Τώρα ονειρεύομαι να μείνω λίγο στην Ελλάδα και να κάνω μάθημα σε ελληνική τάξη.

Now I dream of staying in Greece for a bit and taking a class in a Greek classroom.

Breakdown of Τώρα ονειρεύομαι να μείνω λίγο στην Ελλάδα και να κάνω μάθημα σε ελληνική τάξη.

• τώρα: now
• και: and
• λίγο: a little
• να: to
• μένω: to stay
• σε: in
• η Ελλάδα: Greece
• ελληνικός: Greek
• ονειρεύομαι: to dream
• κάνω μάθημα: to have a class
• η τάξη: the classroom

Questions & Answers about Τώρα ονειρεύομαι να μείνω λίγο στην Ελλάδα και να κάνω μάθημα σε ελληνική τάξη.

What is the function of να in να μείνω and να κάνω? Is it like “to” in English?

Να is not exactly the same as the English to. It’s a particle that introduces the subjunctive mood.

• ονειρεύομαι να μείνω... = I dream (of) staying... / I dream (that I might) stay...
• να κάνω μάθημα... = to do/teach/have a lesson...

After verbs of wanting, hoping, planning, dreaming, etc., Greek usually uses να + verb in the subjunctive:

• θέλω να πάω = I want to go
• ελπίζω να βρω = I hope to find
• ονειρεύομαι να μείνω = I dream of staying

So να marks a kind of non-factual, desired, or future-oriented action, rather than just being a bare infinitive marker like English to (Greek doesn’t have an infinitive anymore in the modern language).

Why is it μείνω and not μένω after να? What’s the difference?

Both μένω and μείνω come from the same verb μένω (to stay / to live), but they express different aspects:

• μένω = I stay / I am staying (imperfective aspect – ongoing, repeated, or open-ended)
• μείνω = I stay in the aorist subjunctive (perfective aspect – a whole, bounded action)

In να μείνω λίγο στην Ελλάδα, the speaker imagines a specific stay for a limited period — a more “completed” event. That’s why the aorist subjunctive μείνω is used.

If you said να μένω στην Ελλάδα, it would suggest habitual or ongoing staying (like to be living in Greece regularly), which is not what λίγο (for a little while) implies.

So:

• να μείνω λίγο στην Ελλάδα = to stay in Greece for a while (one finite period)
• να μένω στην Ελλάδα = to be living in Greece (as a more ongoing state)

What does λίγο mean here, and why is it after μείνω instead of before?

Λίγο literally means a little / a bit, and in this context it means “for a short time” or “for a little while”:

• να μείνω λίγο στην Ελλάδα ≈ to stay for a little while in Greece

Word order:

• να μείνω λίγο στην Ελλάδα is the most natural order.
• λίγο modifies the verb phrase, not a noun, so it can comfortably sit after the verb:
  • να φάω λίγο = to eat a little
  • να διαβάσω λίγο = to study a bit

You could also say να μείνω στην Ελλάδα λίγο, but it sounds a bit less smooth; normal spoken Greek prefers the version in the sentence.

Why is it στην Ελλάδα and not σε Ελλάδα or just Ελλάδα?

Στην is a contraction of σε + την:

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

So:

• σε + την Ελλάδα → στην Ελλάδα = in Greece / to Greece

Modern Greek almost always uses σε + definite article with place names when you mean “in X” or “to X”:

• στην Ελλάδα = in/to Greece
• στην Ιταλία = in/to Italy
• στο Λονδίνο = in/to London

Saying σε Ελλάδα (without the article) sounds wrong in standard modern Greek in this context.

Why is it στην and not στον or στο before Ελλάδα?

Because Ελλάδα is feminine.

The forms of σε + article are:

• στον = σε + τον (masculine)
• στην = σε + την (feminine)
• στο = σε + το (neuter)

Examples:

• στον δρόμο (masc.) = in the street
• στην πόλη (fem.) = in the city
• στην Ελλάδα (fem.) = in Greece
• στο σπίτι (neut.) = at home

So with Ελλάδα (feminine), you correctly use στην.

What exactly does να κάνω μάθημα mean? “Have a lesson”, “give a lesson”, or “do homework”?

Να κάνω μάθημα is a flexible expression, and its exact meaning depends on who the subject is and context:

1. Teacher speaking:

   • να κάνω μάθημα = to give/teach a lesson / to teach class
     e.g. I dream of teaching a class in a Greek classroom.

2. Student speaking:

   • να κάνω μάθημα = to have a lesson / to be in class / to study (in a structured lesson)
     e.g. I dream of having a lesson in a Greek class.

