Simple Future (θα + perfective) | Greek Grammar

When you want to say you will do one specific thing — make a call, catch a train, finish a job — you use the simple future: θα plus the perfective stem. θα γράψω "I'll write it," θα φάω "I'll eat," θα πάω "I'll go," θα δω "I'll see," θα τελειώσω "I'll finish." This is the plain, unmarked future of Greek — the one you will use far more than any other — because most of the time when we talk about the future we mean a single, bounded event with a natural full stop after it.

How the simple future is built

Take θα, and behind it put the verb's perfective stem carrying ordinary present-tense endings. The perfective stem is the same one that builds the aorist (the simple past), but here it appears without the past augment and without past endings — bare, present-shaped, and leaning on θα.

For a regular Class Α verb like γράφω "write," the perfective stem is γράψ- (γράφω → aorist έγραψα → stem γράψ-). Add present endings and prefix θα:

Person	Form	Reading	Meaning
εγώ	θα γράψω	tha ghrápso	I'll write
εσύ	θα γράψεις	tha ghrápsis	you'll write
αυτός/-ή/-ό	θα γράψει	tha ghrápsi	he/she/it'll write
εμείς	θα γράψουμε	tha ghrápsume	we'll write
εσείς	θα γράψετε	tha ghrápsete	you'll write
αυτοί/-ές/-ά	θα γράψουν(ε)	tha ghrápsun(e)	they'll write

Notice that the endings are exactly the present endings -ω, -εις, -ει, -ουμε, -ετε, -ουν — the only thing that has changed from the present θα γράφω is the stem (γράψ- instead of γράφ-). If you can form the aorist, you already know the perfective stem; the full mechanics of building it (the -σ- rule, the -ψ-/-ξ- consonant merges, the Class Β -ήσ- family) are on building the perfective stem.

The default future: one act, done

Every one of these sentences names a single occasion with a clear endpoint — a call that connects, a train that is caught, a table that is booked. That "and then it's finished" feeling is the signature of the perfective.

Θα τελειώσω τη δουλειά μέχρι τις πέντε και μετά είμαι ελεύθερη.

tha telióso ti dhuliá méchri tis pénde ke metá íme eléftheri

I'll finish the work by five and then I'm free.

Θα πάρω εγώ τα παιδιά από το σχολείο σήμερα.

tha páro eghó ta pedhiá apó to scholío símera

I'll pick the kids up from school today.

Πες μου τι θέλεις και θα στο φέρω από την αγορά.

pes mu ti thélis ke tha sto féro apó tin aghorá

Tell me what you want and I'll bring it to you from the market.

Το καλοκαίρι θα πάμε διακοπές στην Κρήτη για δέκα μέρες.

to kalokéri tha páme dhiakopés stin Kríti ya dhéka méres

This summer we'll go on holiday to Crete for ten days.

Each is a promise or a plan about a specific occasion, and in each the perfective is the natural, effortless choice — you do not stop to decide. That is what "default" means: unless there is a positive reason to signal repetition or an ongoing stretch, the simple future is what a Greek speaker produces automatically.

Irregular perfectives carry straight over

The dozen highest-frequency verbs build their perfective stem suppletively — they swap in a whole new form instead of adding -σ-. Those irregular stems reappear intact after θα, so the simple futures of see, say, eat, go, take, find are the short, memorable forms θα δω, θα πω, θα φάω, θα πάω, θα πάρω, θα βρω:

Θα φάω κάτι γρήγορα και θα φύγω για τη δουλειά.

tha fáo káti ghríghora ke tha fígho ya ti dhuliá

I'll eat something quick and head off to work.

Θα δεις, όλα θα πάνε καλά στο τέλος.

tha dhis, óla tha páne kalá sto télos

You'll see, everything will turn out fine in the end.

Μη φεύγεις ακόμα, θα σου πω κάτι σημαντικό.

mi févyis akóma, tha su po káti simandikó

Don't leave yet, I'll tell you something important.

These suppletive stems (δω, πω, φάω, βρω, μπω, βγω, πιω…) are the single best memorisation in the Greek verb system, and they get their own treatment on irregular perfective stems. For the simple future, just register that there is no separate "future" form — the perfective stem you already learned for the aorist and the subjunctive is exactly what θα takes.

