Indirect (Embedded) Questions | Greek Grammar

An indirect, or embedded, question makes a question part of a larger clause: “I don't know whether he came.” A yes/no question takes αν “whether/if”; an information question retains ποιος, τι, πού, πότε, πώς, γιατί, or another wh-expression. The embedded clause keeps Greek statement order.

Yes/no questions become αν-clauses

When the missing information is simply positive versus negative, introduce the embedded question with αν. The larger verb commonly expresses knowing, asking, remembering, checking, or uncertainty.

Δεν ξέρω αν ήρθε ο Νίκος.

dhen kséro an írthe o Níkos

I don't know whether Nikos came.

Ρώτησε αν θέλω καφέ.

rótise an thélo kafé

She asked whether I wanted coffee.

Θυμάσαι αν κλείσαμε το παράθυρο;

thimáse an klísame to paráthiro;

Do you remember whether we closed the window?

Here αν does not add a condition. Although the same word means “if” in a conditional sentence, after ξέρω, ρωτάω, θυμάμαι it presents two alternatives: it happened or it did not.

Θα τηλεφωνήσω να μάθω αν είναι ανοιχτό το φαρμακείο.

tha tilefoníso na mátho an íne anichtó to farmakío

I'll call to find out whether the pharmacy is open.

English alternates if and whether. Greek αν covers both here; there is no auxiliary inversion after it.

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If the direct question can be answered only ναι or όχι, its embedded version normally begins with αν: Ήρθε; → Δεν ξέρω αν ήρθε.

Information questions keep their wh-word

A partial-information question already contains a word naming the missing value. Keep that word when embedding the question; do not add αν before it.

Δεν ξέρω πού μένει η Δανάη.

dhen kséro pu méni i Dhanái

I don't know where Danai lives.

Πες μου τι θέλεις για τα γενέθλιά σου.

pes mu ti thélis ya ta yenéthliá su

Tell me what you want for your birthday.

Ρώτησε ποιος ήρθε πρώτος.

rótise pios írthe prótos

He asked who arrived first.

Δεν θυμάμαι πότε κλείνει το μουσείο.

dhen thimáme póte klíni to musío

I don't remember when the museum closes.

Εξήγησέ μου γιατί ακυρώθηκε η πτήση.

eksíyisé mu yatí akiróthike i ptísi

Explain to me why the flight was cancelled.

The wh-expression may be a whole phrase, including a preposition. Greek never strands the preposition, either directly or inside an embedded question.

Δεν ξέρω με ποιον μιλούσε τόση ώρα.

dhen kséro me pion milúse tósi óra

I don't know who she was talking to for so long.

Ρώτησέ τον από πού πήρε τα εισιτήρια.

rótisé ton apó pu píre ta isitíria

Ask him where he got the tickets from.

Case and agreement belong to interrogative pronouns and questions with prepositions. Embedding preserves the complete phrase.

Keep ordinary Greek word order

English changes Where does Anna live? into I don't know where Anna lives, removing inversion and do. Greek direct questions already lack that inversion, so the clause needs no rearrangement beyond being placed after the matrix verb.

Πού μένει η Άννα;

pu méni i Ána;

Where does Anna live? (direct question)

Δεν ξέρω πού μένει η Άννα.

dhen kséro pu méni i Ána

I don't know where Anna lives. (indirect question)

Particles and clitics remain in their normal preverbal positions: πού θα πάει, τι σου είπε, γιατί δεν ήρθε.

Δεν ξέρω πού θα πάει μετά τη δουλειά.

dhen kséro pu tha pái metá ti dhuliá

I don't know where she'll go after work.

Θυμάσαι τι σου είπε ο γιατρός;

thimáse ti su ípe o yatrós;

Do you remember what the doctor told you?

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Greek direct and indirect wh-clauses have the same internal order. What changes is their role: the direct clause asks the listener; the indirect clause fills a slot after ξέρω, ρωτάω, θυμάμαι, and similar verbs.

Accents remain; punctuation follows the whole sentence

Interrogative πού and πώς keep their tonos in an embedded question. The accent marks their grammatical role, not the presence of a final question mark.

Μου είπε πού μένει και πώς πηγαίνει στη δουλειά.

mu ípe pu méni ke pos piyéni sti dhuliá

She told me where she lives and how she gets to work.

