Learn Hardcore Greek: Η κουζίνα δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή, γιατί τα πιάτα γίνονται γρήγορα βρώμικα. - The kitchen is never very clean, because the plates quickly become dirty.

ποτέ on its own means ever:
- Έχεις ποτέ πάει στην Ελλάδα; = Have you ever been to Greece?
With δεν, it means never:
- Δεν πάω ποτέ στην Ελλάδα. = I never go to Greece.

So in your sentence:

Η κουζίνα δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή
literally: The kitchen is not ever very clean → idiomatic English: The kitchen is never very clean.

This is not “wrong” in Greek; it’s just how negation with words like ποτέ, κανείς, τίποτα normally works.

Why is it ποτέ πολύ καθαρή and not πολύ ποτέ καθαρή or something else?

Word order in Greek is flexible, but some orders are much more natural.

Basic pattern here: [verb] + ποτέ + [adverb of degree] + [adjective]
ποτέ is closely tied to the negation (δεν) and usually comes right after the verb or near it:
- Δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή.

Putting πολύ before ποτέ (πολύ ποτέ καθαρή) sounds wrong. πολύ belongs with the adjective καθαρή (“very clean”) and normally comes immediately before it:

πολύ καθαρή = very clean

You could see δεν είναι πολύ καθαρή ποτέ in some contexts, but that’s more marked and sounds like emphasis (e.g. spoken, emotional speech). The neutral, standard word order is the one in your sentence.

What is the difference between πολύ and πάρα πολύ before καθαρή?

Both modify καθαρή (clean):

πολύ καθαρή = very clean
πάρα πολύ καθαρή = extremely / really very clean

πάρα πολύ is simply a stronger degree:

πολύ καθαρή: high degree of cleanliness
πάρα πολύ καθαρή: even higher, more emphatic

In the sentence Η κουζίνα δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή, the point is just that it is not very clean, not necessarily that it is never extremely clean, so πολύ fits naturally.

Why is it Η κουζίνα with the article Η? In English we say “The kitchen” or just “kitchen”; how does it work in Greek?

Greek uses the definite article (ο, η, το) much more often than English.

Η κουζίνα = the kitchen

Even when English might say just “kitchen” without the, Greek usually still uses the article if we are talking about a specific, known kitchen (your home kitchen, for example).

So:

Η κουζίνα δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή.
→ This refers to the kitchen that speaker and listener have in mind (e.g. the kitchen in our house).

Leaving out the article (Κουζίνα δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή) is ungrammatical here.

Why is καθαρή in the feminine form? What is it agreeing with?

Greek adjectives agree in gender, number, and case with the noun they describe.

η κουζίνα is:
- gender: feminine
- number: singular
- case: nominative

So the adjective must match:

masculine: καθαρός
feminine: καθαρή
neuter: καθαρό

Because κουζίνα is feminine, we say:

Η κουζίνα … είναι πολύ καθαρή.

If the noun were neuter, e.g. το δωμάτιο (the room), we’d say:

Το δωμάτιο είναι πολύ καθαρό.

What exactly does γίνονται mean here? Why not just είναι?

γίνονται is the 3rd person plural of γίνομαι, which often means to become / to get.

τα πιάτα γίνονται βρώμικα
= the dishes become/get dirty

If you said:

τα πιάτα είναι βρώμικα
= the dishes are dirty

you’d be describing their state at a particular moment.

Using γίνονται emphasizes the change from clean to dirty, which fits the idea of “they quickly become dirty” in your sentence.

Why is γίνονται plural?

The subject of that verb is τα πιάτα:

τα πιάτα = the dishes → plural
So the verb must also be plural: γίνονται (= they become).

Singular would be:

το πιάτο γίνεται βρώμικο = the plate becomes dirty.

In Greek, as in English, the verb agrees in number with the subject.

What is the role of γρήγορα? Why this form and not something like γρήγορο?

γρήγορα is an adverb, meaning quickly / fast.

γρήγορος (masc.), γρήγορη (fem.), γρήγορο (neut.) → adjectives = quick, fast (describing nouns)
γρήγορα → adverb = quickly (describing verbs)

In your sentence:

γίνονται γρήγορα βρώμικα
- γίνονται (become) is the verb
- γρήγορα modifies the verb → they become dirty quickly.

