Κρατάμε τον ατμό με το να κλείνουμε τη γάστρα.

to close

Breakdown of Κρατάμε τον ατμό με το να κλείνουμε τη γάστρα.

• κρατάω: to keep
• με το να: by (doing); through (doing)
• η γάστρα: the Dutch oven

Questions & Answers about Κρατάμε τον ατμό με το να κλείνουμε τη γάστρα.

What does με το να mean here?

In this sentence, με το να + verb means by doing or through doing.

So:

• με το να κλείνουμε τη γάστρα = by closing the pot / roasting pan / lid

It is a common Greek way to express method or means: how something is achieved.

You can think of it as roughly equivalent to English:

• We keep the steam by closing the pot
• We keep the steam through closing the pot

The most natural English translation is usually by closing...

Why does Greek use να + κλείνουμε instead of an infinitive like English to close or closing?

Modern Greek does not use the old infinitive the way English does. Instead, it usually uses:

• να + finite verb
• or other structures such as a verbal adverb

So where English says:

• by closing
• to close
• after closing

Greek often uses a full verb form rather than an infinitive.

Here, να κλείνουμε is part of the fixed structure με το να + verb, which means by doing.

Why is it κλείνουμε and not κλείσουμε?