Place adverbs answer πού; “where?” and can locate someone, indicate a direction, or point to an area already understood from context. The essential Greek set is small and highly reusable: εδώ “here,” εκεί “there,” μέσα “inside,” έξω “outside,” and words for relative position and distance. They are invariable, so there are no gender, number, or case endings to learn. All unmarked forms on this page are neutral, everyday Greek.
εδώ and εκεί: place relative to the speaker
Εδώ identifies the speaker's location or a place treated as close and present. Εκεί points away from that center or back to a place already mentioned. The physical distance is not fixed: a speaker can call an entire city εδώ while standing in it, then use εκεί for a café across the street.
Είμαι εδώ δίπλα· δεν με βλέπεις;
íme edhó dhípla; dhen me vlépis;
I'm right nearby; can't you see me?
Άφησα τα κλειδιά εκεί· τα βλέπεις;
áfisa ta klidhiá ekí; ta vlépis;
I left the keys there; can you see them?
English here/there works similarly, but Greek uses these adverbs very freely with motion as well as location. A destination does not need a separate equivalent of English to.
Έλα εδώ να σου δείξω τη φωτογραφία.
éla edhó na su dhíkso ti fotoghrafía
Come here so I can show you the photo.
Πήγαινε εκεί και περίμενέ με.
píyene ekí ke perímené me
Go over there and wait for me.
With είμαι, μένω, περιμένω, and similar verbs, the adverb usually gives a location. With έρχομαι, πηγαίνω, βγαίνω, and other motion verbs, the same adverb can supply the goal. Context and the verb distinguish “be here” from “come here.”
A practical map of place words
Think of these adverbs as labels on a simple map around the speaker or another reference point:
| Relation | Adverbs | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| vertical | πάνω / κάτω | up, above / down, below |
| boundary | μέσα / έξω | inside, in / outside, out |
| front and rear | μπροστά / πίσω | in front / behind, back |
| side and facing | δίπλα / απέναντι | beside, next door / opposite, across |
| distance | κοντά / μακριά | near / far |
| horizontal direction | δεξιά / αριστερά | right / left |
| coverage | παντού / πουθενά | everywhere / nowhere, anywhere |
Η γάτα είναι μέσα, αλλά ο σκύλος περιμένει έξω.
i gháta íne mésa, alá o skílos periméni ékso
The cat is inside, but the dog is waiting outside.
Κάθισε μπροστά· εγώ θα καθίσω πίσω.
káthise brostá; eghó tha kathíso píso
Sit in front; I'll sit in the back.
Το σχολείο είναι κοντά, αλλά το γήπεδο είναι μακριά.
to scholío íne kondá, alá to yípedho íne makriá
The school is nearby, but the stadium is far away.
Η Άννα μένει δίπλα κι εμείς μένουμε απέναντι.
i Ána méni dhípla ki emís ménume apénandi
Anna lives next door, and we live opposite.
Many of these words also serve as the base of compound prepositions, but the compound-prepositions page owns that inventory and all case rules.
Direction: right, left, up, and down
With a motion verb, δεξιά and αριστερά tell you which way to move. Πάνω and κάτω can likewise indicate direction or level. With a location verb, they tell you where something is.
Στρίψε δεξιά στο φανάρι και μετά πήγαινε ευθεία.
strípse dheksiá sto fanári ke metá píyene efthía
Turn right at the traffic light and then go straight.
Το μπάνιο είναι αριστερά και η κουζίνα δεξιά.
to bánio íne aristerá ke i kuzína dheksiá
The bathroom is on the left and the kitchen is on the right.
Τα παιδιά ανέβηκαν πάνω, ενώ εμείς μείναμε κάτω.
ta pedhiá anévikan páno, enó emís míname káto
The children went upstairs, while we stayed downstairs.
English often adds to the right, on the left, upstairs, or down below. Greek commonly lets the single adverb do the whole job. Adding more structure is possible when a specific reference object matters, but it is not required for these basic directions.
παντού and πουθενά
Παντού spreads the location over every relevant place. Πουθενά is a negative-polarity word: in a negative statement it means “nowhere,” while in a question it can mean “anywhere.”
Έψαξα παντού, αλλά δεν βρήκα τα γυαλιά πουθενά.
épsaksa pandú, alá dhen vríka ta yaliá puthená
I looked everywhere, but I couldn't find my glasses anywhere.
Βρήκες πουθενά ανοιχτό φαρμακείο;
vríkes puthená anichtó farmakío;
Did you find an open pharmacy anywhere?
This is why πουθενά should not be memorized as a simple one-to-one translation of nowhere. The surrounding polarity supplies the difference: δεν ... πουθενά in a negative statement, but plain πουθενά is licensed inside a question.
Position and focus
Place adverbs commonly follow the verb: μένω εδώ, περίμενε έξω, στρίψε αριστερά. They can move to the beginning to establish or contrast a setting.
Εδώ έχει ήλιο, αλλά εκεί βρέχει ακόμα.
edhó échi ílio, alá ekí vréchi akóma
It's sunny here, but it's still raining there.
Fronted εδώ and εκεί make the two locations the organizing contrast. This flexible placement is much like English Here it's sunny, but there..., though Greek uses such fronting very naturally in everyday speech.
Common Mistakes
1. Adding a preposition before directional εδώ. The adverb itself can be the goal of motion.
❌ Έλα σε εδώ να σου δείξω.
Incorrect—use bare εδώ after έλα.
✅ Έλα εδώ να σου δείξω.
éla edhó na su dhíkso
Come here so I can show you.
2. Using πουθενά in a positive declarative statement intended to mean “nowhere.” It needs negative licensing there.
❌ Τα κλειδιά είναι πουθενά.
Incorrect for 'the keys are nowhere'—add δεν.
✅ Τα κλειδιά δεν είναι πουθενά.
ta klidhiá dhen íne puthená
The keys are nowhere to be found.
3. Replacing the invariable direction adverb with a mismatched adjective.
❌ Η τουαλέτα είναι δεξιός.
Incorrect—use the place adverb δεξιά.
✅ Η τουαλέτα είναι δεξιά.
i tualéta íne dheksiá
The restroom is on the right.
Key Takeaways
- Εδώ centers a place near the speaker; εκεί points away or refers back to another place.
- Bare place adverbs work with both location and motion: είμαι εδώ, έλα εδώ.
- Learn spatial oppositions as pairs: πάνω/κάτω, μέσα/έξω, μπροστά/πίσω, κοντά/μακριά, δεξιά/αριστερά.
- Παντού means “everywhere”; negative δεν ... πουθενά means “nowhere/anywhere,” while questions can license πουθενά without δεν.
Related Topics
- Compound (Two-Word) PrepositionsA2 — The spatial expressions built with place words plus σε or από, their accusative complements, and the pairings that must be learned whole.
- Greek Adverbs OverviewA1 — An introduction to invariable Greek adverbs of manner, place, time, quantity, and degree, with formation and question-word previews.
- Adverb PositionB2 — Place Greek manner, time, frequency, and sentence adverbs by scope and information structure while keeping weak pronouns attached to their verb.