Greek uses μέχρι, ως, and έως to set an endpoint: “until ten,” “as far as Athens,” or “up to twenty people.” Their central meanings overlap, but their frequency and register differ. Μέχρι is the conversational workhorse; έως is especially common in notices and careful writing; ως is compact and frequent in ranges and fixed expressions.
One endpoint, in time or space
Before an ordinary noun phrase, these prepositions take the accusative. They do not say that an event happens at the endpoint; they bound how long or how far the preceding situation extends.
Χθες δούλεψα μέχρι τις δέκα και σήμερα νυστάζω.
chthes dhúlepsa méchri tis dhéka ke símera nistázo
Yesterday I worked until ten, and today I'm sleepy.
Θα περιμένω ως το βράδυ πριν αποφασίσω.
tha periméno os to vrádhi prin apofasíso
I'll wait until the evening before deciding.
Η προσφορά ισχύει έως την Κυριακή.
i prosforá ischíi éos tin Kiriakí
The offer is valid until Sunday. (formal)
All three can mark a temporal boundary. In informal conversation, μέχρι is usually the safest active choice. Έως often appears in schedules, regulations, and announcements (formal), though it is not restricted to official prose. Ως is perfectly current but occurs particularly readily in concise ranges.
Spatial endpoints work in the same way:
Περπατήσαμε μέχρι την παραλία και γυρίσαμε με λεωφορείο.
perpatísame méchri tin paralía ke yirísame me leoforío
We walked as far as the beach and came back by bus.
Η γραμμή φτάνει ως την Αθήνα χωρίς ενδιάμεση στάση.
i ghramí ftáni os tin Athína chorís endhiámesi stási
The route runs as far as Athens without an intermediate stop.
Ranges with από
An endpoint becomes a range when paired with από. Από introduces the starting point; ως, έως, or μέχρι introduces the end.
Το γραφείο λειτουργεί από τις εννιά ως τις πέντε.
to ghrafío lituryí apó tis eniá os tis pénde
The office operates from nine to five.
Θα λείπω από τη Δευτέρα μέχρι την Πέμπτη.
tha lípo apó ti Dheftéra méchri tin Pémpti
I'll be away from Monday until Thursday.
Η έκθεση καλύπτει την περίοδο από τη δεκαετία του ογδόντα έως σήμερα.
i ékthesi kalípti tin perídho apó ti dhekaetía tu oghdhónda éos símera
The exhibition covers the period from the eighties to today. (formal)
English often uses to for both destinations and range endpoints. Greek separates them: σε identifies a goal or location, whereas από...ως/μέχρι measures the span between two boundaries.
Quantities: “up to”
Before a number or quantity word, the endpoint becomes a maximum. The number has no visible case marking, but the limit meaning is unchanged.
Στο μικρό δωμάτιο χωράνε μέχρι έξι άτομα.
sto mikró dhomátio choráne méchri éksi átoma
Up to six people fit in the small room.
Η απάντηση μπορεί να αργήσει έως τρεις εργάσιμες ημέρες.
i apándisi borí na aryísi éos tris erghásimes iméres
The reply may take up to three working days. (formal)
This normally sets an upper ceiling, not an approximation with no boundary. Context decides whether the ceiling is inclusive; in schedules and rules, it normally is.
Until a verb happens: μέχρι να and ώσπου να
A noun gives an endpoint as a thing or time. A verb gives it as an event. Modern Greek has no productive infinitive equivalent to English until he arrives, so it uses a finite να clause after μέχρι.
Περίμενε εδώ μέχρι να έρθω.
perímene edhó méchri na értho
Wait here until I come.
Μείναμε στην κουζίνα μέχρι να σταματήσει η βροχή.
míname stin kuzína méchri na stamatísi i vrochí
We stayed in the kitchen until the rain stopped.
Ώσπου is not a preposition and cannot take a noun phrase. It is a temporal conjunction; with an expected endpoint it commonly appears as ώσπου να + verb.
