A real or open conditional presents its condition as possible, recurring, or generally valid. It does not promise that the condition will occur; it simply avoids declaring it contrary to fact. The productive present/future patterns taught here use αν + a non-past form, while the result may be present, future, imperative, or modal. A real condition can also test an unknown past fact: Αν έφυγε στις έξι, θα έχει φτάσει τώρα (“If he left at six, he will have arrived by now”).
The result decides the practical meaning
| Condition | Result | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| αν + non-past (often imperfective) | present | habit, repeated result, general rule |
| αν + present or dependent perfective | θα + future | open future possibility |
| αν + present or dependent perfective | imperative | instruction, invitation, advice |
| αν + present | μπορώ / πρέπει / χρειάζεται… | available option or practical consequence |
Αν έχεις χρόνο το βράδυ, μπορούμε να δούμε την ταινία μαζί.
an échis chróno to vrádhi, borúme na dhúme tin tenía mazí
If you have time this evening, we can watch the film together.
Αν βρέξει αύριο, θα μεταφέρουμε το τραπέζι μέσα.
an vréksi ávrio, tha metaférume to trapézi mésa
If it rains tomorrow, we'll move the table inside.
Αν χρειαστείς βοήθεια, φώναξέ με.
an chriastís voíthia, fónaksé me
If you need help, call me.
The same condition can lead to different speech acts. Θα μεταφέρουμε predicts a result; φώναξέ με instructs the listener; μπορούμε presents an option.
Imperfective versus perfective inside the condition
The form after αν contributes aspect. An imperfective present presents a state, activity, or habit from within. A dependent perfective form packages an event — or a finite, delimited series — as a bounded whole.
Αν δουλεύεις από το σπίτι, χρειάζεσαι μια καλή καρέκλα.
an dhulévis apó to spíti, chriázese mia kalí karékla
If you work from home, you need a good chair. (habitual situation)
Αν τελειώσεις την αναφορά σήμερα, θα τη στείλουμε το πρωί.
an teliósis tin anaforá símera, tha ti stílume to proí
If you finish the report today, we'll send it in the morning. (the task treated as bounded)
In the first sentence δουλεύεις views working as an ongoing arrangement. In the second τελειώσεις packages reaching the report's endpoint as the relevant boundary. The perfective form is not a future tense by itself; αν licenses it and the future time comes from the whole sentence.
Αν τηλεφωνήσεις και στους τρεις πελάτες σήμερα, θα τελειώσουμε νωρίς.
an tilefonísis ke stus tris pelátes símera, tha teliósume norís
If you call all three clients today, we'll finish early. (a finite series packaged as a whole)
Some verbs express a state and naturally use their present form even for one future occasion:
Αν είσαι κουρασμένη μετά το ταξίδι, θα οδηγήσω εγώ.
an íse kurazméni metá to taksídhi, tha odhiyíso eghó
If you're tired after the journey, I'll drive.
Aspect is therefore semantic, not a command to make every future condition perfective.
Generic and timeless conditionals
When both halves are present, the sentence often states a regular consequence or general truth. English frequently uses the same pattern and calls it a “zero conditional.”
Αν πατήσεις αυτό το κουμπί, ανοίγει η πόρτα.
an patísis aftó to kumbí, aníyi i pórta
If you press this button, the door opens.
Αν πίνω καφέ αργά, δεν κοιμάμαι καλά.
an píno kafé arghá, dhen kimáme kalá
If I drink coffee late, I don't sleep well.
The first uses perfective πατήσεις to package each button press as the bounded trigger; the general result ανοίγει holds whenever that trigger occurs. The second uses imperfective verbs for a repeated personal pattern. Generality comes from context, not from one compulsory aspect pairing.
Negative and alternative outcomes
Negate the condition with αν δεν. The negative stays in the indicative slot; there is no μη(ν) because this is not a να-clause.
Αν δεν βρίσκεις ταξί, πάρε με τηλέφωνο να έρθω να σε πάρω.
an dhen vrískis taksí, páre me tiléfono na értho na se páro
If you can't find a taxi, call me and I'll come pick you up.
