Γράφω τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου στο ημερολόγιο πριν κοιμηθώ.

I write my most important thoughts in the diary before I sleep.

Breakdown of Γράφω τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου στο ημερολόγιο πριν κοιμηθώ.

• μου: my
• πριν: before
• πιο: more
• κοιμάμαι: to sleep
• σε: in
• γράφω: to write
• σημαντικός: important
• το ημερολόγιο: the diary
• η σκέψη: the thought

Questions & Answers about Γράφω τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου στο ημερολόγιο πριν κοιμηθώ.

Why is there no word for “I” before γράφω?

In Greek you usually leave out subject pronouns (like εγώ = I) because the verb ending already shows the person:

• γράφω = I write
• γράφεις = you (sing.) write
• γράφει = he/she/it writes

So γράφω on its own clearly means “I write”.
You only add εγώ for emphasis, e.g. Εγώ γράφω… = I (as opposed to someone else) write…

What exactly does γράφω tell me about tense and aspect?

γράφω is:

• present tense
• active voice
• 1st person singular

In Modern Greek the present tense usually covers both English “I write” and “I am writing”, depending on context.

So here it can mean either:

• “I write my most important thoughts…” (habitually), or
• “I am writing my most important thoughts…” (right now / as a routine).

Why is the article τις used before πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις?

τις is the feminine plural accusative definite article.

• The noun σκέψεις (thoughts) is:
  • feminine
  • plural
  • in the accusative case (because it is the direct object of γράφω)

So the article has to match it in gender, number, and case:

• Nominative: οι σκέψεις (the thoughts – as subject)
• Accusative: τις σκέψεις (the thoughts – as object)

In the sentence, τις goes with πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου, so we get:

• Γράφω τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου…
  = I write the most important thoughts of mine…

How does Greek express “most important” with τις πιο σημαντικές? Isn’t πιο just “more”?

Yes, πιο by itself is the comparative marker “more”:

• σημαντικός = important
• πιο σημαντικός = more important

To make the superlative (“the most important”), Modern Greek usually uses:

definite article + πιο + adjective

So:

• τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις
  literally: “the more important thoughts”
  functionally: “the most important thoughts”

Greek does not usually have a separate adjective form like English “most important”; it uses the comparative form with the article to create the superlative meaning.

Why is σημαντικές in that particular form?

σημαντικές is the feminine plural form of the adjective σημαντικός (important), used here in the accusative to agree with σκέψεις:

• Singular:

  • (Nom.) σημαντική σκέψη – important thought
  • (Acc.) σημαντική σκέψη

• Plural:

  • (Nom.) σημαντικές σκέψεις – important thoughts
  • (Acc.) σημαντικές σκέψεις

Nominative and accusative feminine plural look the same (σημαντικές) in Modern Greek, but we know it’s accusative because it’s the object of γράφω.

Adjectives must agree with the noun they modify in:

• gender → feminine (σκέψη)
• number → plural (σκέψεις)
• case → accusative (object)

Why does σκέψεις end in -εις? What are its main forms?

σκέψεις is the plural of σκέψη (thought). It follows a common feminine pattern:

• Singular:

  • Nominative: η σκέψη (the thought)
  • Accusative: (τη) σκέψη

• Plural:

  • Nominative: οι σκέψεις (the thoughts)
  • Accusative: (τις) σκέψεις

In our sentence we have accusative plural (τις σκέψεις), but nominative and accusative plural are identical in form (σκέψεις).

What is μου here, and why does it come after σκέψεις instead of before, like English “my thoughts”?

μου is the weak possessive pronoun = “my”. In Greek, weak possessives usually come after the noun (and follow the whole noun phrase):

• το βιβλίο μου = my book
• η μητέρα μου = my mother
• τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου = my most important thoughts

Features of μου here:

• unstressed (clitic) – it doesn’t carry the main word stress
• agrees in person (1st person) but not in gender/number (it stays μου for all)

Stronger/emphatic forms are possible, like:

• οι δικές μου σκέψεις = my own thoughts (emphatic)

But in neutral, everyday speech, you simply put μου after the noun phrase.

Why is it στο ημερολόγιο and not σε το ημερολόγιο?

