Learn Hardcore Greek: Δεν θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία.

Δεν – not (negation particle)
θέλω – I want
να – (particle introducing a subordinate verb; often corresponds to English “to” or “that”)
χάσω – I lose / I miss (here: aorist subjunctive of χάνω)
αυτή – this (feminine, singular)
την – the (feminine, singular, accusative)
ευκαιρία – opportunity, chance

So the structure is literally: “Not I-want to lose this the opportunity.”
In natural English: “I don’t want to miss this opportunity.”

Why do we use δεν and not μη(ν) for “not” here?

Greek has two main negative particles:

δεν – used with finite, indicative verbs (normal statements of fact):
- Δεν θέλω. – I don’t want.
- Δεν πάω. – I’m not going.
μη(ν) – used mainly:
- with subjunctive when you’re giving negative commands or prohibitions:
  - Μην πας! – Don’t go!
- after some verbs, in certain patterns, etc.

In Δεν θέλω να χάσω, the verb being negated is θέλω in the present indicative (“I want”), so we use δεν:

Δεν θέλω (I don’t want) + να χάσω (to miss).

If you said Θέλω να μη(ν) χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία, you’d be literally saying:
“I want not to miss this opportunity”, which is grammatically correct but stylistically less common and a bit more emphatic / formal.

What is να doing in να χάσω? Is it like “to” in English?

Να is a particle that introduces a verb in the subjunctive mood.
In English, we often translate [verb] + να + [verb] as “[verb] to [verb]”, so it looks like “to”, but grammatically it’s closer to “that”:

Θέλω να πάω. – I want to go / I want that I go.
Πρέπει να διαβάσω. – I must study.

In Δεν θέλω να χάσω, the structure is:

(δεν) θέλω – I (don’t) want
να χάσω – to miss

So yes, in translation να often corresponds to English “to”, but in Greek it also signals the subjunctive verb form that follows.

What form of the verb is χάσω, and why not χάνω here?

χάνω is the present tense: “I lose / I am losing.”
χάσω is the aorist subjunctive 1st person singular of χάνω.

In Greek, with να, you choose between:

να χάνω – present subjunctive (continuous / repeated action)
να χάσω – aorist subjunctive (single, whole event)

Here we mean one specific opportunity, a single event we don’t want to miss, so we use the aorist subjunctive:

Δεν θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία.
= I don’t want to (ever) miss this one opportunity.

If you said:

Δεν θέλω να χάνω ευκαιρίες.
= I don’t want to be (habitually) missing opportunities.

So να χάσω is chosen because we’re talking about one particular occasion, not a repeated pattern.

Can I say να χάνω instead of να χάσω in this exact sentence?

Not naturally, no.

Δεν θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία.
→ I don’t want to miss this (one) opportunity.
Δεν θέλω να χάνω αυτή την ευκαιρία.
Sounds odd in Greek, because “this opportunity” is a single, specific thing, but να χάνω implies something ongoing / repetitive.

You could say:

Δεν θέλω να χάνω ευκαιρίες. – I don’t want to keep missing opportunities (in general).

So:

Specific one-time event → να χάσω.
Repeated / habitual action → να χάνω.

Why is it αυτή την ευκαιρία and not just αυτή ευκαιρία?

In Greek, when you use a demonstrative (this/that) before a noun, you normally also use the definite article:

αυτή η ευκαιρία – this opportunity (nominative)
αυτή την ευκαιρία – this opportunity (accusative)

Structure in Greek:
[demonstrative] + [article] + [noun]

So:

αυτή η ευκαιρία (subject) – This opportunity is important.
αυτή την ευκαιρία (object) – I don’t want to miss this opportunity.

Saying αυτή ευκαιρία without the article sounds ungrammatical or very foreign in standard Modern Greek.

Why is the article την and not η?

Because of case. The noun phrase «αυτή την ευκαιρία» is the direct object of the verb “to miss”, so it’s in the accusative case:

Nominative (subject): η ευκαιρία – the opportunity
- Η ευκαιρία είναι μοναδική. – The opportunity is unique.
Accusative (object): την ευκαιρία – the opportunity
- Χάνω την ευκαιρία. – I (am) miss(ing) the opportunity.

