Learn Hardcore Greek: Νιώθω περηφάνια όταν καταλαβαίνω κείμενα που πριν ήταν πολύ δύσκολα. - I feel pride when I understand texts that used to be very difficult.

physical sensations: Νιώθω κρύο – I feel cold
emotions: Νιώθω περηφάνια – I feel pride
intuitive feelings: Νιώθω ότι κάτι δεν πάει καλά – I feel that something is wrong

Αισθάνομαι also means I feel, but:

it sounds a bit more formal or “careful”;
it’s often used more in written or careful speech, especially for emotional/psychological states.

In this sentence, Νιώθω περηφάνια is the most natural everyday choice. You could say Αισθάνομαι περηφάνια, but it sounds slightly more formal or distant.

Why is it Νιώθω περηφάνια and not something like Νιώθω περήφανος?

Both are possible, but they’re slightly different:

Νιώθω περηφάνια
- περηφάνια = pride (a noun)
- Literally: I feel pride.
- Focuses on the emotion as a thing.
Νιώθω περήφανος (for a man) / Νιώθω περήφανη (for a woman)
- περήφανος / περήφανη / περήφανο = proud (adjective)
- Literally: I feel (that I am) proud.
- Focuses on you as a proud person.

In everyday speech, Νιώθω περηφάνια and Νιώθω περήφανος/η both sound natural. The original sentence simply chose the noun version.

Why is there no article before περηφάνια? Why not Νιώθω την περηφάνια;

In Greek, abstract uncountable nouns often appear without an article when used in a general sense:

Νιώθω περηφάνια. – I feel pride. (some pride, pride in general)
Έχω φόβο. – I have fear.
Έχω υπομονή. – I have patience.

Using the article την περηφάνια would make it more specific, e.g.:

Νιώθω την περηφάνια που έχεις για μένα.
I feel the pride that you have for me.

In the original sentence, we’re talking about the general feeling of pride, so no article is natural: Νιώθω περηφάνια...

What is the function of όταν in this sentence, and what tense does it normally take?

Όταν means when and introduces a time clause.

In Νιώθω περηφάνια όταν καταλαβαίνω κείμενα..., it introduces a repeated/whenever situation:

όταν + present tense usually = whenever / each time that
- Όταν καταλαβαίνω κείμενα... νιώθω περηφάνια.
  Whenever/each time I understand texts… I feel pride.

If you want to refer to a specific future event, you’d use the subjunctive with όταν:

Όταν καταλάβω αυτό το κείμενο, θα νιώσω περηφάνια.
When I understand this text (on that specific occasion), I will feel pride.

So here, όταν + καταλαβαίνω (present) matches the idea of a general repeated situation.

Why is it καταλαβαίνω and not καταλάβω in this sentence?

Greek verbs have aspect: imperfective (ongoing/repeated) vs aorist (single, completed).

καταλαβαίνω (imperfective) = I understand / I am understanding / I (tend to) understand
καταλάβω (aorist subjunctive form) = I understand (as a single completed event)

With όταν and a general/repeated meaning (“whenever I understand texts”), we use the present/imperfective:

Όταν καταλαβαίνω κείμενα...
When(ever) I understand texts...

If you were talking about one specific future occasion:

Θα νιώσω περηφάνια όταν καταλάβω αυτό το κείμενο.
I’ll feel proud when I understand this text (that one time).

What exactly does κείμενα mean, and what gender/number is it?

κείμενο (singular) = text (as in written text)

neuter noun
singular: το κείμενο – the text
plural: τα κείμενα – the texts

In the sentence, κείμενα is neuter plural nominative/accusative and here it’s the object of καταλαβαίνω:

καταλαβαίνω κείμενα – I understand texts.

No article is used because it’s indefinite/general: texts in general.

Why is there no article before κείμενα? Why not τα κείμενα;

Greek often omits the article with plural nouns when talking about things in general:

Καταλαβαίνω κείμενα. – I understand texts (in general).
Διαβάζω βιβλία. – I read books.
Τρώω μήλα. – I eat apples.

If you say τα κείμενα, it becomes specific:

Καταλαβαίνω τα κείμενα που μου έδωσες.
I understand the texts that you gave me.

In the original sentence, the idea is any texts that used to be too difficult, so no article sounds right.

What does που do here in κείμενα που πριν ήταν πολύ δύσκολα?