στο is the contracted form of:

• σε (in, at, to) + το (the – neuter singular accusative)

In Modern Greek, σε + definite article is almost always contracted:

• σε + το → στο
• σε + τον → στον
• σε + την → στη(ν)
• σε + τους → στους
• σε + τις → στις
• σε + τα → στα

So:

• σε το ημερολόγιο → στο ημερολόγιο

The uncontracted form is grammatically possible but sounds unnatural and is effectively never used in normal speech.

Why is στο ημερολόγιο in the accusative case?

The preposition σε (in, on, at, to) in Modern Greek always takes the accusative case. So any noun following σε/στο appears in the accusative:

• σε + το ημερολόγιο → στο ημερολόγιο (accusative)
• σε + το σπίτι → στο σπίτι
• σε + την πόλη → στην πόλη

With γράφω, you could express the “in/on” relationship in different ways, but Modern Greek typically says:

• γράφω κάτι σε / στο ημερολόγιο = I write something in the diary.

Hence το ημερολόγιο is in the accusative after σε/στο.

What is the gender of ημερολόγιο, and how do I know?

ημερολόγιο is neuter:

• Definite article: το ημερολόγιο (the diary)
• Plural: τα ημερολόγια (the diaries)

Clues:

1. The article with it in this sentence is το (inside στο), which is neuter singular.
2. Many neuter nouns end in -ο, like το βιβλίο (book), το σπίτι (house), το παιδί (child – exception ending in -ι but also neuter).

So στο ημερολόγιο literally is “in the (neuter) diary”.

What form is κοιμηθώ, and how does it relate to κοιμάμαι?

κοιμηθώ is:

• aorist
• subjunctive
• 1st person singular

It belongs to the verb κοιμάμαι (I sleep / I am sleeping). The main forms are:

• Present indicative: κοιμάμαι = I sleep / I am sleeping
• Aorist indicative: κοιμήθηκα = I slept
• Aorist subjunctive: (να) κοιμηθώ = (that) I sleep / I go to sleep

When you see κοιμηθώ without να, it’s still subjunctive; some conjunctions like πριν (before) can trigger the subjunctive on their own.

Why is it πριν κοιμηθώ and not πριν κοιμάμαι?

After πριν (“before”), Greek normally uses the subjunctive to talk about an event that happens (or will happen) in relation to another event. That’s why we have κοιμηθώ (subjunctive) instead of κοιμάμαι (present indicative).

Aspectually:

• κοιμηθώ (aorist subjunctive) = one complete event: “(I) fall asleep / go to sleep”
• κοιμάμαι (present) = ongoing state: “(I am) sleeping”

In “before I sleep” we mean “before I go to sleep / before I fall asleep” — a distinct event that marks a boundary. That is expressed with the aorist subjunctive, hence πριν κοιμηθώ.

Why is there no να after πριν, as in πριν να κοιμηθώ?

In standard Modern Greek, πριν introducing a verb clause usually takes the subjunctive without να:

• πριν φύγω = before I leave
• πριν κοιμηθώ = before I sleep / go to sleep

You may hear πριν να in some colloquial varieties or dialects (e.g. πριν να φύγω), but:

• πριν + subjunctive (without να) is the most common and considered more standard.

So πριν κοιμηθώ is the “default” educated form.

Could I change the word order, for example: Πριν κοιμηθώ, γράφω τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου στο ημερολόγιο?

Yes. Greek word order is relatively flexible, and your example is completely natural:

• Πριν κοιμηθώ, γράφω τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου στο ημερολόγιο.

This puts slight emphasis on the time/condition (“before I sleep”) by putting it first. Other acceptable orders include:

• Γράφω στο ημερολόγιο τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου πριν κοιμηθώ.
• Στο ημερολόγιο γράφω τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου πριν κοιμηθώ.

The core meaning stays the same; word order mostly affects emphasis or style, not grammatical correctness here.

In English we say “my most important thoughts” without “the”. Why does Greek use the article in τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου?

Greek normally uses the definite article together with possessives, whereas English usually drops “the”:

• Greek: το βιβλίο μου
• English: “my book” (not the my book)

So:

• τις πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου
  literally: the more important thoughts my
  naturally: my most important thoughts

The article τις is required by Greek grammar; omitting it (πιο σημαντικές σκέψεις μου) would sound incomplete or odd in standard speech. The combination article + noun + μου is the usual way to say “my X”.