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Because the bare perfective (γράψω, δω, πω, βρω) cannot stand alone, you will only ever meet it leaning on something — θα for the future, να for the subjunctive, or as a one-word command (δες!, πες!). Learning a verb's perfective stem therefore unlocks three constructions at once. The simple future is simply θα + that stem.

When the simple future is not enough

The one time to leave the default is when the future action is genuinely ongoing or repeated — "I'll be waiting," "I'll write every week," "from now on I'll go to the gym." Then Greek switches to the imperfective stem and you get the continuous future (θα γράφω), covered next door. The moment-by-moment decision — is this one act or a repeated/ongoing one? — is laid out on choosing future aspect. But keep the proportions in mind: the great majority of futures are single events, so the simple future is where you live.

Negation and questions

Negate with δεν before θα, exactly as everywhere else; ask a yes/no question just by raising your intonation (Greek needs no word-order change):

Δεν θα προλάβουμε την ταινία, ας πάμε στην επόμενη προβολή.

dhen tha prolávume tin tenía, as páme stin epómeni provolí

We won't make the film — let's go to the next screening.

Θα κλείσεις εσύ τα εισιτήρια ή να το κάνω εγώ;

tha klísis esí ta isitíria i na to káno eghó;

Will you book the tickets, or should I do it?

Common Mistakes

1. Putting the past (aorist) form after θα. θα + a past-tense verb does not mean the future — it means probability or the conditional. For "I'll see," you need the bare perfective θα δω, not θα είδα.

❌ Θα είδα τον γιατρό αύριο το πρωί.

Incorrect — θα + the aorist είδα is not a future; use the bare perfective: Θα δω.

✅ Θα δω τον γιατρό αύριο το πρωί.

tha dho ton yatró ávrio to proí

I'll see the doctor tomorrow morning.

2. Keeping the past augment on the perfective stem. The aorist has an accented augment (έγραψα); the future strips it — θα γράψω, never ×θα έγραψω.

❌ Θα έγραψω το γράμμα το βράδυ, όταν ησυχάσω.

Incorrect — the future drops the augment: Θα γράψω.

✅ Θα γράψω το γράμμα το βράδυ, όταν ησυχάσω.

tha ghrápso to ghráma to vrádhi, ótan isicháso

I'll write the letter in the evening, when things quiet down.

3. Regularising an irregular perfective. The suppletive verbs do not take -σ-: βλέπω → θα δω (not ×θα βλέψω), τρώω → θα φάω (not ×θα τρώψω).

❌ Θα βλέψω τι μπορώ να κάνω και θα σε ενημερώσω αύριο.

Incorrect — βλέπω is suppletive: Θα δω.

✅ Θα δω τι μπορώ να κάνω και θα σε ενημερώσω αύριο.

tha dho ti boró na káno ke tha se enimeróso ávrio

I'll see what I can do and let you know tomorrow.

4. Reaching for the imperfective on a single bounded act. "I'll finish it tonight" means it gets done — a completion — so it takes the perfective θα τελειώσω, not the imperfective θα τελειώνω.

❌ Μην ανησυχείς, θα το τελειώνω το άρθρο απόψε.

Incorrect — a one-time completion takes the perfective: Θα το τελειώσω.

✅ Μην ανησυχείς, θα το τελειώσω το άρθρο απόψε.

min anisichís, tha to telióso to árthro apópse

Don't worry, I'll finish the article tonight.

Key Takeaways

The simple future is θα + the perfective stem with present endings: θα γράψω, θα γράψεις, θα γράψει, θα γράψουμε, θα γράψετε, θα γράψουν.
It names a single, bounded, completed future act, and it is the default future — what you reach for automatically for a specific plan, promise, or prediction.
The perfective stem is the aorist stem without the augment: θα γράψω (not ×θα έγραψω).
Irregular perfectives carry over unchanged: θα δω, θα πω, θα φάω, θα πάω, θα βρω.
Switch to the continuous future only when the action is genuinely ongoing or repeated; otherwise the simple future is the one to use.

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