With the demonstrative:

Nominative: αυτή η ευκαιρία – this opportunity (as subject)
Accusative: αυτή την ευκαιρία – this opportunity (as object)

So we say την (accusative feminine) because it’s the object of χάσω.

Should it be αυτήν την ευκαιρία with an -ν at the end of αυτή?

Both αυτή την ευκαιρία and αυτήν την ευκαιρία are seen.

Modern spelling rules say that the final -ν of words like αυτή(ν), την, δεν, μην is:

obligatory before:
- vowels
- and the consonants: κ, π, τ, ξ, ψ, γκ, μπ, ντ, τσ, τζ
optional in other cases.

Since ευκαιρία starts with ε (a vowel), if you keep the full older rule strictly, you’d write:

αυτήν την ευκαιρία

In everyday, less formal writing, people often drop some of these final -ν’s, so αυτή την ευκαιρία is also very common. No one will misunderstand you. For learners, it’s safe (and a bit more “correct”/formal) to keep the -ν here: αυτήν την ευκαιρία.

How is ευκαιρία pronounced, and why does ευ sound like “ef” here?

Ευκαιρία is pronounced approximately:

[ef-ke-RI-a] (stress on -ρία: ευκαιρία)

Rules:

ευ is pronounced:
- [ev] before voiced consonants and vowels
- [ef] before unvoiced consonants like κ, π, τ, ξ, ψ

Since ευ is followed by κ (unvoiced), we get [ef]:

ευκαιρία → ef-ke-RI-a

So, syllable by syllable: ευ-και-ρί-α → ef-kai-RI-a (Greek αι here is just [e], so the practical pronunciation is closer to ef-ke-RI-a).

Could I also say την ευκαιρία αυτή instead of αυτή την ευκαιρία?

Yes, both are possible, with a small difference in feel:

αυτή την ευκαιρία – the most common and neutral order.
την ευκαιρία αυτή – also correct; can sound a bit more formal or emphatic, like “this opportunity in particular”.

Meaning-wise they’re the same in this sentence, and both are acceptable. For everyday speech, αυτή την ευκαιρία is the default.

Can I add a pronoun and say Δεν θέλω να την χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία?

Yes, grammatically you can, and Greeks do use this kind of “doubling” of the object, especially for emphasis or in more spoken style.

Δεν θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία. – Neutral.
Δεν θέλω να την χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία. – More emphatic: “I really don’t want to miss it, this opportunity.”

Notes:

In rapid speech, this would sound like να τη χάσω (clitic pronoun).
You usually don’t need both the pronoun and the full noun; use the doubled form when you want a bit of extra emphasis or a more “spoken” feel.

For learners, stick to the simpler:
Δεν θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία.

What’s the difference between Δεν θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία and Θέλω να μην χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία?

Both are grammatically correct and both can translate as “I don’t want to miss this opportunity.”, but the structure and nuance differ:

Δεν θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία.
- Literally: I don’t want to miss this opportunity.
- The negation is on “want” (δεν θέλω).
- This is the most natural, most common way to say it.
Θέλω να μην χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία.
- Literally: I want not to miss this opportunity.
- The negation is now on “miss” (να μην χάσω).
- Feels more careful/explicit, sometimes more formal or more “logical-sounding,” as if you’re stressing the desired outcome (not missing it).

In everyday use, go with Δεν θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία.

What tense is θέλω here, and could I change it to talk about the past or future?

Θέλω is present tense, 1st person singular indicative: “I want.”

You can change θέλω to other tenses just like in English:

Δεν ήθελα να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία.
→ I didn’t want to miss this opportunity.
Δε θα ήθελα να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία.
→ I wouldn’t like to miss this opportunity. (more polite / hypothetical)
Δε θα θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία. (rare / odd in most contexts)
Usually you’d just say:
Δε θέλω να χάσω αυτή την ευκαιρία στο μέλλον.
→ I don’t want to miss this opportunity in the future.

The inner verb να χάσω usually stays in the aorist subjunctive when you mean “miss it (once)”. Only θέλω changes to mark time.