If you used γρήγορο, that would be an adjective form and would need to agree with some noun (e.g. γρήγορο αυτοκίνητο = fast car), which is not what’s happening here.

Why is βρώμικα in this form, and what does it agree with?

βρώμικα is the neuter plural form of the adjective βρώμικος (dirty).

It agrees with τα πιάτα:

τα πιάτα: neuter, plural, nominative
So the adjective must also be neuter plural: βρώμικα

You can see the pattern:

masculine: βρώμικος
feminine: βρώμικη
neuter singular: βρώμικο
neuter plural: βρώμικα

So:

τα πιάτα είναι βρώμικα = the dishes are dirty
τα ποτήρια είναι βρώμικα = the glasses are dirty (also neuter plural)

I’ve seen βρόμικος as well. Is βρώμικα a spelling mistake?

You will see both spellings in practice:

βρόμικος / βρόμικα (more standard in many modern dictionaries)
βρώμικος / βρώμικα (very common in real usage; some sources treat it as a variant)

Pronunciation is essentially the same in contemporary speech. For learners, it’s useful to know that you may encounter both forms and they both mean dirty. Your sentence is completely understandable and natural with βρώμικα.

What is the function of γιατί here? How do I know it means “because” and not “why”?

γιατί can mean why (question) or because (answer). The form is the same; context and word order tell you which.

As “why” (question):
- Usually at the beginning of a question:
  - Γιατί η κουζίνα δεν είναι πολύ καθαρή;
    = Why isn’t the kitchen very clean?
As “because”:
- Often introducing a subordinate clause that gives a reason:
  - Η κουζίνα δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή, γιατί τα πιάτα γίνονται γρήγορα βρώμικα.
    = The kitchen is never very clean, because the dishes become dirty quickly.

Here, because the main clause already has a finite verb (δεν είναι) and γιατί introduces another full clause explaining the reason, the meaning is clearly because.

Why is there a comma before γιατί?

Greek often uses a comma before conjunctions like γιατί when they introduce a separate clause, especially when that clause feels like an afterthought or explanation.

Η κουζίνα δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή, γιατί τα πιάτα γίνονται γρήγορα βρώμικα.

You could see it without a comma in some writing, but the comma is very common and stylistically natural here. It mirrors the slight pause you’d make when speaking:

The kitchen is never very clean, because the dishes get dirty quickly.

Can I change the word order and still be correct? For example: Η κουζίνα ποτέ δεν είναι πολύ καθαρή?

Yes, Greek allows some flexibility, and this variant is still correct:

Η κουζίνα ποτέ δεν είναι πολύ καθαρή.

The meaning is the same: The kitchen is never very clean.

The more neutral/common order is:

Η κουζίνα δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή.

Moving ποτέ in front of δεν είναι can add a small emphasis on “never,” but both sentences are acceptable and understandable.

Could I say Η κουζίνα δεν είναι πάντα πολύ καθαρή instead of ποτέ? What would change?

Yes, but the meaning changes:

ποτέ (with δεν) → never
- Η κουζίνα δεν είναι ποτέ πολύ καθαρή.
  = The kitchen is never very clean. (at no time)
πάντα (with δεν) → not always
- Η κουζίνα δεν είναι πάντα πολύ καθαρή.
  = The kitchen is not always very clean.
  (sometimes clean, sometimes not)

So ποτέ = total negation; δεν … πάντα = partial or occasional negation.

How would I pronounce the key words in this sentence?

Approximate pronunciation (stress is on the bold syllable):

Η κουζίνα → ee kou-ZEE-na
δεν → then (like English then but softer th)
είναι → EE-ne
ποτέ → po-TE
πολύ → po-LEE
καθαρή → ka-tha-REE
γιατί → ya-TEE
τα πιάτα → ta PYA-ta (the πιά is like “pya” together)
γίνονται → YEE-non-te
γρήγορα → GHREE-go-ra (the γρ is like a voiced ghr)
βρώμικα → VRO-mi-ka (the βρ is like English vr)

This should help with matching spelling to sound.