Learn Hardcore Greek: Ανεβαίνω τη σκάλα όταν το ασανσέρ δεν δουλεύει στον όροφό μου. - I go up the stairs when the elevator doesn’t work on my floor.

You can also hear ανεβαίνω τις σκάλες (“I go up the steps”), but τη σκάλα is very common and perfectly correct. The singular doesn’t sound strange in Greek the way “I go up the stair” would in English.

Why is it τη σκάλα and not η σκάλα?

Η σκάλα is the nominative form (used for the subject of the verb).
Here, σκάλα is the direct object of the verb ανεβαίνω (“I go up / climb”), so it must be in the accusative case:

Nominative (subject): η σκάλα είναι παλιά – the staircase is old
Accusative (object): ανεβαίνω τη σκάλα – I go up the staircase

So τη is just the accusative form of η.

What’s the difference between ανεβαίνω and a more general verb like πηγαίνω (“go”)? Why do we use ανεβαίνω here?

Ανεβαίνω specifically means “to go up / to climb / to ascend”.
Πηγαίνω is more general: “to go” (without direction implied).

Ανεβαίνω τη σκάλα = I go up the stairs.
Πηγαίνω από τη σκάλα = I go by/using the stairs (more neutral about direction).

Here we’re describing the action of going up to our floor, so ανεβαίνω is the natural verb.

Why is the subject “I” (εγώ) missing? Shouldn’t it be Εγώ ανεβαίνω τη σκάλα?

In Greek, the subject pronoun εγώ is usually omitted because the verb ending already shows the person:

Ανεβαίνω = I go up
Ανεβαίνεις = you go up
Ανεβαίνει = he/she/it goes up

You only add εγώ for emphasis or contrast:

Εγώ ανεβαίνω τη σκάλα, εσύ παίρνεις το ασανσέρ.
I take the stairs, you take the elevator.

Without emphasis, Ανεβαίνω τη σκάλα is the normal form.

The English meaning is “I take the stairs when the elevator isn’t working.” Why is Greek using the present tense in both clauses?

Greek often uses the simple present to talk about habitual or repeated actions, just like English:

Ανεβαίνω τη σκάλα = I (usually / whenever needed) take the stairs.
όταν το ασανσέρ δεν δουλεύει = when the elevator isn’t working.

It describes a general habit: every time the elevator is out of order, this is what I do. There’s no need for a special tense; the plain present covers this habitual meaning in Greek.

Why do we say όταν and not αν here?

Όταν means “when” (for time: every time that…).
Αν means “if” (for condition: in case that…).

In this sentence we’re talking about a repeated time situation:

…όταν το ασανσέρ δεν δουλεύει…
= whenever the elevator is not working / every time the elevator isn’t working.

Using αν would change the nuance to something like “if (ever) the elevator doesn’t work…”, more hypothetical/conditional. Όταν is more natural for a regular, recurring situation.

What exactly does δουλεύει mean here? Doesn’t δουλεύω mean “I work (as a person)”?

Yes, δουλεύω has two main uses:

For people:
- Δουλεύω σε ένα γραφείο. = I work in an office.
For machines/devices:
- Το ασανσέρ δεν δουλεύει. = The elevator is not working / doesn’t work.

So in this sentence, δεν δουλεύει means “is out of order / not functioning”.
You might also hear:

Το ασανσέρ χάλασε. = The elevator broke (down).
Το ασανσέρ είναι χαλασμένο. = The elevator is broken.

What is the gender of ασανσέρ, and does it ever change form?

Το ασανσέρ is neuter and indeclinable (it doesn’t change form). It’s a loanword (from French) and stays the same in all cases and numbers:

Nominative: το ασανσέρ
Accusative: το ασανσέρ
Plural: usually still τα ασανσέρ (form doesn’t change; only the article does).

In more formal or technical language, you might see ο ανελκυστήρας (a fully Greek word, masculine and declinable), but ασανσέρ is the everyday word.

