Τη στιγμή που βγαίνω από το σπίτι, αρχίζει να βρέχει.

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Breakdown of Τη στιγμή που βγαίνω από το σπίτι, αρχίζει να βρέχει.

• να: to
• από: from
• αρχίζω: to start

Questions & Answers about Τη στιγμή που βγαίνω από το σπίτι, αρχίζει να βρέχει.

In Τη στιγμή που βγαίνω από το σπίτι, what does the phrase Τη στιγμή που literally mean, and in what kinds of situations is it used?

Τη στιγμή που literally means “(at) the moment when” or “the exact moment that”.

• Τη στιγμή = “the moment” (accusative case, feminine singular).
• που = a linking word here, similar to “when” or “that”.

You use τη στιγμή που when you want to stress that two things happen at exactly the same time, often with a bit of drama or annoyance:

• Τη στιγμή που πάω να κοιμηθώ, χτυπάει το τηλέφωνο.
  “The moment I’m about to sleep, the phone rings.”

It is stronger and more specific than a simple όταν (“when”), especially in emotional or emphatic contexts.

Why is it written Τη στιγμή and not Την στιγμή? I thought the feminine accusative article is την.

The basic feminine accusative article is indeed την. However, in modern Greek the final -ν is often dropped in writing before many consonants.

The usual rule in contemporary spelling is:

• Keep -ν before vowels and the consonants κ, π, τ, ξ, ψ, γκ, μπ, ντ, τσ, τζ.
  (e.g. την ώρα, την πόρτα, την ξαδέρφη)
• Before other consonants (like σ in στιγμή), the -ν is optional. Many people drop it:
  • τη στιγμή ✔️
  • την στιγμή ✔️ (more formal / careful spelling)

So both τη στιγμή and την στιγμή are grammatically correct; the version without ν is just very common in modern usage.