Η γιαγιά μου πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία κάθε Κυριακή πρωί και μετά πίνει καφέ.

My grandmother goes to church every Sunday morning and then drinks coffee.

Breakdown of Η γιαγιά μου πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία κάθε Κυριακή πρωί και μετά πίνει καφέ.

• ο καφές: the coffee
• πίνω: to drink
• και: and
• πάω: to go
• μου: my
• μετά: then
• το πρωί: in the morning
• σε: to
• κάθε Κυριακή: every Sunday
• η γιαγιά: the grandmother
• η εκκλησία: the church

Questions & Answers about Η γιαγιά μου πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία κάθε Κυριακή πρωί και μετά πίνει καφέ.

Why do we say Η γιαγιά μου with the article Η even though we already have μου (“my”)?

In Greek, it is normal to use the definite article together with a possessive pronoun:

• η γιαγιά μου = my grandmother
• το σπίτι σου = your house
• ο φίλος του = his friend

The article (ο, η, το) is almost always used before a noun with a possessive, except in a few fixed expressions. So η γιαγιά μου is the standard, natural way to say “my grandmother.”
Leaving the article out (γιαγιά μου) is possible but sounds either more poetic, emotional, or like a special style, not neutral everyday speech.

Why is it γιαγιά μου and not η μου γιαγιά like in some other languages?

In Greek, the possessive pronoun (μου, σου, του, της, μας, σας, τους) normally comes after the noun, not before it:

• η μητέρα μου = my mother
• ο πατέρας σου = your father
• το βιβλίο μας = our book

So the standard order is:
article + noun + possessive → η γιαγιά μου.

η μου γιαγιά is ungrammatical in modern Greek.

What does πηγαίνει mean exactly, and how is it conjugated?

πηγαίνει is the 3rd person singular of πηγαίνω = “to go.”

Present tense (indicative) of πηγαίνω:

• (εγώ) πηγαίνω = I go
• (εσύ) πηγαίνεις = you go
• (αυτός/αυτή/αυτό) πηγαίνει = he/she/it goes
• (εμείς) πηγαίνουμε = we go
• (εσείς) πηγαίνετε = you (pl./formal) go
• (αυτοί/αυτές/αυτά) πηγαίνουν(ε) = they go

In this sentence, πηγαίνει expresses a habitual action: “she goes (regularly).”

What is the difference between πηγαίνει and πάει?

Both mean “(he/she) goes,” and in many everyday contexts they are interchangeable.

• πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία
• πάει στην εκκλησία

Both can mean “she goes to church.”

Nuance:

• πάει is shorter and very common in speech; it can sound a bit more informal.
• πηγαίνει can feel slightly more neutral or careful/standard, and clearly shows the present tense in full form.

In this sentence you could use either without changing the basic meaning.

What does στην in στην εκκλησία mean? Why not just σε εκκλησία?

στην is a contracted form:

• στην = σε + την

So:

• σε = in / at / to
• την = the (feminine, accusative singular)

στην εκκλησία literally = “to the church / in the church.”

Greek almost always uses a definite article with specific nouns:

• στην εκκλησία = to the church (a particular, understood church)
  σε εκκλησία (“to a church”) is possible but would mean “to some (unspecified) church” and is comparatively rare in this kind of habitual sentence.

Why is εκκλησία in the accusative case here?

After the preposition σε, you normally use the accusative case:

• σε
  • την εκκλησία → στην εκκλησία
• σε
  • το σπίτι → στο σπίτι
• σε
  • τον γιατρό → στον γιατρό

When you express motion towards a place (“go to”), Greek uses σε + accusative, just like here:
πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία = “she goes to church.”

Why is Κυριακή capitalized, and what is its gender?

Κυριακή (Sunday) is capitalized because days of the week are written with a capital letter in Greek.

Its gender is feminine, so with the article it is:

• η Κυριακή = Sunday

In κάθε Κυριακή πρωί, Κυριακή is still feminine, but the article is dropped because of κάθε (“every”):

• κάθε Κυριακή = every Sunday
  (no article is used after κάθε).

Why is there no article before πρωί in κάθε Κυριακή πρωί? Can we say κάθε Κυριακή το πρωί?

Both are possible:

• κάθε Κυριακή πρωί
• κάθε Κυριακή το πρωί

They both mean “every Sunday morning.”

Difference:

• κάθε Κυριακή πρωί is a bit more compact and slightly more colloquial.
• κάθε Κυριακή το πρωί sounds a bit fuller and more explicit (“every Sunday the morning”).

Using το before πρωί is optional here and does not change the meaning much.

Why don’t we explicitly say “she” in Greek? Why is there no αυτή?

Greek is a pro‑drop language: subject pronouns are often omitted when the verb ending already shows the person:

• πηγαίνει clearly means “he/she/it goes.”
  From context (η γιαγιά μου), we know it is “she.”

So:

• Η γιαγιά μου πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία... is normal and natural.
• Η γιαγιά μου αυτή πηγαίνει... would sound strange.
• Η γιαγιά μου, αυτή πηγαίνει... is only used in special emphatic structures, not here.

You almost never say αυτή simply to mark the subject when it’s already clear.

What does μετά mean here, and could we place it somewhere else in the sentence?

μετά means “afterwards / then / after that.”

In this sentence:

• ...κάθε Κυριακή πρωί και μετά πίνει καφέ.
  = “...every Sunday morning and then she drinks coffee.”

You can move μετά without changing the basic meaning:

• ...και πίνει μετά καφέ.
• ...και μετά από αυτό πίνει καφέ. (more explicit: “after that”)

But και μετά πίνει καφέ is the most natural and simple version.

Why is there no article before καφέ? In English we say “drinks coffee” but sometimes “a coffee.” How does it work in Greek?

In πίνει καφέ, καφέ is used as a mass noun, without article:

• πίνω καφέ = I drink (some) coffee.

This is the usual way to talk about drinking coffee in general or as a habit.

If you add an article, it changes slightly:

• πίνει έναν καφέ = she drinks one coffee / a coffee (one cup, a specific serving).
• πίνει τον καφέ της = she drinks her coffee (a particular coffee that is already known in the context).

So in a general habitual sentence, πίνει καφέ without article is the most natural.

How does word order work in this sentence? Could we move things around?

The original is:

• Η γιαγιά μου πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία κάθε Κυριακή πρωί και μετά πίνει καφέ.

Other acceptable orders (with slight changes in emphasis) include:

• Η γιαγιά μου κάθε Κυριακή πρωί πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία και μετά πίνει καφέ.
• Κάθε Κυριακή πρωί η γιαγιά μου πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία και μετά πίνει καφέ.

Greek word order is relatively flexible, but:

• The subject (η γιαγιά μου) usually comes near the beginning.
• Time expressions (κάθε Κυριακή πρωί) often come before or after the verb.
• The verbal phrase (πηγαίνει στην εκκλησία, πίνει καφέ) stays together.

All of these still mean “My grandmother goes to church every Sunday morning and then drinks coffee.”

How would I change η γιαγιά μου to say “your grandmother,” “our grandmother,” etc.?

Keep the same structure (article + noun + possessive) and just change the possessive:

• η γιαγιά μου = my grandmother
• η γιαγιά σου = your (singular/informal) grandmother
• η γιαγιά του = his grandmother
• η γιαγιά της = her grandmother
• η γιαγιά μας = our grandmother
• η γιαγιά σας = your (plural/formal) grandmother
• η γιαγιά τους = their grandmother

The noun and article (here η γιαγιά) stay the same; only the possessive pronoun changes.