Εκτός αν means “unless” and presents the exception that cancels the main result:
Θα φάμε έξω, εκτός αν έχει κλείσει η κουζίνα.
tha fáme ékso, ektós an échi klísi i kuzína
We'll eat out unless the kitchen has closed.
The full choice among αν, εάν, άμα, εκτός αν belongs to conditional conjunctions.
Order and conversational focus
An initial condition frames the result and normally takes a comma. A final condition sounds like a qualification attached to an already stated plan.
Θα πάμε για μπάνιο αν ζεστάνει λίγο ο καιρός.
tha páme ya bánio an zestáni lígho o kerós
We'll go for a swim if the weather warms up a little.
Αν ζεστάνει λίγο ο καιρός, θα πάμε για μπάνιο.
an zestáni lígho o kerós, tha páme ya bánio
If the weather warms up a little, we'll go for a swim.
Both are open conditions. The first foregrounds the plan and adds the limitation; the second makes the weather the frame the listener evaluates first.
Open does not mean probable
An open conditional can describe a remote possibility as long as the speaker does not present it as false.
Αν κερδίσω ποτέ το λαχείο, θα αγοράσω ένα σπίτι δίπλα στη θάλασσα.
an kerdhíso poté to lachío, tha aghoráso éna spíti dhípla sti thálasa
If I ever win the lottery, I'll buy a house by the sea.
The lottery win is unlikely, but it remains logically open. An unreal form would place it in an explicitly imagined world and change the speaker's stance, not merely lower the mathematical probability.
Common Mistakes
1. Adding να after the conditional conjunction.
❌ Αν να τελειώσεις νωρίς, έλα από το σπίτι.
Incorrect—αν directly licenses the conditional verb form; do not add να.
✅ Αν τελειώσεις νωρίς, έλα από το σπίτι.
an teliósis norís, éla apó to spíti
If you finish early, come by the house.
2. Treating αν θα as either the neutral default or impossible everywhere. The bare dependent form is the normal production choice. Conditional αν θα is possible but marked, while interrogative αν “whether” takes θα freely.
✅ Αν φύγεις αύριο, πρέπει να αγοράσεις εισιτήριο σήμερα.
an fíyis ávrio, prépi na aghorásis isitírio símera
If you leave tomorrow, you need to buy a ticket today. (neutral conditional default)
✅ Δεν ξέρω αν θα φύγεις αύριο.
dhen kséro an tha fíyis ávrio
I don't know whether you will leave tomorrow. (ordinary embedded question)
3. Leaving a direct object in the nominative.
❌ Αν συναντήσεις ο Νίκος, πες του να έρθει μαζί μας.
Incorrect—the object of συναντήσεις must be accusative: τον Νίκο.
✅ Αν συναντήσεις τον Νίκο, πες του να έρθει μαζί μας.
an sinandísis ton Níko, pes tu na érthi mazí mas
If you run into Nikos, tell him to come with us.
Key Takeaways
- The central present/future patterns use αν + a non-past form; the result may be present, future, modal, or imperative.
- Imperfective aspect presents a state, activity, or open habit internally; perfective aspect packages an event or finite series as bounded.
- Present–present pairings express habits and general truths as well as scientific regularities.
- Αν δεν negates a condition; εκτός αν introduces the exception “unless.”
- Open conditions can also test past facts; neutral future conditions normally omit θα, while marked conditional αν θα and interrogative “whether” αν θα are legitimate.
Related Topics
- Conditional Sentences: OverviewA2 — See the three central Greek αν-patterns: open conditions, unreal present conditions, and unreal past conditions, with their matching result forms.
- Unreal Conditionals (αν + past)B2 — Express unreal present situations, missed past alternatives, and context-resolved counterfactuals with αν plus past forms and θα in the result.
- Simple Future (θα + perfective)A2 — The everyday Greek future — θα in front of the perfective stem — presents a future occurrence or finite series as a bounded whole: θα γράψω, θα φάω, θα πάω, θα δω, θα τελειώσω. It is the default when you name a specific plan without opening up its internal course.
- Aspect in the FutureB1 — Greek keeps one future particle, θα, and verbs with an aspect pair contrast an internal process or open routine (θα γράφω) with an occurrence or finite series packaged as bounded (θα γράψω); English wording supplies clues, not a mechanical mapping.