Breakdown of Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις.
Questions & Answers about Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις.
Modern Greek has two basic future aspects:
Θα δουλεύω = future continuous (using the present stem)
– ongoing / repeated action in the future
– corresponds to “I will be working / I’ll be working”Θα δουλέψω = future simple (using the aorist stem)
– one‑off, completed action in the future
– corresponds roughly to “I will work / I’ll get some work done”
In Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις, the idea is that the working is an ongoing activity that lasts up to the moment you arrive. That matches the continuous aspect: Θα δουλεύω.
You could say Θα δουλέψω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις, but that sounds more like “I’ll do some work at the office until you arrive” (emphasis on the fact of doing some work, not on the ongoing activity). The original sentence sounds more natural for “I will be working at the office until you arrive.”
In Greek, after conjunctions that refer to future time or conditions (for example μέχρι να, όταν, πριν (να), αν), you do not use θα. Instead, you normally use να + subjunctive.
- μέχρι να φτάσεις literally: “until that you arrive” → “until you arrive”
- ✗ μέχρι θα φτάσεις is ungrammatical.
- ✗ μέχρι φτάνεις is also wrong in this structure.
So:
- Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις.
Correct: I will be working at the office until you arrive.
Greek uses να + subjunctive in these time clauses to refer to future events, instead of θα.
φτάσεις is:
- aorist subjunctive
- second person singular
- of the verb φτάνω (to arrive).
For φτάνω, the key stems are:
- Present stem: φτάν- → φτάνω, φτάνεις, φτάνει…
- Aorist stem: φτάσ- → aorist subjunctive να φτάσω, να φτάσεις, να φτάσει…
Pattern (aorist subjunctive, active):
- να φτάσω – that I arrive
- να φτάσεις – that you arrive
- να φτάσει – that he/she/it arrives
- να φτάσουμε
- να φτάσετε
- να φτάσουν(ε)
So in μέχρι να φτάσεις, φτάσεις is the aorist subjunctive 2nd person singular.
Greek uses aspect (aorist vs present) in the subjunctive to show whether an action is viewed as:
- a single, complete event → aorist subjunctive
- ongoing / repeated / habitual → present subjunctive
Here, arriving is a single event that marks the end point of the working period. So Greek chooses the aorist subjunctive:
- μέχρι να φτάσεις = “until you (once) arrive / until the moment you arrive.”
If you said μέχρι να φτάνεις, that would suggest something ongoing or repeated, roughly “until you are (in the process of) arriving / until you keep arriving,” which does not fit the meaning here and sounds wrong in standard Greek.
So:
- Θα δουλεύω… μέχρι να φτάσεις.
ongoing work up to the completed event of your arrival.
They are related but used differently.
μέχρι (by itself) – preposition
Used with nouns / noun phrases:- μέχρι τις τρεις – until three o’clock
- μέχρι την Αθήνα – as far as Athens
μέχρι να – conjunction + να + subjunctive
Used with verbs for events (especially future):- Θα δουλεύω μέχρι να φτάσεις. – I will be working until you arrive.
- Περίμενε μέχρι να τελειώσω. – Wait until I finish.
μέχρι που – conjunction, more colloquial
Often used with the indicative, especially in past narratives:- Περίμενα μέχρι που ήρθες. – I waited until you came.
- Δούλευε μέχρι που αρρώστησε. – He was working until he got sick.
In this sentence, you want μέχρι να + subjunctive for a future event:
- Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις.
- ✗ …μέχρι που φτάσεις. – sounds off in standard Greek for this future meaning.
(A more formal synonym is μέχρις ότου + subjunctive/indicative.)
στο is a contraction:
- στο = σε + το
- σε = “in / at / to”
- το = neuter definite article “the”
So στο γραφείο literally is “in/at the office.”
Greek usually uses the definite article with known or specific places:
- στο γραφείο – at the office (the one we both know about: my office, our company office, etc.)
If you say:
- σε γραφείο – “in an office” (non‑specific, any office)
Compare:
- Δουλεύω σε γραφείο. – I work in an office (job type, non‑specific).
- Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις. – I’ll be working at the office (a particular office) until you arrive.
You can also specify ownership:
- στο γραφείο μου – in/at my office.