Κράτα μου μια θέση ώσπου να γυρίσω.
kráta mu mia thési óspu na yiríso
Save me a seat until I get back.
More formal writing also uses έως ότου or μέχρις ότου (formal). Their tense and aspect choices belong on temporal conjunctions.
μέχρις and fixed expressions
Μέχρις is a real variant of μέχρι, found especially before a vowel and in fixed careful expressions such as μέχρις ότου. Everyday speech strongly favors μέχρι.
Two high-frequency phrases need separate attention:
- μέχρι στιγμής means “so far” or “up to this point.” The genitive is fossilized; it does not overturn the productive accusative pattern.
- ως συνήθως means “as usual.” Here ως means “as,” not “until”; this is a distinct fixed adverbial use.
Μέχρι στιγμής όλα πάνε καλύτερα απ' ό,τι περιμέναμε.
méchri stighmís óla páne kalítera ap' óti periméname
So far, everything is going better than we expected.
Ως συνήθως, ο Αντώνης έφτασε πρώτος.
os siníthos, o Andónis éftase prótos
As usual, Antonis arrived first.
Common Mistakes
1. Leaving the article in the nominative after an endpoint preposition.
❌ Θα μείνουμε εδώ ως η Κυριακή.
Incorrect — the endpoint noun phrase must be accusative: ως την Κυριακή.
✅ Θα μείνουμε εδώ ως την Κυριακή.
tha mínume edhó os tin Kiriakí
We'll stay here until Sunday.
2. Stacking two endpoint markers. Choose one member of the set.
❌ Το κατάστημα είναι ανοιχτό έως μέχρι τις οκτώ.
Incorrect — έως and μέχρι cannot both introduce the same endpoint.
✅ Το κατάστημα είναι ανοιχτό μέχρι τις οκτώ.
to katástima íne anichtó méchri tis októ
The shop is open until eight.
3. Treating ώσπου as a preposition. It must introduce a clause.
❌ Θα μείνω εδώ ώσπου την Παρασκευή.
Incorrect — use μέχρι before a noun phrase, or ώσπου να before a verb.
✅ Θα μείνουμε στην Αθήνα μέχρι τη Δευτέρα.
tha mínume stin Athína méchri ti Dheftéra
We'll stay in Athens until Monday.
4. Confusing the two meanings of ως. Both are grammatical, but only the first marks an endpoint.
✅ Περίμενα ως το μεσημέρι.
perímena os to mesiméri
I waited until noon. (endpoint)
✅ Ως συνήθως, περίμενα μόνο εγώ.
os siníthos, perímena móno eghó
As usual, I was the only one waiting. (fixed 'as' expression)
Key Takeaways
- Μέχρι is the conversational default; έως is frequent in formal notices; ως is common in concise ranges.
- The core noun-phrase endpoint takes the accusative, while adverbs and numbers show no visible case.
- Από...ως/έως/μέχρι builds “from...to” ranges.
- Use μέχρι να or ώσπου να before an event; ώσπου is a conjunction, not a preposition.
- Learn μέχρι στιγμής and ως συνήθως as fixed expressions with distinct syntax.
Related Topics
- Temporal Prepositions and TimeA2 — How Greek expresses at, before, after, during, within, for, and from–to time spans—and when it uses no preposition at all.
- Time: όταν, μόλις, ενώ, πριν, αφούA2 — Choose Greek temporal conjunctions by the relationship between events, and learn why future ‘when’ normally takes a perfective dependent form rather than θα.
- να After πριν, μέχρι, χωρίς, αντίB2 — A family of subordinators — πριν (before), μέχρι / ώσπου (until), χωρίς (without), αντί (instead of), εκτός από (except) — that switch to a full να-clause the moment a verb follows, turning what English does with 'before doing / without doing' into a conjugated Greek clause.
- από: from, of, by, thanA1 — How από marks sources, passive agents, comparison standards, members of a group, and routes through a place.