κάθε and καθένας: 'each/every' | Greek Grammar

Almost every word that can stand in front of a Greek noun agrees with it — demonstratives, quantifiers, adjectives, all of them. κάθε is the exception. It has exactly one form, it has that form in every gender, number and case, and it refuses the article that αυτός and όλος insist on. After the effort of learning to inflect αυτό το βιβλίο and όλων των παιδιών, κάθε is a gift: you write it once and you are done.

The complication is that κάθε cannot stand on its own. The moment you want to say "each one" without naming the thing, Greek hands you a different word — καθένας / καθεμιά / καθένα — and that one declines like everything else. This page covers both, and the agreement trap that catches English speakers on the way through.

κάθε never changes, and never takes an article

The shape is fixed: κάθε + singular noun, with no article in front of either of them.

Κάθε μαθητής παίρνει τον δικό του κωδικό την πρώτη μέρα.

káthe mathitís pérni ton dhikó tu kodhikó tin próti méra

Each pupil gets their own login on the first day.

Κάθε φορά που μπαίνω στο σπίτι, ο σκύλος τρελαίνεται.

káthe forá pu béno sto spíti, o skílos trelénete

Every time I walk in the door the dog goes wild.

Σε κάθε σπίτι της γειτονιάς έχει τουλάχιστον έναν γάτο.

se káthe spíti tis yitoniás échi tuláchiston énan gháto

Every house in the neighbourhood has at least one cat.

The third sentence is the one to study. The preposition σε drags the whole noun phrase into the accusative, and it does here too — σπίτι is accusative, even though a neuter noun does not show it — but κάθε itself does not move a millimetre. The genitive makes the same point visibly:

Η γνώμη κάθε γονιού μετράει το ίδιο στο συμβούλιο.

i ghnómi káthe ghoniú metrái to ídhio sto simvúlio

Every parent's opinion counts the same at the meeting.

Τα δικαιώματα κάθε πολίτη προστατεύονται από το Σύνταγμα.

ta dhikeómata káthe políti prostatévonde apó to Síndaghma

Every citizen's rights are protected by the constitution.

So the noun takes its case as usual and κάθε just sits there. Compare this with όλος, which inflects fully and keeps the article — όλων των πολιτών — and you can see how much less machinery κάθε needs.

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Build a κάθε phrase in the opposite order from an όλος phrase. With όλος you inflect first and then add the article; with κάθε you delete the article, put the noun in the singular, and leave κάθε untouched. If you catch yourself producing ×κάθα, ×κάθες or ×κάθε το, you are still treating it as an adjective.

ο κάθε: the article is possible, but it is not neutral

You will hear ο κάθε άνθρωπος and read του κάθε πολίτη, so it is worth being straight about it: the definite article can appear, but it goes before κάθε, never between κάθε and the noun, and it adds something. Two things, in fact. In careful writing it individuates — "each and every one, taken separately". In speech it is very often dismissive, the Greek equivalent of English any old:

Δεν συζητάω τα προσωπικά μου με τον κάθε ένα.

dhen sizitáo ta prosopiká mu me ton káthe éna

I don't discuss my private life with just anybody.

Μπαίνει ο κάθε άσχετος στην ομάδα και λέει τη γνώμη του.

béni o káthe áschetos stin omádha ke léi ti ghnómi tu

Any clueless person can wander into the group and give their opinion. (informal, dismissive)

Neither of these is the default way to say "every". Leave the article off unless you actually want that flavour.

κάθε + a numeral: the one time the noun goes plural

There is a single systematic exception to "κάθε takes a singular noun", and it is a very common one. Put a numeral between κάθε and the noun and the noun goes plural, because what is being counted out one at a time is now the whole interval, not the individual item.

Παίρνω το φάρμακο κάθε οκτώ ώρες, ακόμα και τη νύχτα.

pérno to fármako káthe októ óres, akóma ke ti níchta

I take the medication every eight hours, even at night.

Το λεωφορείο περνάει κάθε είκοσι λεπτά τα Σαββατοκύριακα.

to leoforío pernái káthe íkosi leptá ta Savatokíriaka

The bus comes every twenty minutes at weekends.

Αλλάζουν τα λάστιχα κάθε δύο χρόνια, είτε φθαρούν είτε όχι.

alázun ta lásticha káthe dhío chrónia, íte ftharún íte óchi

They change the tyres every two years, whether they wear out or not.

English every other day has no numeral to hang on, and Greek's most idiomatic version does not use κάθε at all — it is μέρα παρά μέρα, literally "day beside day". The pattern generalises: χρόνο παρά χρόνο, βδομάδα παρά βδομάδα.

Πρέπει να κάνω τις ασκήσεις μέρα παρά μέρα, αλλιώς δεν βοηθάνε.

prépi na káno tis askísis méra pará méra, aliós dhen voitháne

I have to do the exercises every other day, otherwise they don't help.