Both verbs can mean “to work,” but they differ in usage and tone.
δουλεύω
- Most common everyday verb for “work.”
- Neutral, used in speech and writing.
- Also has a slang meaning “to trick, to make fun of someone,” but not in this context.
εργάζομαι
- More formal and bookish, often used in official or written contexts:
- CVs, formal statements, news, bureaucracy, etc.
- Grammatically middle/passive in form, but translated as active “I work.”
- More formal and bookish, often used in official or written contexts:
In your sentence:
- Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις. – natural, everyday Greek.
- Θα εργάζομαι στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις. – grammatically correct, but sounds more formal / stiff in casual conversation.
For normal spoken Greek, δουλεύω is the better choice.
You can say it, but the meaning shifts.
Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις.
Clear future: “I will be working at the office until you arrive.”Δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις.
Usually understood as:- a habitual present: “I work at the office until you arrive” (whenever this situation happens), or
- a near‑future plan, depending on context, something like “I’m working at the office until you arrive (later today).”
Greek often uses the present for near‑future plans, but if you want to unambiguously talk about a future situation, especially one you are planning or predicting, using θα (future) is safer and more standard:
- For a clear future event (e.g., about tomorrow), Θα δουλεύω… is preferred.
Greek word order is quite flexible. You can move parts of the sentence to change emphasis or sometimes meaning. Some common variants:
Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις.
Neutral: “I will be working at the office until you arrive.”Στο γραφείο θα δουλεύω μέχρι να φτάσεις.
Emphasis on στο γραφείο:- “It’s at the office that I’ll be working until you arrive (not somewhere else).”
Θα δουλεύω μέχρι να φτάσεις στο γραφείο.
Now στο γραφείο goes with φτάσεις:- “I’ll be working until you arrive at the office.”
This implies you are not necessarily already at the office together – the office is the place where you will arrive.
- “I’ll be working until you arrive at the office.”
Μέχρι να φτάσεις, θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο.
Time clause first, a bit more emphatic or literary:- “Until you arrive, I’ll be working at the office.”
All of these (except when you attach στο γραφείο to φτάσεις) describe essentially the same situation but with different focus. Attaching στο γραφείο to φτάσεις slightly changes the meaning, as noted.
Greek is a pro‑drop language: the subject pronoun is usually omitted because the verb ending already shows the person.
In Θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις:
- δουλεύω ends in ‑ω → first person singular → “I work / I will be working.”
- φτάσεις ends in ‑εις → second person singular → “you arrive.”
So “I” and “you” are encoded in the verb forms.
You only add pronouns for emphasis or contrast:
- Εγώ θα δουλεύω στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις εσύ.
“I will be working at the office until you arrive.”
(Strong emphasis on who is doing what.)
Changing persons:
- Θα δουλεύεις στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσω. – You will be working… until I arrive.
- Θα δουλεύει στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσεις. – He/She will be working… until you arrive.
- Θα δουλεύουμε στο γραφείο μέχρι να φτάσετε. – We will be working… until you (plural / formal) arrive.
The θα + verb ending combination tells you the subject.
Approximate pronunciation (stressed syllables in CAPS):
- Θα δουΛΕ‑vo στο γραFI‑o ME‑chri na FTÁ‑sis
More systematically (Greek-based approximation):
- Θα – “tha” (like English th in think
- a in cup)
- δουλεύω – “dhou‑LÉ‑vo”
- δ like English th in this (voiced)
- ου = “oo” (as in food)
- stress on λε: δουλέ‑
- στο – “sto” (s + to in stop)
- γραφείο – “gra‑FI‑o”
- γρ = gr
- ει = “ee” (like see)
- stress on fi: γραφεί‑ο
- μέχρι – “ME‑chri”
- χ is a rough “kh” sound, like the ch in German Bach or Spanish j in José
- stress on μέ
- να – “na” (as in nut but shorter)
- φτάσεις – “FTÁ‑sis”
- φτ = ft
- ά stressed “a” (like in father)
- σις = “sis”
So spoken smoothly:
- Tha dhou‑LÉ‑vo sto gra‑FI‑o MÉ‑chri na FTÁ‑sis.