Συγγνώμη, μιλάτε αγγλικά;

to speak

Breakdown of Συγγνώμη, μιλάτε αγγλικά;

• αγγλικά: in English
• συγγνώμη: sorry

Questions & Answers about Συγγνώμη, μιλάτε αγγλικά;

Why does the sentence end with a semicolon (;)—is that a question mark in Greek?

Yes. In Greek, the question mark looks like the English semicolon: ; So αγγλικά; signals a question.

Why is αγγλικά not capitalized?

Names of languages and nationalities are written in lowercase in Greek. So αγγλικά (English) is lowercase, unlike English where “English” is capitalized.

Why is αγγλικά plural and why is there no article?

• Greek typically uses the neuter plural for languages after verbs like μιλάω/μιλώ: μιλάω αγγλικά = “I speak English.”
• No article is used in this pattern. You’d only use the article when the language is the subject or is mentioned as a school subject, e.g. Τα αγγλικά είναι δύσκολα. (“English is difficult.”)

What does μιλάτε tell me about the “you”?

Μιλάτε is 2nd person plural present (“you [plural] speak”) and is also the polite form when speaking to one person. Informal singular is μιλάς: Μιλάς αγγλικά;

Is the comma after Συγγνώμη necessary?