Learn Hardcore Greek: Πριν βάλω την υπογραφή μου, διαβάζω προσεκτικά όλες τις λεπτομέρειες του συμβολαίου. - Before I put my signature, I read carefully all the details of the contract.

Βάλω is the aorist subjunctive of βάζω.
After πριν (before) referring to a single future event – before I put my signature – Greek normally uses the aorist subjunctive, not the present.

So:

πριν βάλω = before I (actually) put it (one completed action)
πριν βάζω would sound wrong here; present would suggest a repeated/ongoing action in a context where you want one specific act.

Why do we use πριν with the subjunctive here?

With πριν + clause, when you talk about something that has not yet happened (a future or unreal event), Greek usually uses the subjunctive.

So:

Πριν βάλω την υπογραφή μου… = Before I put my signature… (event that hasn’t yet occurred)

You could also hear πριν να βάλω, but in modern Greek the να is often dropped after πριν, especially in speech.

What does the phrase βάζω την υπογραφή μου mean? Why not just υπογράφω?

Literally, βάζω την υπογραφή μου = I put my signature.
It is an idiomatic way to say I sign (a document), and it’s very common.

Υπογράφω also means I sign, so you could say:

Πριν υπογράψω, διαβάζω…

Both are correct; βάζω την υπογραφή μου sounds a bit more descriptive/emphatic: you imagine physically putting your signature there.

Why is there a comma after μου: …την υπογραφή μου, διαβάζω…?

The clause Πριν βάλω την υπογραφή μου is a subordinate time clause (a “before…” clause) placed at the beginning of the sentence.

In Greek, when a subordinate clause comes first, it is normally followed by a comma:

Πριν φύγω, θα σε πάρω τηλέφωνο.
So the comma here separates the “before…” clause from the main clause (διαβάζω…).

Why is the definite article την used before υπογραφή?

Υπογραφή is a feminine noun, and here it is the direct object of βάλω, so it needs a feminine, singular, accusative article: την.

Greek normally uses the definite article much more than English.
Where English might say “before I sign”, Greek often says “before I put the signature of mine” (την υπογραφή μου), even though in English we don’t use the there.

Why is it την υπογραφή μου and not μου την υπογραφή?

In Greek, possessive pronouns like μου usually come after the noun they modify:

το βιβλίο μου = my book
η υπογραφή μου = my signature

Forms like μου την υπογραφή are possible only in special emphatic or contrastive contexts; the normal neutral order is article + noun + possessive: την υπογραφή μου.

Why is there no εγώ in the sentence? How do we know it means “I”?

Greek is a pro‑drop language: the subject pronoun is normally omitted, because the verb ending already shows the person.

βάλω and διαβάζω here are 1st person singular forms.
So the subject “I” is understood from the verb, and εγώ is not needed unless you want to emphasize I (as opposed to someone else).

Why is διαβάζω in the present tense rather than in the future, like θα διαβάσω?

Here the present διαβάζω expresses a general/habitual action:
“Before I sign, I read carefully all the details…” → describing what you normally do every time you’re in that situation.

If you said Πριν βάλω την υπογραφή μου, θα διαβάσω…, it would sound more like a specific future promise/plan: “Before I sign (this time), I will read…”.
The given sentence is more like a general rule or habit.

What is the role of προσεκτικά and can it move in the sentence?

Προσεκτικά is an adverb meaning carefully, modifying the verb διαβάζω.

It can move quite freely; you might hear:

διαβάζω προσεκτικά όλες τις λεπτομέρειες… (as given)
διαβάζω όλες τις λεπτομέρειες προσεκτικά…

The meaning is essentially the same; the given position (right after the verb) is very natural.

Why is it όλες τις λεπτομέρειες and not όλα?

Λεπτομέρειες is feminine plural (nominative/accusative): η λεπτομέρεια – οι λεπτομέρειες.
The adjective όλος must agree in gender, number, and case with the noun:

όλες = feminine, plural, accusative → matches τις λεπτομέρειες
όλα is neuter plural, so it wouldn’t agree and would be ungrammatical here.

What case is λεπτομέρειες in, and why?

Λεπτομέρειες is in the accusative plural: τις λεπτομέρειες.

It is the direct object of the verb διαβάζω (I read what? → all the details), and direct objects in Greek are normally in the accusative case.

What case is του συμβολαίου and what does it express?

Του συμβολαίου is genitive singular (neuter):

το συμβόλαιο (nominative/accusative)
του συμβολαίου (genitive)

The genitive here expresses possession/relationship: the details of the contract.
So τις λεπτομέρειες του συμβολαίου = the contract’s details / the details of the contract.

Can the word order be changed, for example putting πριν βάλω… at the end?

Yes, Greek word order is quite flexible. You could say:

Διαβάζω προσεκτικά όλες τις λεπτομέρειες του συμβολαίου πριν βάλω την υπογραφή μου.

The meaning is the same. Placing πριν βάλω την υπογραφή μου at the beginning, as in the original, slightly emphasizes the condition before I sign….

Is there any difference between πριν and προτού in this context?

In this kind of sentence, πριν and προτού are very close in meaning and often interchangeable:

Πριν βάλω την υπογραφή μου…
Προτού βάλω την υπογραφή μου…

Προτού can sound a bit more formal or literary, but both are correct and natural in standard modern Greek.