Questions & Answers about Δεν μου αρέσουν οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις στην αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή.
In Greek, the verb αρέσω works the opposite way from English to like.
- Literally, αρέσω means to be pleasing (to someone).
- So the thing liked is the subject, and the person who likes is in the indirect object (genitive) with a pronoun like μου (to me), σου (to you), etc.
In this sentence:
- οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις = the subject (the big commercials)
- αρέσουν = 3rd person plural form of αρέσω
- μου = to me
So Δεν μου αρέσουν οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις literally means The big commercials are not pleasing to me, which corresponds to I don’t like the big commercials.
A form like Δεν αρέσω τις μεγάλες διαφημίσεις is ungrammatical in Greek. αρέσω is not used with a direct object like English like.
The subject is οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις.
We can see this because:
- The verb is αρέσουν (3rd person plural).
- The noun phrase οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις is also plural.
- The pronoun μου (to me) is not the subject; it is an indirect object.
So the structure is:
- Δεν = not
- μου = to me
- αρέσουν = are pleasing
- οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις = the big commercials (subject)
The verb must agree in number with its subject.
- Subject: οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις = plural (the big commercials)
- Therefore, verb: αρέσουν (3rd person plural of αρέσω)
If the subject were singular, we would use αρέσει:
- Δεν μου αρέσει η μεγάλη διαφήμιση.
I don’t like the big commercial (singular).
μου here is not a subject; it is a weak (clitic) genitive pronoun that functions as an indirect object, meaning to me.
- μου = to me (here: I am the experiencer of liking/disliking)
- It corresponds to me in The commercials are not pleasing to me.
Greek uses the genitive case pronouns this way with αρέσω:
- μου αρέσει = I like it (it is pleasing to me)
- σου αρέσει = you like it (it is pleasing to you)
- του αρέσει = he likes it (it is pleasing to him)
- της αρέσει = she likes it (it is pleasing to her)
- μας αρέσει = we like it
- σας αρέσει = you (plural/formal) like it
- τους αρέσει = they like it
Greek has two common negative particles: δεν and μη(ν), and they are used in different contexts.
δεν is used with indicative verb forms (normal statements and questions about facts):
- Δεν μου αρέσουν οι διαφημίσεις.
I don’t like the commercials.
- Δεν μου αρέσουν οι διαφημίσεις.
μη(ν) is mainly used:
- with imperatives: Μην μιλάς! (Don’t talk!)
- with certain subjunctive forms: να μην πάω (that I not go).
Since αρέσουν here is just a normal (indicative) verb form, the correct negative is δεν:
Δεν μου αρέσουν...
στην is a contraction of σε + την:
- σε = in / at / on / to (general preposition)
- την = the (feminine singular accusative article)
- σε την → στην
Greek almost always contracts σε + article:
- σε τον → στον
- σε την → στην
- σε το → στο
- σε τις → στις, etc.
So στην αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή literally is in the favourite show of mine → in my favourite show.
Both orders are grammatically correct:
- στην αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή
- στην αγαπημένη εκπομπή μου
The usual pattern in modern Greek is:
- article + adjective + noun + possessive pronoun
Example:
- η αγαπημένη εκπομπή μου = my favourite show
But when the adjective and noun are in a prepositional phrase like στην ... εκπομπή, it is very common to put the possessive pronoun immediately after the adjective:
- στην αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή
(literally in the favorite of-mine show)
Nuance:
- στην αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή sounds very natural and slightly more flowing in this specific phrase.
- στην αγαπημένη εκπομπή μου is also fine, and in most contexts there is no real difference in meaning.
Yes. This is gender, number, and case agreement.
- εκπομπή (show/program) is a feminine noun.
- In στην αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή, the noun is:
- feminine
- singular
- accusative (after σε → στην)
The adjective αγαπημένη agrees with εκπομπή:
- αγαπημένη: fem. singular accusative
- εκπομπή: fem. singular accusative
So we get:
- η αγαπημένη εκπομπή (nominative)
- την αγαπημένη εκπομπή (accusative → after στην)
μεγάλες is the feminine plural form of μεγάλος (big / large / long).
- διαφημίσεις (commercials/ads) is feminine plural.
- So the adjective agrees: μεγάλες διαφημίσεις.
Meaning nuance:
- Literally: big advertisements.
- In the context of TV/radio, μεγάλες διαφημίσεις often implies:
- long commercials (long in duration)
- or sometimes big in the sense of flashy/large-scale campaigns.
Many speakers might also say:
- πολλές διαφημίσεις = many commercials
- μεγάλα διαφημιστικά διαλείμματα = long commercial breaks
But μεγάλες διαφημίσεις in this sentence is natural and will usually be understood as long / big commercials.
No, that is incorrect, because the verb does not agree with the subject.
- οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις = plural subject
- so the verb must be αρέσουν (plural), not αρέσει (singular).
Correct options:
- Δεν μου αρέσουν οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις. ✅
- Δεν μου αρέσει η μεγάλη διαφήμιση. ✅
(I don’t like the big commercial – singular)
Weak possessive pronouns like μου, σου, του, της, μας, σας, τους usually come:
- after the noun: η εκπομπή μου (my show)
- or after the adjective in the pattern adjective + pronoun + noun when the noun phrase is already determined by an article or preposition:
Here:
- στην αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή
- στην already contains the article την
- αγαπημένη = adjective
- μου = possessive pronoun
- εκπομπή = noun
So the position αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή is a very natural ordering of adjective + possessive + noun under a preposition + article.
Yes, that is grammatically correct.
Greek word order is relatively flexible. Both give the same meaning:
- Δεν μου αρέσουν οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις στην αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή.
- Οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις στην αγαπημένη μου εκπομπή δεν μου αρέσουν.
The difference is mostly about emphasis:
- Starting with Δεν μου αρέσουν emphasizes my dislike.
- Starting with Οι μεγάλες διαφημίσεις... emphasizes the commercials themselves as the topic, and then you state that you don’t like them.