Learn Hardcore Greek: Ανάβω το μικρό φως στο γραφείο όταν έξω έχει ήδη νυχτώσει. - I turn on the small light on the desk when it is already dark outside.

“I switch on the small light at my desk when it has already grown dark outside.”
“I turn on the little light in the office once it’s already dark outside.”

Why is Ανάβω in the present tense? In English I’d expect “I turn on” or “I will turn on” depending on context.

In Greek, the present tense (here Ανάβω) is used both for:

Actions happening now:
- Τώρα ανάβω το φως. – I’m turning on the light now.
Habitual / repeated actions (like the English present simple):
- Ανάβω το μικρό φως… – I turn on the small light (whenever this situation occurs).

In this sentence, it describes a habit / routine, so the Greek present matches the English present simple:
“I turn on the small light…” (whenever it’s already dark outside).

What is the exact meaning of Ανάβω here? Is it the same as ανοίγω (“to open / turn on”)?

Ανάβω literally means “I light / I ignite / I switch on (a light, fire, device that lights up)”.

Ανάβω το φως. – I turn on the light.
Ανάβω το τσιγάρο. – I light the cigarette.

ανοίγω means “I open / I switch on” in a broader sense:

Ανοίγω την πόρτα. – I open the door.
Ανοίγω την τηλεόραση. – I turn on the TV.

With φως, both are heard, but ανάβω το φως is the most natural and specific for lights.

Why do we say το μικρό φως with the article το? Could it be just μικρό φως?

In Greek, definite articles (ο, η, το) are used much more than in English. Here:

το μικρό φως = the small light / that particular small light you and the listener already know about (e.g. a specific desk lamp).

μικρό φως without the article would sound incomplete or very unusual in this context; it might appear in special expressions or poetic style, but not in a normal sentence like this.

So το is required here and makes the noun phrase feel natural and specific.

What kind of “office” is στο γραφείο? Does it mean “in the office (room)” or “on the desk”?

γραφείο has two common meanings:

The office / study (room or workplace)
- στο γραφείο = in the office / at the office.
The desk (piece of furniture)
- πάνω στο γραφείο = on the desk.

In this sentence, with no πάνω, στο γραφείο most naturally means “in the office / study”.
If you wanted clearly “on the desk”, you’d say πάνω στο γραφείο or στο γραφείο μου with context.

Why is μικρό placed before φως? Could we say φως μικρό?

Standard adjective order in Greek is:

article + adjective + noun
το μικρό φως

Putting the adjective after the noun (το φως μικρό) is possible but:

sounds emphatic / stylistic / poetic, not neutral;
usually implies a contrast: Το φως, μικρό και αδύναμο, δεν φτάνει. – The light, small and weak, is not enough.

So in normal speech you say το μικρό φως, not το φως μικρό.

What tense is έχει ήδη νυχτώσει? How is it different from νυχτώνει or είναι νύχτα?

έχει ήδη νυχτώσει is the perfect tense in Modern Greek:

έχει = 3rd person of έχω (to have)
νυχτώσει = perfect form (from νυχτώνω, “to get dark”)

Literally: “it has already gotten dark” / “it has already grown dark.”

Comparison:

νυχτώνει = “it is getting dark” (process, in progress).
νύχτωσε = “it got dark / it became night” (completed event, past).
είναι νύχτα = “it is night” (state, now).
έχει νυχτώσει = “it has become dark (and it is already dark now)” (result still holds).

So έχει ήδη νυχτώσει emphasizes that the transition to darkness is finished and now it’s dark.

Is ήδη necessary? What nuance does έχει ήδη νυχτώσει have compared to just έχει νυχτώσει?

ήδη means “already”.

έχει νυχτώσει – it has grown dark.
έχει ήδη νυχτώσει – it has already grown dark.

Adding ήδη:

adds a slight feeling of “earlier than expected / before this moment we’re talking about”;
can suggest contrast with what happened before or what someone might think (e.g. “By that time, it’s already dark outside”).

Grammatically you can omit ήδη, but you lose that “already” nuance.

Why is there no word for “it” in “when it has already grown dark outside”? Where is the subject of έχει ήδη νυχτώσει?

Greek is a pro‑drop language: subject pronouns are often omitted when the subject is clear from context or the verb form.

In έχει ήδη νυχτώσει, the understood subject is “it” in the impersonal sense:

English: “it has already grown dark”
Greek: Έχει ήδη νυχτώσει. (no explicit subject)

Greek often uses impersonal verbs for weather, time of day, etc., without an expressed “it”:

Βρέχει. – It’s raining.
Χιονίζει. – It’s snowing.
Νυχτώνει. – It’s getting dark.

What is the role of έξω here? Could we change its position in the sentence?

έξω means “outside” and indicates where it has grown dark.

The given order:

όταν έξω έχει ήδη νυχτώσει
literally: “when, outside, it has already grown dark.”

You can move έξω without changing the meaning:

όταν έχει ήδη νυχτώσει έξω
όταν έχει νυχτώσει ήδη έξω

All are understandable. The original version is very natural and slightly emphasizes “outside” early in the clause, but the difference is stylistic, not grammatical.

How is νυχτώσει related to νύχτα? What does the verb νυχτώνω mean?

νύχτα = night
νυχτώνω = to get dark / for night to fall

From νυχτώνω we get:

νυχτώνει – it is getting dark.
νύχτωσε – it got dark.
έχει νυχτώσει – it has gotten dark.

So νυχτώσει is the perfect stem form of the verb νυχτώνω, and the whole phrase έχει ήδη νυχτώσει means “it has already become night / it has already gotten dark.”

Why is there no μου (“my”) as in “in my office / at my desk”? Does στο γραφείο imply possession?

στο γραφείο by itself just means “in the office / at the office” or “at the desk” without explicitly saying whose.

In Greek, possession is not always stated when it’s obvious from context:

If you’re talking about your routine at home, στο γραφείο will naturally be understood as “in my office / at my desk.”
If there could be ambiguity, you can say στο γραφείο μου – in my office / at my desk.

So adding μου is perfectly correct, just more explicit:
Ανάβω το μικρό φως στο γραφείο μου όταν έξω έχει ήδη νυχτώσει.

Could we replace έχει ήδη νυχτώσει with something simpler, like είναι σκοτάδι or είναι νύχτα?

Yes, you could use simpler expressions, with slight changes in nuance:

…όταν έξω είναι σκοτάδι. – when it is dark outside.
…όταν έξω είναι νύχτα. – when it is night outside.

These describe the state (it’s dark / it’s night), while έχει ήδη νυχτώσει focuses on the fact that darkness has already fallen (the change from light to dark has taken place).

All versions are grammatically fine; the original is a bit more vivid about the transition to night.

Is this sentence talking about one specific time, or a general habit?

By default, with present tense and no time adverb like σήμερα or χθες, this sentence describes a general habit:

“I (usually) turn on the small light in the office when it’s already dark outside.”

To talk about one specific time in the past, you would normally change the verb to the past tense:

Άναψα το μικρό φως στο γραφείο όταν έξω είχε ήδη νυχτώσει.
– I turned on the small light in the office when it had already grown dark outside.