Breakdown of Μου αρέσει όταν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν με την ιστορία του βιβλίου.
Questions & Answers about Μου αρέσει όταν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν με την ιστορία του βιβλίου.
In Greek, liking is usually expressed with an impersonal structure:
- Μου αρέσει = literally “it pleases me”
- αρέσει = “pleases”
- μου = “to me”
So the thing that is liked is the grammatical subject, and the person who likes it is in the genitive case as an indirect object.
You do not normally say εγώ αρέσω to mean “I like (something)”.
Εγώ αρέσω would mean “I am pleasing (to someone) / people like me”, which is a different idea.
So:
- Μου αρέσει το βιβλίο. = I like the book. (lit. The book pleases me.)
- Αρέσω στον Γιάννη. = John likes me. (lit. I am pleasing to John.)
Μου is the 1st person singular genitive pronoun. It can mean:
- Possessive:
- το βιβλίο μου = my book
- Indirect object / “to me”:
- Μου αρέσει το βιβλίο. = The book pleases me.
In Μου αρέσει όταν…, μου is not possessive; it means “to me” / “for me”.
So the structure is “It pleases me when …”, i.e. “I like it when …”.
The normal, neutral order in modern spoken Greek is:
- Μου αρέσει …
- Contracted in speech and writing: Μ’ αρέσει …
You can sometimes hear αρέσει μου, but it is:
- less common,
- more emphatic or stylistic,
- more likely in poetry, song lyrics, or very expressive speech.
For everyday use, stick with:
- Μου αρέσει όταν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν… or the contracted:
- Μ’ αρέσει όταν…
The subject of ταιριάζουν is:
- ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο = “the title and the cover”
This is a compound subject (two things joined by και = “and”), so in Greek the verb must be plural:
- ο τίτλος ταιριάζει = the title matches
- το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζει = the cover matches
- ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν = the title and the cover match
Using the singular ταιριάζει here would be felt as a grammatical mistake in standard Greek.
The verb ταιριάζω (to match, to go well together) normally takes the preposition με:
- ταιριάζω με κάτι/κάποιον = I match / go well with something/someone
So:
- Ο τίτλος ταιριάζει με την ιστορία.
The title matches the story.
You cannot drop με:
- ✗ ταιριάζουν την ιστορία is wrong in this meaning.
Στην ιστορία (to/in the story) is possible in some contexts but changes the nuance:
- ταιριάζω με την ιστορία = I fit/match the story (I am consistent with it).
- ταιριάζω στην ιστορία = I am suitable for the story / I belong in the story (more like “I fit in the story”).
In your sentence, με την ιστορία is the natural, standard choice.
In this sentence:
- όταν = “when” (refers to time, a repeated situation)
Μου αρέσει όταν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν…
= I like it when the title and the cover match…
Comparisons:
- αν = “if” (condition)
- Μου αρέσει αν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν…
This would sound strange; it suggests a condition, not a habitual “whenever”.
- Μου αρέσει αν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν…
- που can mean “that / which / who” (relativizer or conjunction), but:
- Μου αρέσει που ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν…
= I’m glad that the title and the cover match… (different meaning: expressing satisfaction about a fact).
- Μου αρέσει που ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν…
So όταν is correct here for a general-time / habitual “when”.
Greek uses definite articles much more than English. In this sentence, they are natural because we are talking about specific things:
- ο τίτλος = the (specific) title
- το εξώφυλλο = the (specific) cover
- την ιστορία = the story
- του βιβλίου = of the book
If you drop the articles, it usually sounds unnatural or changes the meaning:
- Τίτλος και εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν με ιστορία βιβλίου.
This sounds wrong/very odd in Greek.
In general, with concrete, known items like the title of the book you’re talking about, you use definite articles.
In την ιστορία του βιβλίου:
- την ιστορία = accusative singular (direct object of ταιριάζουν με)
- του βιβλίου = genitive singular (shows possession: “of the book”)
So:
- την ιστορία του βιβλίου = the story of the book / the book’s story
If you wanted to reverse it, you could also say:
- η ιστορία του βιβλίου = the book’s story (as a subject)
- βιβλίο ιστορίας would instead mean “history book”, which is different.
Genders:
- ο τίτλος = masculine (nom. sg.)
- το εξώφυλλο = neuter (nom. sg.)
- η ιστορία → την ιστορία (feminine, acc. sg.)
- το βιβλίο → του βιβλίου (neuter, gen. sg.)
Effects on the sentence:
They determine the articles:
- ο τίτλος (masc.)
- το εξώφυλλο / βιβλίο (neut.)
- η / την ιστορία (fem.)
They determine the endings of the nouns:
- masc. nom. sg. -ος → ο τίτλος
- neut. nom./acc. sg. -ο → το εξώφυλλο, το βιβλίο
- fem. acc. sg. -α → την ιστορία
- neut. gen. sg. -ου → του βιβλίου
The verb ταιριάζουν is plural not because of gender, but because the subject has two nouns joined by και.
Yes, that word order is also grammatically correct:
- Μου αρέσει όταν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν με την ιστορία… (original)
- Μου αρέσει όταν ταιριάζουν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο με την ιστορία… (alternative)
Greek word order is relatively flexible, especially with subjects and verbs. The second version slightly emphasizes the action (ταιριάζουν) first, but the meaning remains the same. The original order is slightly more neutral and common.
The difference is tense and time reference:
Μου αρέσει όταν… = present, general/habitual
- “I like it when…” (in general, as a habit)
Μου άρεσε όταν… = past (simple past / aorist)
- “I liked it when…” (on one or more specific past occasions)
So:
Μου αρέσει όταν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν με την ιστορία του βιβλίου.
I (generally) like it when this happens.Μου άρεσε όταν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταίριαζαν με την ιστορία του βιβλίου.
I liked it (back then) when the title and cover matched the story.
You can say ταιριάζουν στην ιστορία, and it is grammatically correct, but the nuance shifts slightly:
ταιριάζουν με την ιστορία
= they match / are consistent with the story (emphasis on correspondence).ταιριάζουν στην ιστορία
= they fit in the story / suit the story (emphasis on suitability or belonging).
In this particular sentence, με την ιστορία is more standard and idiomatic for “match the story” in the sense of correspondence between title/cover and content.
Approximate pronunciations (in simple English-like notation):
ταιριάζουν → [te-RYÁ-zoun]
- ται = “te” (like ten but shorter)
- ρι = “ree” but short
- ά stressed “a” as in father
- ζουν = “zoon” (like zoo
- n)
εξώφυλλο → [e-XÓ-fi-lo]
- ε = “e” as in pet
- ξ = “ks” (like box)
- ώ stressed “o” (like more, not like not)
- φυ = “fi”
- λλο = “lo” (with a double, “longer” l sound)
Stress marks (ώ, ά) show where the main stress goes in each word.
Yes, that is also possible, and it’s quite natural:
- Μου αρέσει ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο να ταιριάζουν με την ιστορία του βιβλίου.
Here:
- να ταιριάζουν is a subjunctive construction, expressing a preference/wish about how the title and cover should be.
Nuance difference:
Μου αρέσει όταν ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο ταιριάζουν…
= I like it when (whenever) this happens (focus on the situation in time).Μου αρέσει ο τίτλος και το εξώφυλλο να ταιριάζουν…
= I like the title and cover to match the story (focus on my preference about their state).
Both are correct; the original sentence slightly emphasizes the situation “whenever X happens,” while the να-version emphasizes the desired relationship between title/cover and story.