Greek2Me staff · Vocab
Greek Prepositions
Every Greek preposition you'll meet in your first year, with the case each one takes and the meanings that trip English speakers up. Small words that do most of the sentence-shaping heavy lifting.
| Greek | English | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| The big single-word prepositions | |||
| σε | to / at / in / ontakes the accusative; contracts with the article (σε + το = στο) | ||
| από | from / of / thantakes the accusative | ||
| με | with / bytakes the accusative | ||
| για | for / abouttakes the accusative | ||
| μέχρι | until / up totakes the accusative | ||
| χωρίς | withouttakes the accusative | ||
| μετά | aftertakes the accusative, or με + accusative in older usage | ||
| πριν | beforetakes the accusative | ||
| κατά | according to / against / duringtakes the accusative | ||
| παρά | despite / to (in time)seven παρά τέταρτο = quarter to seven | ||
| προς | towardstakes the accusative | ||
| ως | as / untilformal register | ||
| σαν | like / astakes the accusative | ||
| Compound / position prepositions | |||
| πάνω σε | on top of / on | ||
| κάτω από | under / beneath | ||
| μπροστά από | in front of | ||
| πίσω από | behind | ||
| δίπλα σε | next to | ||
| ανάμεσα σε | between / among | ||
| μαζί με | together with | ||
Almost every preposition takes the accusative
Good news: modern Greek prepositions overwhelmingly take the accusative case. That means you use the -ν form of the article and adjust the noun ending:
- σε τον σταθμό → στον σταθμό (to the station)
- από την Αθήνα (from Athens)
- με τη μαμά (with mum)
- για το παιδί (for the child)
A handful of older prepositions (like κατά, εκ, εις) take other cases in formal or fixed phrases, but for everyday spoken Greek, accusative is the default. That single rule saves you a lot of thinking.
σε: the preposition that does everything
Σε covers 'to', 'at', 'in', and 'on', depending on context:
- Πάω στην Ελλάδα.: I'm going to Greece. (motion)
- Είμαι στην Ελλάδα.: I'm in Greece. (location)
- Το βιβλίο είναι στο τραπέζι.: The book is on the table.
- Σε δύο μέρες.: In two days.
The key thing to know: σε contracts with the accusative article, so you'll almost always see it fused as στον, στην, στο, στους, στις, στα. Native speakers say πάω στο σχολείο, not σε το σχολείο.
από: from, of, and than
Από covers 'from' (origin, source, motion away) and also plays the role of English 'of' in a lot of possession phrases:
- Είμαι από την Ελλάδα.: I'm from Greece.
- Ένα κομμάτι από την τούρτα.: A piece of the cake.
- Πιο ψηλός από τον αδελφό του.: Taller than his brother.
That last one catches learners: Greek comparisons use από where English uses 'than'. Πιο μεγάλος από... means 'bigger than...'.
για: for, and also 'about'
Για does two big jobs:
- for: Ένα δώρο για σένα.: A gift for you.
- about: Μιλάμε για το βιβλίο.: We're talking about the book.
Context tells you which. It also builds a lot of common phrases: για πάντα (forever), για μια στιγμή (for a moment), για ποιο λόγο; (for what reason?).
Position prepositions are two words
For 'on top of', 'under', 'in front of', 'behind', Greek uses a two-word combo, a position word plus σε or από:
- πάνω σε: on / on top of (πάνω στο τραπέζι, on the table)
- κάτω από: under (κάτω από το κρεβάτι, under the bed)
- μπροστά από: in front of (μπροστά από το σπίτι)
- πίσω από: behind (πίσω από την πόρτα)
- δίπλα σε: next to (δίπλα στη γιαγιά)
- ανάμεσα σε: between (ανάμεσα στους δύο)
Once the pattern clicks, positioning any object becomes automatic.
Frequently asked questions
What case do Greek prepositions take?+
In modern spoken Greek, almost all of them take the accusative. That means the article and noun after the preposition go into their accusative forms: στον σταθμό, από την Αθήνα, με τη μαμά. A few older prepositions take other cases in fixed phrases, but for everyday learning, accusative is the safe default.
How does σε contract with the article?+
Σε fuses with the accusative article to form στον, στην, στο, στους, στις, στα. So σε + τον = στον, σε + την = στην, σε + το = στο, and so on. You'll almost never see σε and the article written separately, the contracted form is what native speakers say.
What's the difference between σε and από?+
Σε means 'to / at / in / on', motion towards, or being at a place. Από means 'from', motion away or origin. Πάω στην Αθήνα is 'I'm going to Athens', είμαι από την Αθήνα is 'I'm from Athens'. Different directions, both take the accusative.
How do you say 'about' something in Greek?+
Use για with the accusative. Μιλάμε για το βιβλίο (we're talking about the book), σκέφτομαι για τη δουλειά (I'm thinking about the job). Για covers both 'for' and 'about' in Greek, context tells you which.
How do you say 'in front of' or 'behind' in Greek?+
Both are two-word phrases: μπροστά από (in front of) and πίσω από (behind). Same pattern for other positions: πάνω σε (on), κάτω από (under), δίπλα σε (next to), ανάμεσα σε (between). The position word is fixed and the σε or από introduces the noun.
Practise this in the app
Drill prepositions in the app
Quizzes on σε, από, με, για, and the position prepositions, with audio and spaced repetition.
Start the basic prepositions lesson