Μου αρέσει ο κινηματογράφος αυτός, γιατί είναι ήσυχος εκτός από τα Σάββατα.

I like this cinema because it is quiet except on Saturdays.

Breakdown of Μου αρέσει ο κινηματογράφος αυτός, γιατί είναι ήσυχος εκτός από τα Σάββατα.

• είμαι: to be
• αυτός: this
• γιατί: because
• μου: me

Questions & Answers about Μου αρέσει ο κινηματογράφος αυτός, γιατί είναι ήσυχος εκτός από τα Σάββατα.

Why does the sentence use Μου αρέσει instead of a verb like αρέσω to mean "I like"?

In Greek, αρέσω works the opposite way from English to like.

• Literally, μου αρέσει ο κινηματογράφος αυτός is this cinema pleases me.
• μου = to me / for me (indirect object, genitive case)
• αρέσει = pleases (3rd person singular)
• ο κινηματογράφος αυτός = this cinema (the thing that pleases)

So the structure is:

[to-me] [pleases] [this-cinema]

In English we flip it into I like this cinema, but in Greek we keep the it pleases me logic, so we say μου αρέσει, not αρέσω.

What exactly is μου here, and why is it before αρέσει?

μου is the weak (unstressed) genitive form of εγώ (I). It corresponds to to me / for me / my depending on context.

In this sentence:

• μου = to me (indirect object)
• It comes before the verb because weak object pronouns normally go:
  • before a simple verb: μου αρέσει
  • or between an auxiliary and a main verb: μου έχει πει (he has told me)

So μου αρέσει is the standard way to say I like / it pleases me. Putting μου before the verb is normal Greek word order with weak pronouns.

Can I also say Μ’ αρέσει instead of ?