Breakdown of Θα ήταν καλύτερα να τρώω πιο ελαφρύ βραδινό όταν η μέρα μου είναι πολύ κουραστική.
Questions & Answers about Θα ήταν καλύτερα να τρώω πιο ελαφρύ βραδινό όταν η μέρα μου είναι πολύ κουραστική.
Θα ήταν καλύτερα corresponds to English it would be better: it’s hypothetical, giving advice or a suggestion.
- Θα είναι καλύτερα = it will be better (a future prediction, more definite).
- Θα ήταν καλύτερα = it would be better (a recommendation, more tentative/soft).
So here we’re not predicting the future; we’re saying what would be a better choice in general, so Greek uses θα + ήταν (imperfect of είμαι) for that conditional feeling.
Καλά (well) → καλύτερα (better) is the adverb. Καλός (good) → καλύτερος / -η / -ο (better) is the adjective.
In Θα ήταν καλύτερα, καλύτερα describes the manner or state in a general way, like English “it would be better” (adverbial use), not “it would be a better thing”.
You could say Θα ήταν καλύτερο να…, which is also correct and common, and is closer to “It would be a better (idea/thing) to…”. In everyday speech Θα ήταν καλύτερα να… is very natural and slightly more colloquial.
In Greek, after expressions like:
- είναι καλό να…
- είναι καλύτερα να…
- είναι δύσκολο να…
we normally use να + verb. This να marks a kind of subjunctive / non‑finite verb form, similar to English to eat or that I eat in this kind of structure:
- Θα ήταν καλύτερα να τρώω…
It would be better (for me) to eat… / that I eat…
So να is required here by the phrase (θα) ήταν καλύτερα to introduce what would be better to do.
Greek distinguishes imperfective and perfective aspect:
- να τρώω – imperfective: ongoing / repeated / habitual action
→ to be eating / to eat (regularly) - να φάω – perfective: single, complete event
→ to eat (once, to finish a meal)
In this sentence, the idea is about a general habit when the day is tiring, not one single dinner:
- Θα ήταν καλύτερα να τρώω πιο ελαφρύ βραδινό…
= It would be better if I ate a lighter dinner (as a habit in those cases).
If you said να φάω, it would sound more like a specific occasion: It would be better if I ate a light dinner (this time).
Yes, Θα ήταν καλύτερα αν έτρωγα πιο ελαφρύ βραδινό is also correct.
Differences in nuance:
- Θα ήταν καλύτερα να τρώω…
→ more neutral; can sound like a general recommendation / habit. - Θα ήταν καλύτερα αν έτρωγα…
→ slightly more clearly hypothetical / unreal, often used when you’re imagining a different behavior than your current one.
Both are perfectly acceptable; in everyday speech they often overlap in meaning.
Adjectives in Greek must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.
- το βραδινό (dinner) is neuter singular.
- So ελαφρύ (light) must also be neuter singular: πιο ελαφρύ βραδινό.
Ελαφριά is the feminine form, which would agree with a feminine noun (e.g. ελαφριά σαλάτα = light salad), not with βραδινό.
Βραδινός / -ή / -ό is an adjective meaning evening.
Greek often uses adjectives as nouns. So:
- το βραδινό literally = the evening (thing) → in everyday speech: the evening meal / dinner.
Δείπνο is a more formal or neutral word for dinner, especially in writing or more careful speech. In many families and casual contexts, το βραδινό is more common and colloquial. Both are correct:
- πιο ελαφρύ βραδινό – a lighter dinner (colloquial)
- πιο ελαφρύ δείπνο – a lighter dinner (slightly more formal/neutral)
- όταν = when (time)
- αν = if (condition)
Here we’re talking about what happens when my day is very tiring (a time situation), not about a logical condition:
- όταν η μέρα μου είναι πολύ κουραστική
= when my day is very tiring
If you used αν, it would sound like “if my day is very tiring”, which is possible but shifts the focus from a time‑situation to a more conditional logic. Όταν is the more natural choice for describing this recurring situation.
In Greek, for things that are generally true or habitual, we usually use the present tense, even if in English we might say “when my day is very tiring” (also present, so it aligns nicely here).
Present είναι indicates:
- a typical, repeated situation: whenever your day is very tiring, in general;
- not a specific past or future time.
If you were speaking about a specific past day, you might say:
- Όταν η μέρα μου ήταν πολύ κουραστική, δεν έτρωγα πολύ.
When my day was very tiring, I didn’t eat much.
The normal, neutral pattern with a possessive clitic like μου is:
- article + noun + clitic
→ η μέρα μου (my day)
Some points:
- Η μέρα μου is the standard order.
- Μέρα μου (without the article) is possible, but feels more poetic, emotional, or stylistic, not neutral.
- μου η μέρα sounds unusual in modern Greek; clitics (μου, σου, του…) typically follow the noun, not precede it, in this kind of phrase.
So η μέρα μου is the natural everyday choice.
Πολύ and πολλή are different:
- πολύ (with ύ) – adverb meaning very / a lot, used before adjectives:
- πολύ κουραστική μέρα = a very tiring day
- πολλή (with ή) – adjective meaning much / a lot of, used before nouns:
- πολλή δουλειά = a lot of work
Here, πολύ is modifying the adjective κουραστική, so it must be the adverb form πολύ, not πολλή.
Both come from κουράζω / κουράζομαι (to tire / to get tired), but they mean different things:
- κουραστική = tiring (causing fatigue)
→ κουραστική μέρα = a tiring day (the day makes you tired) - κουρασμένη = tired (feeling tired)
→ usually describes people, not days: κουρασμένος άνθρωπος = tired person
A day cannot itself feel tired; it causes tiredness. So η μέρα μου είναι πολύ κουραστική = my day is very tiring is the natural choice.
Yes, that word order is perfectly correct and very natural:
- Όταν η μέρα μου είναι πολύ κουραστική, θα ήταν καλύτερα να τρώω πιο ελαφρύ βραδινό.
Greek allows a lot of flexibility in word order. Placing the όταν‑clause at the beginning simply emphasizes the situation first (when my day is very tiring), then gives the suggestion.
Both orders are fine:
- Θα ήταν καλύτερα να τρώω… όταν η μέρα μου είναι πολύ κουραστική.
- Όταν η μέρα μου είναι πολύ κουραστική, θα ήταν καλύτερα να τρώω…