Time expressions: κάθε is the default frequency word

Most of what English does with daily, weekly, on Mondays Greek does with κάθε plus a bare accusative — κάθε μέρα, κάθε βράδυ, κάθε Δευτέρα, κάθε καλοκαίρι, κάθε χρόνο. The noun is in the accusative because that is how Greek marks a stretch or a point of time without a preposition; see the accusative of time and duration.

Κάθε Δευτέρα έχουμε σύσκεψη στις εννιά και δεν προλαβαίνω καφέ.

káthe Dheftéra échume sískepsi stis eniá ke dhen prolavéno kafé

Every Monday we have a meeting at nine and I never manage to get a coffee.

Πάμε στο χωριό κάθε καλοκαίρι από τότε που γεννήθηκα.

páme sto chorió káthe kalokéri apó tóte pu yeníthika

We've gone to the village every summer since I was born.

Two chunks worth learning whole: κάθε τόσο ("every so often") and, in speech, κάθε που ("every time that") — the second is (informal) and would be replaced by κάθε φορά που in writing.

Κάθε τόσο μου στέλνει ένα μήνυμα να δει τι κάνω.

káthe tóso mu stélni éna mínima na dhi ti káno

Every so often he sends me a message to see how I'm doing.

Κάθε που έρχεται στην Αθήνα μένει σ' εμάς.

káthe pu érchete stin Athína méni s' emás

Every time he comes to Athens he stays at ours. (informal)

Everything stays singular — including the verb

This is where English actively works against you. English everyone is grammatically singular but is followed by a plural-flavoured possessive: everyone brought *their own lunch. Greek keeps the whole sentence singular: *third-person singular verb, singular possessive του / της.

Κάθε συνάδελφος έφερε το δικό του γλυκό στο πάρτι.

káthe sinádhelfos éfere to dhikó tu ghlikó sto párti

Every colleague brought their own dessert to the party.

Κάθε παιδί κοιμάται στο δικό του δωμάτιο τώρα που μεγάλωσαν.

káthe pedhí kimáte sto dhikó tu dhomátio tóra pu meghálosan

Each child sleeps in their own room now that they've grown up.

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English lets you say everyone brought their own lunch with a plural-flavoured possessive. Greek will not: κάθε and ο καθένας are third-person singular the whole way down, so the verb is singular and the possessive is του or της. If you catch yourself writing τους after a κάθε subject, something upstream has gone plural.

The masculine του is the generic form when the noun is masculine or mixed; with a feminine noun it is της (κάθε μητέρα … της). Speech-makers who want to be explicitly inclusive say ο καθένας και η καθεμία, but no ordinary sentence needs it. The general rule that a singular subject takes a singular verb is on subject–verb agreement.

One group or one at a time

κάθε and όλοι both land near English all / every, but they package the set differently, and the sentence changes accordingly:

Όλο το γραφείο πήρε ένα δώρο για τη Μαρία.

ólo to ghrafío píre éna dhóro ya ti María

The whole office got Maria one present between them.

Κάθε συνάδελφος πήρε ένα δώρο για τη Μαρία.

káthe sinádhelfos píre éna dhóro ya ti María

Each colleague got Maria a present of their own.

Change nothing but the quantifier and the office's shopping bill goes from one present to fifteen. όλος treats the set as a body; κάθε walks through it member by member. The rest of όλος — its paradigm, its "whole" reading, the floating Τα έφαγε όλα — is on όλος. The other ways Greek distributes something over a set, including ανά and the doubled ένας ένας, are on distributives.

The pronoun: καθένας, καθεμιά, καθένα

Drop the noun and κάθε cannot follow it — you need καθένας, which is a proper pronoun with a proper declension. There is no plural: the word means "one at a time" by definition.

	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	καθένας	καθεμία / καθεμιά	καθένα
Genitive	καθενός	καθεμίας / καθεμιάς	καθενός
Accusative	καθέναν	καθεμία / καθεμιά	καθένα

The genitive is the form to memorise, because the stress moves: καθένας but καθενός, καθεμιά but καθεμιάς. The two feminine spellings are both standard — καθεμία is the more careful (formal) one, καθεμιά the ordinary spoken one.

Το όνομα του καθενός είναι γραμμένο στην καρτέλα του.

to ónoma tu kathenós íne ghraméno stin kartéla tu

Each person's name is written on their own card.

Ρώτησαν τη γνώμη της καθεμιάς ξεχωριστά, χωρίς μάρτυρες.

rótisan ti ghnómi tis kathemiás ksechoristá, chorís mártires

They asked each woman's opinion separately, with no witnesses present.

Η καθεμιά μας πλήρωσε το δικό της, δεν τα μοιράσαμε.

i kathemiá mas plírose to dhikó tis, dhen ta mirásame

Each of us paid for her own — we didn't split it.

ο καθένας = "everyone"

With the definite article, ο καθένας is simply the everyday word for everyone — and it is far more frequent than the pronoun without an article. It keeps the singular concord throughout.

Ο καθένας έχει τα δικά του προβλήματα, μην τον κρίνεις.

o kathénas échi ta dhiká tu provlímata, min ton krínis

Everyone has their own problems — don't judge him.