που is a very common relative pronoun/conjunction in modern Greek. Here it means that / which and introduces a clause describing κείμενα:

κείμενα που πριν ήταν πολύ δύσκολα
= texts that used to be very difficult

Unlike English, Greek doesn’t change που (who/which/that); που is the same in all these cases:

ο άνθρωπος που είδα – the man who I saw
το κείμενο που διάβασα – the text that I read
τα κείμενα που πριν ήταν δύσκολα – the texts that were difficult before

Why is πριν placed before ήταν? Can we say κείμενα που ήταν πριν πολύ δύσκολα;

πριν means before and here it functions as an adverb (“earlier, previously”).

You can say:

κείμενα που πριν ήταν πολύ δύσκολα
κείμενα που ήταν πριν πολύ δύσκολα

Both are grammatically correct and understandable.

Differences:

που πριν ήταν πολύ δύσκολα sounds very natural and smooth, especially in speech.
που ήταν πριν πολύ δύσκολα is also fine, but placing πριν immediately after που often feels a bit more idiomatic in this type of clause.

You might also hear:

κείμενα που παλιά ήταν πολύ δύσκολα – texts that used to be very difficult
(παλιά = formerly, in the past)

Why is the verb ήταν used (imperfect), not something like ήταν δύσκολα πριν with a different tense?

Ήταν is the imperfect of είμαι (to be) and describes:

a past state that lasted for some time or was regular.

κείμενα που πριν ήταν πολύ δύσκολα =
texts that were (used to be) very difficult before.

If you tried to use a different tense (like an aorist equivalent), it wouldn’t make sense, because “being difficult” here is a state, not a one-time event. The imperfect is the natural choice to express how they used to be in the past.

Why is δύσκολα in the neuter plural form?

Adjectives in Greek agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.

κείμενα is neuter plural (accusative here).
The adjective δύσκολος, δύσκολη, δύσκολο (difficult) must match that:
- masculine singular: δύσκολος
- feminine singular: δύσκολη
- neuter singular: δύσκολο
- neuter plural: δύσκολα

So we say:

δύσκολα κείμενα – difficult texts
κείμενα που ήταν πολύ δύσκολα – texts which were very difficult

That’s why it’s δύσκολα, not δύσκολο or δύσκολοι.

How does πολύ work here before δύσκολα?

πολύ is an adverb meaning very / much / a lot.

In πολύ δύσκολα, πολύ intensifies the adjective δύσκολα:

δύσκολα – difficult
πολύ δύσκολα – very difficult

As an adverb, πολύ itself doesn’t change form here (it stays πολύ, not πολλά), because it modifies an adjective, not a noun.

Compare:

πολύ δύσκολο κείμενο – very difficult text
πολύ δύσκολα κείμενα – very difficult texts

Is there a difference between περηφάνια and υπερηφάνεια?

They are related:

περηφάνια
- more common in everyday modern Greek
- simpler, more colloquial form
- means pride (emotion)
υπερηφάνεια
- more formal/learned (katharevousa-influenced)
- often used in more formal contexts, literature, official speeches
- also means pride

In this sentence, Νιώθω περηφάνια... is the most natural choice for everyday speech.
Νιώθω υπερηφάνεια would sound more formal or elevated.

How do you pronounce Νιώθω and why is it spelled with νι + γιώτα (νι-γιώτα) together?

Νιώθω is pronounced approximately:

/ˈɲo.θo/ – something like NYO-tho

Key points:

νι + γιώτα (νι + ιώτα) = νιό / νιώ produces a palatal sound, like the “ny” in Spanish “niño”.
So νιώ- sounds like nyo-.
θ = th as in think, not as in this.

Rough English approximation: NYO-tho.

Spelling νιώθω (not νιόθω) follows Greek orthographic rules for this verb.

Could the whole sentence be phrased differently but with the same meaning?

Yes. Some very natural variants are:

Νιώθω περήφανος/η όταν καταλαβαίνω κείμενα που παλιά ήταν πολύ δύσκολα.
I feel proud when I understand texts that used to be very difficult.
Νιώθω μεγάλη περηφάνια όταν καταλαβαίνω κείμενα που πριν ήταν πολύ δύσκολα.
(I) feel great pride when I understand texts that used to be very difficult.
Νιώθω περηφάνια όταν πλέον καταλαβαίνω κείμενα που πριν ήταν πολύ δύσκολα.
I feel pride when I now understand texts that used to be very difficult.

All keep the core meaning: a feeling of pride now, about understanding texts that were too hard before.