Όταν φροντίζω τον εαυτό μου, νιώθω λιγότερη ανησυχία για το μέλλον.

When I take care of myself, I feel less worry about the future.

Breakdown of Όταν φροντίζω τον εαυτό μου, νιώθω λιγότερη ανησυχία για το μέλλον.

• μου: my
• όταν: when
• για: about
• νιώθω: to feel

Questions & Answers about Όταν φροντίζω τον εαυτό μου, νιώθω λιγότερη ανησυχία για το μέλλον.

What exactly does Όταν mean here? Is it “when” or “if” or “whenever”?

Όταν generally means “when/whenever”.

• With the present tense, as in Όταν φροντίζω τον εαυτό μου, it usually means “whenever / every time (that) I take care of myself” – a repeated or general situation.
• Όταν is different from αν, which usually means “if” (a condition, not just a time).

So the sense is: “Whenever I take care of myself, I feel less anxiety about the future.”

What tense and person are φροντίζω and νιώθω?

Both φροντίζω and νιώθω are:

• Present tense
• Active voice
• 1st person singular (“I”)
• Indicative mood

So literally:

• φροντίζω = I take care (of)
• νιώθω = I feel

Greek normally drops the subject pronoun εγώ, because the verb ending -ω already shows that the subject is I.

Why is there no εγώ (“I”) in the sentence? Can I add it?