A temporal clause positions one event relative to another: before it, after it, during it, or at its endpoint. Greek lets that clause come before or after the main event, and the order changes what the listener treats as background. This page builds complete timelines; the inventory and mood selection of όταν, μόλις, ενώ, πριν, αφού, μέχρι να are covered on Temporal Conjunctions.
Put the time frame first or the result first
When a temporal clause comes first, it creates the frame in which the main event should be understood. Written Greek normally places a comma after that fronted frame.
Όταν τελειώσεις τη δουλειά, θα σου τηλεφωνήσω.
ótan teliósis ti dhuliá, tha su tilefoníso
When you finish work, I’ll call you.
The comma signals that the opening time frame is complete and the main event begins. This order is useful in instructions and narratives because the listener learns the condition on the timeline before hearing the result.
The same temporal clause can follow the main clause. When it is an integral answer to “when?”, it normally follows without a comma.
Θα σου τηλεφωνήσω όταν τελειώσεις τη δουλειά.
tha su tilefoníso ótan teliósis ti dhuliá
I’ll call you when you finish work.
The facts are the same, but the information flow differs. Όταν τελειώσεις..., θα... foregrounds the time frame; Θα... όταν τελειώσεις announces the planned action first and then specifies its time.
Build a past sequence with πριν, όταν, and αφού
In a narrative, conjunctions organize events more clearly than listing several aorists with και “and.” Πριν points backward from a reference event, όταν locates the central moment, and αφού presents an event as already completed before the next one.
Πριν φύγω από το σπίτι, έκλεισα όλα τα παράθυρα.
prin fígho apó to spíti, éklisa óla ta paráthira
Before I left home, I closed all the windows.
Όταν έφτασα στο γραφείο, έστειλα μήνυμα στην Άννα.
ótan éftasa sto ghrafío, éstila mínima stin Ána
When I arrived at the office, I sent Anna a message.
Αφού τελειώσαμε τη σύσκεψη, πήγαμε για καφέ.
afú teliósame ti sískepsi, píghame ya kafé
After we finished the meeting, we went for coffee.
These three clauses create a stable chain: preparation before departure, an action at arrival, and an action after completion. The conjunction supplies the logical relation, while aspect shows how each event is viewed. Here the aorists present bounded steps.
Sequence future instructions step by step
For a one-off future endpoint, the normal concise pattern is a temporal conjunction plus the perfective dependent form, while θα appears in the main result. The conjunction page owns the full mood rule; in sentence building, the practical point is to keep each awaited step in its own clause.
Μόλις φτάσεις στον σταθμό, στείλε μου μήνυμα και περίμενε δίπλα στην είσοδο.
mólis ftásis ston stathmó, stíle mu mínima ke perímene dhípla stin ísodho
As soon as you reach the station, message me and wait beside the entrance.
Αφού αφήσεις τη βαλίτσα στο ξενοδοχείο, θα συναντηθούμε στην πλατεία.
afú afísis ti valítsa sto ksenodhochío, tha sinandithúme stin platía
After you leave your suitcase at the hotel, we’ll meet in the square.
English uses a present form in when you finish; Greek τελειώσεις is not an ordinary present indicative but a perfective dependent form licensed by the temporal conjunction. It packages the finishing as an endpoint.
Explicitly future periods can retain θα, especially when the clause describes an ongoing or repeated setting.
Όταν θα μένουμε στην Κρήτη, θα δουλεύουμε κυρίως από το σπίτι.
ótan tha ménume stin Kríti, tha dhulévume kiríos apó to spíti
When we’re living in Crete, we’ll work mainly from home. (explicit future period)
Show overlap, interruption, and immediate succession
Ενώ gives one event duration within which another unfolds; it therefore commonly accompanies an imperfect. Μόλις removes the interval between two bounded events. Their different meanings let the same two actions form different timelines.
Ενώ περιμέναμε το λεωφορείο, άρχισε να βρέχει δυνατά.
enó periméname to leoforío, árchise na vréchi dhinatá
While we were waiting for the bus, it started raining heavily.
Μόλις σταμάτησε η βροχή, συνεχίσαμε τον δρόμο μας.
mólis stamátise i vrochí, sinechísame ton dhrómo mas
As soon as the rain stopped, we continued on our way.
Together, the examples make waiting the background, rain the interruption, and the resumed journey the next step.
Mark an endpoint with μέχρι να
Μέχρι να presents an action or state as continuing up to an expected boundary. Put the continuing event in the main clause and the endpoint after μέχρι να.
Περίμενα στο καφέ μέχρι να τελειώσει το μάθημά της.
perímena sto kafé méchri na teliósi to máthimá tis
I waited in the café until her class finished.
Ώσπου να can express the same expected endpoint and is standard, with a somewhat more narrative flavor than everyday μέχρι να. It is neither archaic nor exclusively literary.
Common Mistakes
1. Putting πριν από directly before a verb. Πριν από introduces a noun or time expression; a clause takes πριν (να).
❌ Θα φύγω πριν από τελειώσει η παρουσίαση.
Incorrect — από cannot stand between πριν and a verbal clause.
✅ Θα φύγω πριν τελειώσει η παρουσίαση.
tha fígho prin teliósi i parusíasi
I’ll leave before the presentation ends.
2. Putting αφού directly before a noun. Αφού introduces a clause; “after + noun” uses μετά + accusative.
❌ Αφού το μάθημα, συναντηθήκαμε στην πλατεία.
Incorrect — αφού cannot introduce the noun το μάθημα by itself.
✅ Μετά το μάθημα, συναντηθήκαμε στην πλατεία.
metá to máthima, sinandithíkame stin platía
After class, we met in the square.
3. Adding να after ενώ. In its temporal “while” use, ενώ takes an indicative clause.
❌ Ενώ να γυρίζαμε σπίτι, άρχισε να χιονίζει.
Incorrect — ενώ does not license να in this simultaneous past clause.
✅ Ενώ γυρίζαμε σπίτι, άρχισε να χιονίζει.
enó yirízame spíti, árchise na chionízi
While we were going home, it began to snow.
Key Takeaways
- Fronted temporal clauses frame the event and normally end with a comma.
- Use conjunctions to distinguish earlier, overlapping, immediate, and endpoint relations.
- The bare perfective dependent form is the one-off future default; explicit όταν + θα also exists.
Related Topics
- 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.
- Aorist Subjunctive (να + perfective)B1 — The dependent perfective forms να γράψω, να δω and να φύγω package an action or finite series as bounded and take no past augment; genuinely prior να-clauses with forms such as να πέρασες are a separate pattern.
- Aspect in the Subjunctive (να)B1 — Where a verb offers an aspect pair, a να-clause preserves the choice: να γράψω packages a bounded occurrence or finite series, while να γράφω presents an action internally or as an open habit.
- Sequencing Past EventsB1 — Combine imperfect background, aorist storyline steps, and pluperfect flashbacks to build clear Greek narratives.