Ο ξάδερφός μου είναι σε προχωρημένο επίπεδο, αλλά εγώ δεν είμαι τόσο προχωρημένος.

My cousin (male) is at an advanced level, but I am not so advanced.

Breakdown of Ο ξάδερφός μου είναι σε προχωρημένο επίπεδο, αλλά εγώ δεν είμαι τόσο προχωρημένος.

• είμαι: to be
• εγώ: I
• δεν: not
• μου: my

Questions & Answers about Ο ξάδερφός μου είναι σε προχωρημένο επίπεδο, αλλά εγώ δεν είμαι τόσο προχωρημένος.

Why does μου come after ξάδερφός instead of before it, like English my cousin?

In Greek, possessive pronouns like μου (my), σου (your), του (his), etc. normally come after the noun they modify, not before.

So:

• ο ξάδερφός μου = my cousin
  (literally: the cousin my)

This is the usual order:

• το βιβλίο μου – my book
• η μητέρα σου – your mother
• το σπίτι μας – our house

Putting μου before the noun (e.g. μου ξάδερφος) is only done in some special emphatic or stylistic contexts, and even then it sounds marked. For a learner, you should think: noun + article + μου is the normal pattern for my + noun.

What exactly is μου here – an adjective, a pronoun, or something else?

Μου here is an enclitic genitive form of the personal pronoun. In simpler terms:

• It means my or of me.
• It is unstressed and follows the noun: ξάδερφός μου.
• It does not change for gender or number of the thing owned; it only reflects the owner.

Compare:

• ο ξάδερφός μου – my cousin (male)
• η ξαδέρφη μου – my cousin (female)