Δεν είναι για τον καθένα αυτή η δουλειά, θέλει υπομονή.

dhen íne ya ton kathéna aftí i dhuliá, théli ipomoní

This job isn't for everyone; it takes patience.

Τα γούστα του καθενός είναι διαφορετικά και καλά κάνουν.

ta ghústa tu kathenós íne dhiaforetiká ke kalá kánun

Everyone's taste is different, and quite right too.

There is a neuter counterpart for things, (το) καθετί — "every single thing", written solid — which is a shade more emphatic than όλα: Προσέχει το καθετί. The pronoun uses of καθένας alongside κανένας are developed on ο καθένας and κανένας as pronouns.

κάθε άλλο παρά

One idiom earns its own paragraph because it is everywhere and looks like nothing. κάθε άλλο παρά + adjective means anything but, and bare Κάθε άλλο! is a complete, emphatic "far from it".

Είναι κάθε άλλο παρά εύκολο να βρεις σπίτι στην Αθήνα τώρα.

íne káthe álo pará éfkolo na vris spíti stin Athína tóra

Finding a flat in Athens right now is anything but easy.

Κάθε άλλο! Ήταν η χειρότερη ταινία της χρονιάς.

káthe álo! ítan i chiróteri tenía tis chroniás

Far from it! It was the worst film of the year.

The άλλο in there is the ordinary word for "other", treated in full on άλλος.

Common Mistakes

1. Inflecting κάθε. It is the one determiner with a single form; there is nothing to agree with.

❌ Πηγαίνω γυμναστήριο κάθες μέρες.

Incorrect — κάθε never takes an ending and never takes a plural noun: κάθε μέρα.

✅ Πηγαίνω γυμναστήριο κάθε μέρα εκτός από την Κυριακή.

piyéno yimnastírio káthe méra ektós apó tin Kiriakí

I go to the gym every day except Sunday.

2. Slipping the article in after κάθε. Learners who have just mastered αυτό *το βιβλίο and όλα τα παιδιά* export the article to κάθε, where it cannot go.

❌ Κάθε το παιδί πρέπει να φέρει το βιβλίο του.

Incorrect — no article may stand between κάθε and its noun: κάθε παιδί.

✅ Κάθε παιδί πρέπει να φέρει το βιβλίο του τη Δευτέρα.

káthe pedhí prépi na féri to vivlío tu ti Dheftéra

Every child has to bring their book on Monday.

3. Making the verb plural because the meaning feels plural. κάθε + noun is grammatically singular, full stop.

❌ Κάθε υπάλληλος έχουν δικό τους γραφείο.

Incorrect — the subject is singular, so both the verb and the possessive are singular: έχει το δικό του γραφείο.

✅ Κάθε υπάλληλος έχει το δικό του γραφείο στον νέο όροφο.

káthe ipálilos échi to dhikó tu ghrafío ston néo órofo

Every employee has their own desk on the new floor.

4. Using κάθε where there is no noun. As soon as the noun disappears you need the pronoun.

❌ Πήραμε τρία κομμάτια και κάθε κόστισε δύο ευρώ.

Incorrect — with no noun following, κάθε cannot stand; the pronoun is το καθένα.

✅ Πήραμε τρία κομμάτια και το καθένα κόστισε δύο ευρώ.

pírame tría komátia ke to kathéna kóstise dhío evró

We bought three pieces and each one cost two euros.

5. Leaving the pronoun in the nominative after a preposition. καθένας declines, and every preposition wants the accusative.

❌ Έδωσαν από ένα φυλλάδιο σε καθένας.

Incorrect — after σε the accusative is required: στον καθέναν.

✅ Έδωσαν από ένα φυλλάδιο στον καθέναν που περνούσε.

édhosan apó éna filádhio ston kathénan pu pernúse

They handed a leaflet to each person who walked past.

Key Takeaways

κάθε has one form only. It never inflects, never pluralises, and takes no article — κάθε μέρα, σε κάθε σπίτι, η γνώμη κάθε γονιού. The noun still takes whatever case the sentence needs.
ο κάθε exists but is marked: emphatic "each and every" in writing, dismissive any old in speech (με τον κάθε ένα). It is not the default.
A numeral is the one thing that lets a plural noun follow: κάθε δύο ώρες, κάθε είκοσι λεπτά. For English every other, Greek prefers μέρα παρά μέρα.
Everything stays singular — verb, possessive, the lot: Κάθε παιδί κοιμάται στο *δικό του δωμάτιο, against English *everyone… their.
The pronoun is καθένας / καθεμιά / καθένα, with no plural and a stress shift in the genitive (καθενός, καθεμιάς). With the article, ο καθένας is the ordinary word for everyone.
κάθε is one at a time, όλος is the group as a body: Κάθε συνάδελφος πήρε ένα δώρο is fifteen presents; Όλο το γραφείο πήρε ένα δώρο is one.
Learn κάθε άλλο παρά ("anything but") and bare Κάθε άλλο! ("far from it") as fixed shapes.

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