Most verbs make you choose an imperative stem on grammatical grounds. προσέχω makes you choose on meaning, because both of its commands are everyday words and they say different things. That pair is why this verb has a card; the aorist then adds a sense of its own.
Principal parts
| Slot | Forms | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Present | προσέχω, προσέχεις, προσέχει, προσέχουμε, προσέχετε, προσέχουν(ε) | |
| Imperfect | πρόσεχα, πρόσεχες, πρόσεχε, προσέχαμε, προσέχατε, πρόσεχαν | |
| Aorist | πρόσεξα, πρόσεξες, πρόσεξε, προσέξαμε, προσέξατε, πρόσεξαν | χ + σ → ξ; the stress moves off πρό- in the plural |
| Dependent | προσέξω — θα προσέξω, να προσέξω | |
| Imperative, imperfective | πρόσεχε / προσέχετε | keep being careful |
| Imperative, perfective | πρόσεξε / προσέξτε | watch out, now |
| Perfect | έχω / είχα προσέξει | |
| Gerund | προσέχοντας | taking care to… |
| -μένος participle | προσεγμένος, -η, -ο | meticulous, well turned out — χ surfaces as γ before μ |
There is no ×πρόσεχσα: a χ meeting the perfective -σ- fuses into ξ, so the past is πρόσεξα. And note what the aorist does not do — an internal augment does not exist here. προσέχω is προσ- + the stem of έχω, so the ε is already in the present; the accent simply falls back onto it. Compare υπογράφω → υπέγραψα, where the ε is genuinely inserted, against συνεχίζω → συνέχισα, which behaves exactly like this verb.
The mediopassive has one live sense, and it is not the one you would guess. προσέχτηκα — also προσέχθηκε (formal) — means was noticed, got attention, and belongs to reviews and reportage: «Το βιβλίο δεν προσέχτηκε όσο του άξιζε όταν πρωτοκυκλοφόρησε». For look after yourself Greek stays active, Να προσέχεις; the reflexive προσέχεσαι is long obsolete.
Πρόσεχε or Πρόσεξε
Πρόσεξε! is one act: look here, now, at this thing. Πρόσεχε! is a standing instruction: keep your wits about you, generally and from now on — which is also why it works as a warm goodbye.
Πρόσεξε, έχει ένα σκαλοπάτι εκεί.
prósekse, échi éna skalopáti ekí
Careful — there's a step there. (this step, this second)
Να προσέχεις, τα λέμε την άλλη βδομάδα.
na proséchis, ta léme tin áli vdhomádha
Take care, see you next week.
Πρόσεχε τι λες μπροστά στα παιδιά.
próseche ti les brostá sta pedhiá
Watch what you say in front of the children. (as a rule, not just now)
One form does double duty and it is worth expecting: πρόσεχε is both the imperfective command and the third-person singular imperfect. Πρόσεχε στο μάθημα! is "pay attention in class!", while Δεν πρόσεχε στο μάθημα is "he wasn't paying attention in class". Context alone separates them. The collision is not special to this verb: it hits every verb long enough to take no ε- in the imperfect, so διάβαζε, περίμενε and συνέχιζε are ambiguous in exactly the same way, while short γράφω keeps the two apart as γράφε against έγραφε.
A warning about a risk takes μη(ν) + dependent. The μη is not negating προσέχω — it belongs to the clause that names what must not happen, and it keeps its -ν before κ, as den vs min sets out.
Πρόσεχε μην κρυώσεις, βγαίνεις με βρεγμένα μαλλιά.
próseche min kriósis, vyénis me vreghména maliá
Mind you don't catch cold, you're going out with wet hair.
πρόσεξα = I noticed
The aorist carries a sense the present cannot: a single act of attention that landed. Πρόσεξα ότι… is I noticed that…, and Δεν το πρόσεξα is the everyday apology for having missed something.
Πρόσεξα ότι δεν είπε τίποτα όλο το βράδυ.
próseksa óti dhen ípe típota ólo to vrádhi
I noticed he didn't say a word all evening.
Δεν το πρόσεξα καθόλου, συγγνώμη.
dhen to próseksa kathólu, sighnómi
I didn't notice at all, sorry.
The imperfect is not the past tense of that sense — it is the past tense of the other one, paying attention. Both are good Greek and they are not interchangeable:
Δεν πρόσεχα τι έλεγε, σκεφτόμουν κάτι άλλο.
dhen prósecha ti éleye, skeftómun káti álo
I wasn't listening to what he was saying, I was thinking about something else.
Government
| Frame | Example | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| accusative object | Πρόσεξε το σκαλί. | watch out for a thing |
| accusative — a person | Προσέχω τα παιδιά τα απογεύματα. | look after |
| genitive clitic + accusative | Μου προσέχεις τη βαλίτσα; | keep an eye on it for me |
ότι / πως
| Πρόσεξα ότι λείπει κάτι. | notice a fact |
μη(ν)
| Πρόσεχε μην πέσει το ποτήρι. | a warning, not a negation |
σε
| Δεν πρόσεχε στο μάθημα. | pay attention in a setting |
Μου προσέχεις λίγο τη βαλίτσα;
mu proséchis lígho ti valítsa;
Would you keep an eye on my case for a moment?
Set phrases
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Να προσέχεις! / Να προσέχετε! | take care — a genuine caution, often used on parting |
| Πρόσεχε τι λες. | watch what you say |
| Δεν το πρόσεξα. | I didn't notice |
| Πρόσεξε καλά. | listen carefully; mark my words |
| προσέχω τη διατροφή μου | watch what I eat |
| προσέχω τα λόγια μου | mind my language |
| προσεγμένη εμφάνιση | a well-turned-out appearance |
| Προσοχή! | Caution! — the noun, on every warning sign |
Είναι πολύ προσεγμένο μαγαζί, φαίνεται στη λεπτομέρεια.
íne polí proseghméno maghazí, fénete sti leptoméria
It's a very carefully done place, you can see it in the detail.
Key Takeaways
- προσέχω · πρόσεχα · πρόσεξα · προσέξω · έχω προσέξει · προσέχοντας. No ×πρόσεχσα, and no internal augment.
- Πρόσεχε = be careful as a rule, and take care as a farewell. Πρόσεξε = watch out, this second.
- The aorist alone means noticed: Πρόσεξα ότι… / Δεν το πρόσεξα.
- Warnings run πρόσεχε μη(ν) + dependent; the μη belongs to the risk, not to προσέχω.
- προσεγμένος is a live everyday adjective — meticulous, well turned out — not a rare participle.
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Start learning Greek →Related Topics
- βλέπω (to see)A2 — One verb for see, watch and look at — and three different complements that mean three different things: Τον βλέπω να τρέχει (an event in progress), Τον είδα που έφευγε (a sighting), Βλέπω ότι δεν κατάλαβες (a conclusion, not a sight at all). Plus the full inventory of βλεπ- and δ- forms, and why Greek sees a dream rather than having one.
- καταλαβαίνω (to understand)A2 — The aorist κατάλαβα is not only a past tense — standing alone it means 'I see, got it', and it is one of the most frequent one-word replies in spoken Greek. This card covers the pair learners reverse constantly (Δεν καταλαβαίνω against Δεν κατάλαβα), the καταλαβαίνω από frame for knowing about something, and the news-page trap where κατάλαβα meets κατέλαβα.
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