The present mediopassive is not one paradigm but three, and which one a verb takes is not a free choice — it is fixed by the verb's active conjugation class. A Class Α verb (-ω) makes a plain -ομαι passive; a Β1 verb (-άω) makes -ιέμαι; a Β2 verb (-ώ) makes -ούμαι; and a small closed set of deponents sits in -άμαι. This page is the recognition map — how to look at a verb and predict its passive shape, and back again, how to read a -μαι form and know where it came from. It does not reprint the six-person paradigms; each of those is drilled in full on its own page, linked in every row.
The mapping at a glance
Learn this table and you can place any -μαι verb on sight. The only cell you cannot derive is the -άμαι row: those verbs are deponents with no active twin, so there is no active form to map from — you memorise them whole.
| Active class | Active (1sg) | Passive (1sg / 3sg) | Drill page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Α — -ω | γράφω, πλένω | -ομαι: γράφομαι / γράφεται | -ομαι present |
| Β1 — -άω / -ώ | αγαπάω, φιλάω | -ιέμαι: αγαπιέμαι / αγαπιέται | -ιέμαι present |
| Β2 — -ώ (contract) | θεωρώ, καλώ | -ούμαι: θεωρούμαι / θεωρείται | -ούμαι present |
| (deponent, no active) | — (×θυμώ) | -άμαι: θυμάμαι / θυμάται | -άμαι deponents |
The single most useful reflex to build: look at the active ending first. Ends in plain -ω? The passive is plain -ομαι. Ends in -άω (or the shorter -ώ that pairs with -άς)? Slot in the signature -ι- glide → -ιέμαι. Ends in the contract -ώ that pairs with -είς? → -ούμαι. That one glance resolves almost every verb before you have thought about meaning at all.
Πώς προφέρεται αυτή η λέξη; Δεν είμαι σίγουρος για τον τόνο.
pos proférete aftí i léksi; dhen íme síghuros ya ton tóno
How is this word pronounced? I'm not sure about the stress.
Το δωμάτιο νοικιάζεται με το μήνα, όχι με τη βδομάδα.
to dhomátio nikiázete me to mína, óchi me ti vdhomádha
The room is rented by the month, not by the week.
Class Α → -ομαι
The biggest and most regular group. Any -ω verb (γράφω, πλένω, ετοιμάζω, στέλνω) swaps its active endings for -ομαι, -εσαι, -εται, -όμαστε, -εστε, -ονται, with the stress jumping onto the ending only in the 1st plural (πλενόμαστε). This is also the home of the everyday deponents that happen to be built on the -ομαι shape — έρχομαι, γίνομαι, σκέφτομαι, χρειάζομαι. The complete paradigm and the -εται/-ετε homophone trap are on the -ομαι present.
Χρειάζομαι πέντε λεπτά ακόμα και είμαι έτοιμος.
chriázome pénde leptá akóma ke íme étimos
I need five more minutes and I'm ready.
Τα δέματα στέλνονται κάθε Δευτέρα από την αποθήκη.
ta dhémata stélnonde káthe Dheftéra apó tin apothíki
The parcels are sent every Monday from the warehouse.
Class Β1 → -ιέμαι
The -άω verbs (αγαπάω, φιλάω, κρατάω, τραβάω) wedge an -ι- glide between stem and ending, giving -ιέμαι, -ιέσαι, -ιέται, -ιόμαστε, -ιέστε, -ιούνται. That -ι- fuses by synizesis into a single syllable (aghap-YEH-me), and the plural forms are the natural home of the reciprocal — αγαπιούνται "they love each other," φιλιούνται "they kiss each other." The signature -ι- is your instant tell that a passive came from a -άω verb; the full drill is on the -ιέμαι present.
Ο Νίκος και η Ελένη φιλιούνται στα δύο μάγουλα κάθε φορά που συναντιούνται.
o Níkos ke i Eléni filiúnde sta dhío mághula káthe forá pu sinandiúnde
Nikos and Eleni kiss each other on both cheeks every time they meet.
Κρατιέμαι από την κουπαστή γιατί ζαλίζομαι στα καράβια.
kratyéme apó tin kupastí yatí zalízome sta karávia
I hold on to the railing because I get seasick on boats.
Class Β2 → -ούμαι (and the -άμαι deponents)
The contract verbs whose active ends in the stressed -ώ that pairs with -είς (θεωρώ/θεωρείς, καλώ/καλείς) build -ούμαι, mixing -ού- (θεωρούμαι, θεωρούμαστε, θεωρούνται) with -εί- (θεωρείσαι, θεωρείται, θεωρείστε). Most such verbs lean (formal) — στερούμαι, διαιρούμαι, κρατούμαι — though θεωρούμαι itself is everyday. Sitting beside them in shape, but with no active source at all, is the closed -άμαι deponent set: θυμάμαι, κοιμάμαι, φοβάμαι, λυπάμαι. Both groups are drilled on the -ούμαι and -άμαι present.
