Questions & Answers about Τώρα ζω σε άλλη πόλη.
In Greek, the subject pronoun (like I, you, he) is usually omitted because it is already shown by the verb ending.
- ζω means I live.
- The ending -ω (in the present tense) tells us the subject is I.
So:
- (Εγώ) ζω σε άλλη πόλη. = I live in another city.
You can add εγώ for emphasis (like I as opposed to someone else), but it’s not needed in a neutral sentence:
- Τώρα εγώ ζω σε άλλη πόλη. = Now I live in another city (not the others).
No. In Greek, the simple present tense covers both meanings.
The verb ζω in the present:
- Τώρα ζω σε άλλη πόλη.
= Now I live in another city.
= Now I am living in another city.
Context decides whether it sounds more like a permanent situation (I live) or a temporary/ongoing one (I am living). Greek doesn’t change the verb form for that difference the way English does.
Both verbs are possible, but they have slightly different main uses.
ζω = to live (one’s life), more general:
- Ζω στην Ελλάδα. = I live in Greece (as my life is based there).
- Ζω μια ήσυχη ζωή. = I live a quiet life.
μένω = to stay / to reside / to live (somewhere as an address):
- Μένω σε αυτή την πόλη. = I live / stay in this city (my residence).
- Μένω στο ξενοδοχείο. = I am staying at the hotel.
In everyday speech, μένω is extremely common for talking about where you live. So:
- Τώρα ζω σε άλλη πόλη. and
- Τώρα μένω σε άλλη πόλη.
both work and will usually be understood the same way, though ζω is a bit more about your life having moved, and μένω a bit more about your residence having changed.
σε is a preposition that usually translates as in, at, or to, depending on context. It is always followed by a noun in the accusative case.
In σε άλλη πόλη:
- σε = in
- άλλη πόλη = another city (accusative)
So, σε άλλη πόλη = in another city.
Greek often contracts σε with the definite article:
- σε + την πόλη → στη(ν) πόλη (in the city)
- σε + τον δρόμο → στον δρόμο (in the street)
In this sentence there is no definite article, just άλλη πόλη, so there is nothing for σε to contract with. That’s why it stays simply σε άλλη πόλη, not στην άλλη πόλη (that would mean in the other city / in that other city).
Greek doesn’t always need an article where English uses a or an.
- σε άλλη πόλη literally: in other city, but natural English = in another city.
- σε μια άλλη πόλη literally: in a(n) another city.
Both exist and are correct, but the nuance is slightly different:
σε άλλη πόλη: fairly neutral in another city, often understood as in a different city (than before / than here), without special emphasis on the indefiniteness.
σε μια άλλη πόλη: can sound a bit more like in some other city / in one other city, sometimes a bit more specific or emphasizing that it’s just one among possible cities.
In many contexts the difference is small, and both may be used. In a short statement like this, σε άλλη πόλη is very natural.
In modern Greek, adjectives usually come before the noun:
- άλλη πόλη = another city
- μεγάλο σπίτι = big house
- καλός φίλος = good friend
So άλλη must come in front:
- σε άλλη πόλη, not σε πόλη άλλη (the latter sounds poetic or unusual in everyday speech).
There are special, rarer patterns where an adjective can follow the noun (often with articles or for stylistic reasons), but for normal use, put the adjective before the noun.
Yes, άλλη is the feminine form of the adjective άλλος (other / another), and it agrees with the noun in:
- gender (feminine),
- number (singular),
- case (accusative).
The noun πόλη (city) is feminine:
- η πόλη = the city (nominative)
- την πόλη = the city (accusative)
In σε άλλη πόλη:
- σε requires the accusative case after it,
- πόλη is accusative singular feminine,
- therefore the adjective must also be accusative singular feminine: άλλη.
So you get:
- σε άλλη πόλη (in another city)
Yes, Greek word order is relatively flexible, and all of these are grammatically correct:
- Τώρα ζω σε άλλη πόλη.
- Ζω τώρα σε άλλη πόλη.
- Ζω σε άλλη πόλη τώρα.
- Τώρα σε άλλη πόλη ζω. (a bit more marked / emphatic)
The most neutral and common options in everyday speech would be:
- Τώρα ζω σε άλλη πόλη.
- Ζω τώρα σε άλλη πόλη.
Moving words around can slightly change what is emphasized, but all these versions convey the same basic idea.
άλλη can correspond to other, another, or different, depending on context.
In Τώρα ζω σε άλλη πόλη:
- it naturally means another city / a different city (from before).
Possible English renderings:
- Now I live in another city.
- Now I live in a different city.
- Now I live in some other city.
So άλλη implies that it’s not the same city as before or not this city; it’s a different one.
No. You cannot drop σε here. Greek needs the preposition to express in / at / to a place.
- Τώρα ζω σε άλλη πόλη. = Now I live in another city.
If you say:
- Τώρα ζω άλλη πόλη.
it sounds ungrammatical or at best very strange, as if άλλη πόλη were a direct object (I live another city), which is not how Greek expresses location.
To talk about where you live, you must keep σε:
- ζω σε πόλη = I live in a city
- ζω σε άλλη πόλη = I live in another city
Τώρα means now and is the most straightforward way to say it.
You can add other words for finer nuance:
- Τώρα ζω σε άλλη πόλη. = Now I live in another city.
- Τώρα πια ζω σε άλλη πόλη. / Τώρα πλέον ζω σε άλλη πόλη.
= Now I (no longer live where I used to; I) live in another city.
πια and πλέον often add the sense of anymore / any longer, emphasizing the change from the past. Without them, Τώρα ζω σε άλλη πόλη can still imply a change, but less explicitly.
Here is a simple guide, with stressed syllables in capitals:
- Τώρα → TO-ra
- ΤΟ like to in tortoise, ρα like ra in radar
- ζω → zo
- like zo in zone (but shorter)
- σε → se
- like se in set
- άλλη → A-li
- Α like a in father, λη like lee
- πόλη → PO-li
- ΠΟ like po in police, λη like lee
So the whole sentence:
- ΤΟ-ra zo se A-li PO-li
Remember that Greek has one clear stress per word (marked with the accent on ώ, ά, ό, etc.), and vowels are generally short and consistent.