Learn Hardcore Greek: Γράφω μια μικρή περίληψη μετά από κάθε κείμενο, για να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία. - I write a short summary after each text in order to remember the main points.

In English I’d say “I write” or “I am writing”. What exactly does Γράφω mean here? Is it present simple, present continuous, or something else?

Modern Greek present tense covers both the English present simple and present continuous.

Γράφω can mean:
- “I write” (habitually, as a routine)
- “I am writing” (right now)

In this sentence, because of the general context (μετά από κάθε κείμενο = after each text), Γράφω is understood as a habitual action, so the natural English translation is:

“I write a short summary after each text, to remember the main points.”

Greek doesn’t need to change form to distinguish between “I write” and “I am writing”; Γράφω can cover both, and context decides.

Why is it μια μικρή περίληψη and not something like μικρή μια περίληψη? What is the normal word order with adjectives and nouns?

In Greek, the usual order is:

[article] + [adjective] + [noun]

So here:

μια = the indefinite article (a / an)
μικρή = adjective (small / short)
περίληψη = noun (summary)

So μια μικρή περίληψη literally matches English “a small summary” in word order.

Forms like μικρή μια περίληψη are not standard in this context; they would sound odd or poetic at best. The article always comes before the adjective it belongs to in ordinary speech.

Why is it μια and μικρή? What tells me that περίληψη is feminine?

Greek nouns have grammatical gender: masculine, feminine, or neuter.

περίληψη (summary) is grammatically feminine.
Adjectives and articles must agree in gender, number, and case with the noun.

So:

Feminine singular indefinite article: μια
Feminine singular form of μικρός (small): μικρή
Feminine singular noun: περίληψη

They all line up: μια (fem. sg.) μικρή (fem. sg.) περίληψη (fem. sg.).

You usually learn the gender of a noun together with the noun itself, often as η περίληψη (“the summary”), where η signals feminine.

Why is it μετά από κάθε κείμενο and not just μετά κάθε κείμενο or only μετά? What does από do here?

μετά by itself is mainly an adverb meaning “afterwards / later”.

When you want to say “after [something]” with a noun, you usually use:

μετά από + noun

So:

μετά από κάθε κείμενο = “after each text”

Compare:

Θα διαβάσω και μετά θα γράψω.
= I’ll read and then I’ll write. (no noun after μετά)
Θα γράψω μετά από το κείμενο.
= I’ll write after the text.

μετά κάθε κείμενο can be heard in speech but sounds more colloquial and is less standard than μετά από κάθε κείμενο. Adding από clearly marks μετά as a preposition governing a noun phrase.

Why is it κάθε κείμενο without an article (not το κάθε κείμενο)? How does κάθε work with nouns?

κάθε means “each / every” and it normally goes:

κάθε + noun (without article)

So:

κάθε κείμενο = “each text / every text”
κάθε μέρα = every day
κάθε άνθρωπος = every person

You can see το κάθε κείμενο in some contexts, but it adds emphasis or a slightly different nuance, closer to:

το κάθε κείμενο ≈ “each individual text”, often with a more emotional or emphatic tone.

In neutral, everyday speech, κάθε is normally used without an article.

What is the structure για να θυμάμαι? Is να an infinitive marker? What tense/mood is θυμάμαι here?

Modern Greek doesn’t have an infinitive like English “to remember”. Instead, it uses να-clauses with a subjunctive verb form.

για να = “in order to / so as to” (purpose)
θυμάμαι = the present subjunctive form of the verb θυμάμαι (to remember)

So:

για να θυμάμαι ≈ “in order (for me) to remember”

Grammatically:

να introduces the subjunctive.
θυμάμαι happens to look the same in present indicative and present subjunctive for this verb, but in this structure, after να, it is subjunctive.

So there is no infinitive form; Greek expresses “to remember” with να θυμάμαι (or here για να θυμάμαι when expressing purpose).

Could I say just να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία without για? What difference does για να make?

Yes, you can say both, but they’re not identical:

να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία
- Neutral subjunctive clause: “(so that) I remember the main points.”
- Could be used after verbs like θέλω, πρέπει, μπορώ etc.
για να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία
- Explicit purpose: “in order to remember the main points”.
- It clearly answers “why?” / “for what purpose?”

In your sentence, για να is more natural because you are explicitly expressing the purpose of writing the summary.

Why is it τα βασικά σημεία? How do τα, βασικά, and σημεία agree?

Let’s break it down:

σημεία = neuter plural form of σημείο (point).
βασικά = neuter plural form of the adjective βασικός (basic / main).
τα = neuter plural definite article (the).

In Greek, article, adjective, and noun must agree in gender, number, and case:

τα (neut. pl.) βασικά (neut. pl.) σημεία (neut. pl.)
= “the main points” / “the basic points”

So the structure is the same pattern you’ve seen:

[article] + [adjective] + [noun]

Why is there a comma before για να θυμάμαι? Can I leave it out?

The comma before για να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία marks a separate clause of purpose.

Γράφω μια μικρή περίληψη μετά από κάθε κείμενο, για να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία.

In Greek, it’s very common (and usually recommended) to put a comma before clauses introduced by για να, ώστε να, επειδή, αφού, etc., especially when they come after the main clause.

You sometimes see the comma omitted in informal writing, but the version with the comma is clearer and more standard.

Could I move μετά από κάθε κείμενο to another position in the sentence? Does word order matter here?

Yes, word order in Greek is relatively flexible, especially for phrases like μετά από κάθε κείμενο. All of these are possible and correct:

Γράφω μια μικρή περίληψη μετά από κάθε κείμενο, για να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία.
Μετά από κάθε κείμενο γράφω μια μικρή περίληψη, για να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία.
Γράφω, μετά από κάθε κείμενο, μια μικρή περίληψη για να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία. (more marked/emphatic)

The basic meaning stays the same. Moving μετά από κάθε κείμενο to the front can slightly emphasize “after each text” as the important condition.

How would the sentence change if I want to talk about a past habit instead of a present one? For example, “I used to write a short summary after each text.”

To express a past habit in Greek, you normally use the imperfect tense.

Έγραφα μια μικρή περίληψη μετά από κάθε κείμενο, για να θυμάμαι τα βασικά σημεία.
= “I used to write a short summary after each text, to remember the main points.”

Compare:

Γράφω = I write / I am writing (present)
Έγραφα = I used to write / I was writing (imperfect past, often habitual or continuous)

Everything else in the sentence stays the same; only Γράφω changes to Έγραφα.