Unaccented που is a relative/complementizer and unaccented πως means “that”; neither substitutes for an embedded place or manner question. See question-word accents for the full contrast.

Punctuation is decided by the matrix, or whole, sentence. A statement such as Δεν ξέρω πού μένει. ends in a full stop, not ;. But Ξέρεις πού μένει; does take ; because the whole utterance is the direct yes/no question “Do you know...?” The embedded clause itself never receives a separate question mark in the middle.

Δεν ξέρω αν θα έρθει αύριο.

dhen kséro an tha érthi ávrio

I don't know whether she'll come tomorrow.

Ξέρεις αν θα έρθει αύριο;

kséris an tha érthi ávrio;

Do you know whether she'll come tomorrow?

μήπως adds doubt or apprehension

Μήπως can introduce an embedded polar question when the speaker is wondering, checking a concern, or considering an unwelcome possibility. It is not simply a more formal spelling of αν; it adds a stance of doubt or tentativeness.

Αναρωτιέμαι μήπως ξεχάσαμε να κλειδώσουμε.

anarotjéme mípos ksechásame na klidhósume

I wonder whether we forgot to lock up.

Με ρώτησε μήπως είχα δει τα γυαλιά της.

me rótise mípos ícha dhi ta yaliá tis

She asked whether I might have seen her glasses.

Direct uses and their expectation patterns belong to μήπως questions.

Greek does not backshift tense mechanically

English often changes present to past after a past reporting verb: Where do you live? → He asked where I lived. Greek does not impose that automatic sequence. If the residence is still current, Με ρώτησε πού μένω is natural. A past έμενα places the residence in the past because that is the intended time reference, not merely because ρώτησε is past.

Με ρώτησε πού μένω τώρα.

me rótise pu méno tóra

He asked me where I live now.

Με ρώτησε πού έμενα τότε.

me rótise pu émena tóte

He asked me where I was living then.

Choices involving tense, pronouns, and τώρα / τότε are developed on reported questions.

Common Mistakes

1. Combining αν with a wh-word. Choose αν for a polar question or retain the wh-word for a missing constituent—never both.

❌ Δεν ξέρω αν πού μένει.

Incorrect — ‘where’ already introduces the embedded question; remove αν.

✅ Δεν ξέρω πού μένει μετά τη μετακόμιση.

dhen kséro pu méni metá ti metakómisi

I don't know where she lives after the move.

2. Adding αν before an interrogative subject. Again, ποιος itself introduces the clause.

❌ Ρώτησε αν ποιος ήρθε πρώτος.

Incorrect — the embedded wh-question begins directly with ποιος.

✅ Ρώτησε ποιος ήρθε πρώτος στο γραφείο.

rótise pios írthe prótos sto ghrafío

He asked who arrived at the office first.

3. Using ότι after ρωτάω for a yes/no question. Ότι presents a proposition as content; αν presents alternatives.

❌ Ρώτησε ότι θέλω καφέ.

Incorrect for ‘asked whether I wanted coffee’ — use αν after ρώτησε.

✅ Ρώτησε αν θέλω καφέ ή τσάι.

rótise an thélo kafé i tsái

She asked whether I wanted coffee or tea.

4. Removing the tonos because the sentence ends in a full stop. Embedded interrogative πού remains accented.

❌ Δεν θυμάμαι που παρκάραμε.

Incorrect for the embedded question ‘where we parked’ — write πού.

✅ Δεν θυμάμαι πού παρκάραμε το αυτοκίνητο.

dhen thimáme pu parkárame to aftokínito

I don't remember where we parked the car.

Key Takeaways

Embed a yes/no question with αν: Δεν ξέρω αν ήρθε.
Keep the original wh-expression in an information question: πώς έγινε, με ποιον μίλησε. Do not add αν.
Greek retains ordinary clause order; there is no English-style inversion to undo.
πού / πώς keep their accent inside embedded questions.
The whole matrix sentence controls punctuation: a statement ends in a full stop, while Ξέρεις πού μένει; ends in ; because the whole sentence is a direct question.
μήπως adds doubt or concern. Greek chooses tense by intended time reference, not by automatic backshift.

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