Η ταινία θεωρείται κλασική πια, την έχουν δει όλοι.
i tenía theoríte klasikí pia, tin échun dhi óli
The film is considered a classic now — everyone has seen it.
Δεν θυμάμαι πια πού άφησα το φορτιστή μου.
dhen thimáme pia pu áfisa to fortistí mu
I no longer remember where I left my charger.
The shared trait: the αι-spelling
Whatever the class, the mediopassive endings all end in the /e/ sound and are all written with αι — -ομαι, -ιέμαι, -ούμαι, -άμαι. This is a flat rule with no exceptions and no audible clue, which is why it is the single most common spelling slip across all three classes. If it sounds like -ome, -yeme, -ume, -ame and it is a mediopassive verb, it ends in αι.
Common Mistakes
1. Dropping the -ι- from a Β1 verb. A -άω verb cannot take bare -ομαι endings; it needs the glide.
❌ Νιώθω ότι δεν εκτιμόμαι καθόλου στη δουλειά μου.
Incorrect — εκτιμάω is Β1, so its passive keeps the -ι-: εκτιμιέμαι.
✅ Νιώθω ότι δεν εκτιμιέμαι καθόλου στη δουλειά μου.
nyótho óti dhen ektimyéme kathólu sti dhuliá mu
I feel I'm not appreciated at all at my job.
2. Giving a Β2 verb the plain -εσαι ending. The -ούμαι class takes -είσαι in the 2nd singular, with ει.
❌ Θεωρέσαι υπεύθυνος για την καθυστέρηση της αποστολής.
Incorrect — the -ούμαι class 2sg is θεωρείσαι, with ει.
✅ Θεωρείσαι υπεύθυνος για την καθυστέρηση της αποστολής.
theoríse ipéfthinos ya tin kathistérisi tis apostolís
You're being held responsible for the delay in the shipment.
3. Adding the -ιέμαι glide to an -άμαι deponent. θυμάμαι, κοιμάμαι and φοβάμαι are not -ιέμαι verbs; there is no ×θυμιέμαι.
❌ Κοιμιέμαι πάντα με ανοιχτό παράθυρο, ακόμα και τον χειμώνα.
Incorrect — κοιμάμαι is an -άμαι deponent, not an -ιέμαι verb: κοιμάμαι.
✅ Κοιμάμαι πάντα με ανοιχτό παράθυρο, ακόμα και τον χειμώνα.
kimáme pánda me anichtó paráthiro, akóma ke ton chimóna
I always sleep with the window open, even in winter.
4. Inventing an active form for a deponent. The -άμαι and many -ομαι verbs have no active twin — the -μαι form is the verb.
❌ Φοβώ πολύ τα σκυλιά από τότε που με δάγκωσε ένα.
Incorrect — φοβάμαι is deponent (no active ×φοβώ): φοβάμαι πολύ τα σκυλιά.
✅ Φοβάμαι πολύ τα σκυλιά από τότε που με δάγκωσε ένα.
fováme polí ta skiliá apó tóte pu me dhángose éna
I'm very afraid of dogs ever since one bit me.
Key Takeaways
- The present mediopassive shape is fixed by the active class: Α (-ω) → -ομαι, Β1 (-άω) → -ιέμαι, Β2 (-ώ) → -ούμαι; a closed deponent set sits in -άμαι.
- Predict it from the active ending at a glance — that reflex resolves almost every verb before meaning enters into it.
- The -άμαι group (θυμάμαι, κοιμάμαι, φοβάμαι, λυπάμαι) is deponent — no active source, memorise whole.
- All four classes share the fixed αι-spelling; each full six-person paradigm lives on its own drill page.
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Start learning Greek →Related Topics
- Present Mediopassive: -ομαιA2 — The present of the -ομαι mediopassive — πλένομαι, έρχομαι, γίνομαι — its full six-person paradigm, the passive, reflexive and deponent meanings it carries, and the fixed αι-spelling that makes -εται sound exactly like the active -ετε.
- Present Mediopassive: -ιέμαιB1 — How the -άω verbs (Conjugation Β1, like αγαπάω) build their mediopassive present — αγαπιέμαι, αγαπιέσαι, αγαπιέται — where the -ι- glide comes from, the synizesis that keeps it one syllable, and the reciprocal 'kiss/love each other' meaning that makes -ιούνται so common.
- Present Mediopassive: -ούμαι and -άμαιB1 — The last two mediopassive present patterns — the formal-leaning -ούμαι of Β2 verbs (θεωρούμαι), and the small but ultra-frequent set of -άμαι deponents θυμάμαι, κοιμάμαι, φοβάμαι and λυπάμαι, with their irregular three-vowel paradigm laid out in full.