It does not usually mean “do homework”. For do homework, you’d say:

• κάνω τις ασκήσεις μου = I do my exercises
• κάνω τα μαθήματά μου (somewhat old-fashioned) = I do my schoolwork/homework

In your sentence, without further context, it could be understood either as teach or attend a class, but many speakers would first think of teaching when hearing κάνω μάθημα σε τάξη.

What is the role of σε in σε ελληνική τάξη?

Here σε is the preposition meaning in / at / to (depending on context). So:

• σε ελληνική τάξη = in a Greek class / classroom

Σε + noun (often with an article) is the standard way to say in/at/on/to a place:

• σε ελληνική τάξη = in a Greek classroom
• στην τάξη (= σε + την) = in the class
• στο σχολείο (= σε + το) = at school
• στο μάθημα (= σε + το) = in class / in the lesson

Why is there no article in σε ελληνική τάξη? Why not σε μια ελληνική τάξη or στην ελληνική τάξη?

All three are possible, but they have slightly different nuances:

1. σε ελληνική τάξη

   • No article → more general / indefinite
   • Feels like “in a Greek class (in general)” or “in some Greek class”, without specifying which.

2. σε μια ελληνική τάξη

   • μια = a / one (feminine)
   • Explicitly “in a Greek class”, one unspecified class.

3. στην ελληνική τάξη (= σε + την)

   • Definite article → in the Greek class (that we both know about)
   • Refers to a specific, known class.

In this sentence, σε ελληνική τάξη sounds natural because the speaker is talking generally about the experience of being in a Greek class, not about a particular, already identified class.

Why is ελληνική before τάξη? Could it be after, like in some other languages?

In modern Greek, adjectives normally come before the noun:

• ελληνική τάξη = Greek class
• μεγάλο σπίτι = big house
• καινούριο βιβλίο = new book

Placing the adjective after the noun is possible, but usually needs an article pattern and often changes emphasis or style. For example:

• η τάξη η ελληνική – grammatically possible, but sounds marked or emphatic, not neutral: “the class, the Greek one”.

So ελληνική τάξη is the standard, neutral order: adjective before noun.

Does ελληνική agree with τάξη in gender, number, and case?

Yes. In Greek, adjectives must agree with the noun they modify in:

• Gender (masc./fem./neut.)
• Number (singular/plural)
• Case (nominative/genitive/accusative/vocative)

Here:

• τάξη is feminine singular accusative (because it’s the object of σε)
• Therefore ελληνική must also be feminine singular accusative

So:

• ελληνική τάξη (fem. sg. acc.)
• If it were plural: ελληνικές τάξεις (fem. pl. acc./nom.)

Why is the verb ονειρεύομαι in the present tense together with τώρα?

Τώρα = now, so present tense is natural:

• Τώρα ονειρεύομαι... = Now I (am) dream(ing)...

Greek doesn’t have a separate “continuous” form like English (I dream vs I am dreaming). The present tense covers both:

• ονειρεύομαι can mean either:
  • I dream (in general), or
  • I am dreaming (right now)

With τώρα, it clearly refers to right now: At this moment, I am dreaming of...

Could you change the word order, like Τώρα ονειρεύομαι να λίγο μείνω or να κάνω λίγο μάθημα?

Some changes are possible; some sound unnatural:

1. να λίγο μείνω – This is not natural.
   Normally λίγο comes after the verb in this kind of structure:

   • ✔ να μείνω λίγο – natural
   • ✘ να λίγο μείνω – odd

2. να κάνω λίγο μάθημα – This is natural, but slightly changes the nuance:

   • να κάνω μάθημα σε ελληνική τάξη = to have/teach a class in a Greek class (neutral)
   • να κάνω λίγο μάθημα = to have/teach a bit of class / for a short time

   If you say να κάνω λίγο μάθημα σε ελληνική τάξη, you emphasize the short duration of the lesson.

Greek word order is fairly flexible, but certain positions (like λίγο before the verb here) will sound wrong or at least very marked.

Is there a difference between να μείνω στην Ελλάδα and για να μείνω στην Ελλάδα?

Yes, there is a difference:

• να μείνω στην Ελλάδα

  • Here να just introduces the subjunctive clause after ονειρεύομαι.
  • It translates as to stay / (that I) stay in Greece.

• για να μείνω στην Ελλάδα

  • για να usually means in order to / so that.
  • It introduces a purpose clause, expressing intention.

So your sentence:

• Τώρα ονειρεύομαι να μείνω λίγο στην Ελλάδα... = Now I dream of staying a little while in Greece...

If you said:

• Τώρα ονειρεύομαι για να μείνω λίγο στην Ελλάδα...

it would sound wrong, because για να doesn’t fit after ονειρεύομαι here; we are not expressing purpose, but the content of the dream.