Προσπαθώ να έχω ρεαλιστικούς στόχους για τα ελληνικά μου.

I try to have realistic goals for my Greek.

Breakdown of Προσπαθώ να έχω ρεαλιστικούς στόχους για τα ελληνικά μου.

• έχω: to have
• να: to
• μου: my
• για: for

Questions & Answers about Προσπαθώ να έχω ρεαλιστικούς στόχους για τα ελληνικά μου.

What is the role of να in this sentence?

Να introduces a verb in the subjunctive and is very often used after verbs of desire, effort, intention, etc., like προσπαθώ (I try).

• Προσπαθώ να έχω… literally: I try that I have…
• In natural English: I try to have…

So here να works a bit like English “to” before a verb, but grammatically it marks the subjunctive mood in Greek.

Is έχω here subjunctive or just the normal present tense? How can I tell?

Grammatically, έχω here is present subjunctive because it comes after να:

• έχω (I have) – it is both the present indicative form and the present subjunctive form.
• In many verbs, the present indicative and present subjunctive look identical; the difference is shown by what comes before them:
  • Έχω στόχους. → present indicative, “I have goals.”
  • Να έχω στόχους. → present subjunctive, “(for me) to have goals.”

So you recognize it as subjunctive because of the particle να, not because of a different verb form.

Why do we say προσπαθώ να έχω στόχους and not something like προσπαθώ να κάνω στόχους (literally “make goals”)?