Why do we say στον όροφό μου and not just σε τον όροφο μου? What is στον?

Στον is the combined form of the preposition σε + the masculine accusative article τον:

σε + τον = στον
Σε ποιον όροφο μένεις; → Στον τρίτο όροφο.

So στον όροφό μου literally is σε + τον όροφο + μου (“on my floor”), but in normal spoken and written Greek we contract:

στον όροφό μου = on my floor / on the floor where I live.

Why is the stress on όροφό in στον όροφό μου, and not just όροφο?

The base word is ο όροφος (nominative singular).
In the accusative singular: τον όροφο – the stress remains on the same syllable (ό).

However, when we add the enclitic pronoun μου right after it (όροφο + μου), Greek stress rules may cause the stress to shift to maintain correct pronunciation and rhythm.

So we get:

στον όροφο (no pronoun)
στον όροφό μου (with μου, the stress appears on the last syllable: -φό).

In writing, this is why you see the accent on όροφό. It’s the same word όροφος, just stressed differently because of the clitic μου.

Could we also say στον όροφο μου (without shifting the stress) or is that wrong?

In standard written Greek, the correct form is στον όροφό μου, with the accent on the last syllable. That follows the official accent rules with enclitics.

You will sometimes hear people pronounce it as if it were στον όροφο μου in fast or casual speech, but in proper writing (and careful pronunciation), στον όροφό μου is the form you should learn and use.

Is the word order όταν το ασανσέρ δεν δουλεύει fixed, or could we say όταν δεν δουλεύει το ασανσέρ?

Both orders are grammatically correct:

όταν το ασανσέρ δεν δουλεύει
όταν δεν δουλεύει το ασανσέρ

The difference is mostly one of emphasis and rhythm:

όταν το ασανσέρ δεν δουλεύει slightly highlights “the elevator” first.
όταν δεν δουλεύει το ασανσέρ slightly highlights the “not working” part first.

In everyday speech, both are natural. The version in your sentence is very common and neutral.

Why is it στον όροφό μου and not something like στο δικό μου όροφο? Are both possible?

Both are possible, but they differ in emphasis:

στον όροφό μου = on my floor (plain, neutral).
στον δικό μου όροφο = on my floor (with stronger emphasis on “my”, contrasting with someone else’s floor).

Greek very often uses the simple clitic μου after the noun (όροφος) to mean “my X”. You only use δικός/δική/δικό when you want to stress that it belongs to me and not someone else.

Could we say ανεβαίνω πάνω τη σκάλα or ανεβαίνω πάνω στη σκάλα?

No, those forms are not natural:

Ανεβαίνω πάνω τη σκάλα – ungrammatical / very odd.
Ανεβαίνω πάνω στη σκάλα – means something like “I climb onto the ladder/stairs” (onto the surface), not “I go up the stairs to my floor”.

For “I go up the stairs”, the natural phrase is:

Ανεβαίνω τη σκάλα.

You can say ανεβαίνω πάνω alone (meaning “I’m going upstairs”), but not with τη σκάλα stuck in the middle like that. For example:

Όταν το ασανσέρ δεν δουλεύει, ανεβαίνω πάνω με τις σκάλες.
When the elevator doesn’t work, I go upstairs using the stairs.

Could we use a past tense like ανέβαινα or ανέβηκα in a similar sentence? What would change?

Yes, and the meaning in time/aspect would change:

Ανεβαίνω τη σκάλα όταν το ασανσέρ δεν δουλεύει.
Present, habitual: I take the stairs whenever the elevator isn’t working (in general).
Ανέβαινα τη σκάλα όταν το ασανσέρ δεν δούλευε.
Imperfect: I used to take / I was taking the stairs whenever the elevator wasn’t working (in the past, repeatedly).
Ανέβηκα τη σκάλα, γιατί το ασανσέρ δεν δούλευε.
Aorist: I went up the stairs because the elevator wasn’t working (one specific occasion).

Your original sentence uses the present to describe a current habit.