.
New alphabet, but it reads cleanly.
Greek is a different alphabet, not a puzzle: 24 letters, nearly one sound each, and the accent mark shows exactly where the stress lands. Meet all of them once, then drill the tricky ones. Tap anything to hear it.
Tap a letter to hear its Greek name. Half of them you already know from math class.
Greek spells some sounds with two letters. These pairs unlock most menus and signs.
- The accent is the law. Every longer word marks its stressed vowel (καλημέρα). Hit that syllable hard — it's never optional.
- Two "th" sounds. θ = THink (hard), δ = THis (soft). Keep them apart.
- Many ways to spell "ee". η ι υ ει οι all sound the same — "ee". Don't overthink it.
- γ is soft. Not a hard English G — a throaty "gh", or a "y" before e/i sounds.
- A "?" is written ";". Greek uses a semicolon for questions: Πού είναι; = "Where is?"
The rules nobody prints on the menu.
Your Greek rarely outs you. These do. Read once, and you'll move differently.
Greet before you ask
Walk into a shop, bakery, kafeneío, or taverna and lead with Καλημέρα (kah-lee-MEH-rah) or Γεια σας (YAH sahss) before anything else. Launching straight into English is the #1 tourist tell.
Ναι means YES (not no)
The classic trap: Ναι (neh) sounds like "no" but means yes; Όχι (OH-khee) means no. Burn this in before you nod at the wrong moment.
Toast early, toast often
Greeks toast at the first pour and at any excuse after. Γεια μας (YAH mahss, "to us") is the everyday one; Στην υγειά σας (steen ee-YAH sahss) is the warmer, formal version. Clink every glass at the table — and never toast with an empty one.
Ouzo & raki are a ritual, not a shot
A host or taverna will often pour ouzo (OO-zoh) or raki (RAH-kee), often free after a meal. Sip it with a little meze and toast back — it is not a frat shot.
Coffee is a sport, not a transaction
A freddo (FREH-doh) or frappé (frah-PEH) is a one-to-two-hour social sit. Nobody does takeaway-and-run. Sit, slow down, σιγά σιγά (see-GHAH see-GHAH).
No swimwear off the beach
Walking through a town or village in just a bikini or shirtless is frowned on and sometimes fined. Cover up the moment you leave the sand — and shoulders/knees in churches and monasteries.
Tipping: round up, ~5–10%
Not obligatory, but for good service round up or leave ~5–10%, ideally in cash. For a quick coffee, the coins are plenty.
"Σιγά σιγά" is the island mood
Siga siga (SEE-ghah SEE-ghah) — "slowly, slowly." The Aegean runs on unhurried time. Service is relaxed by design; match the tempo instead of fighting it.
Learn "Χρόνια πολλά"
Chrónia pollá (KHROH-nyah poh-LAH, "many years") works for birthdays, name days, and holidays alike — name days often matter more than birthdays here.
A small cover charge is normal
Bread and table service (couvert (koo-VEHR)) is often a small per-person charge on the bill. It is standard, not a scam.
The plates and glasses worth going out of your way for — each with the name as you'd say it out loud.
Test the four channels.
Understanding Greek by ear, reading, recall, and your own mouth. Quick rounds — do them twice.