Breakdown of Όταν είμαι κουρασμένος, δεν μαγειρεύω· κάνω παραγγελία για πίτσα.
Questions & Answers about Όταν είμαι κουρασμένος, δεν μαγειρεύω· κάνω παραγγελία για πίτσα.
In this sentence, όταν means “whenever / when (every time that)” and introduces a time clause:
- Όταν είμαι κουρασμένος, δεν μαγειρεύω.
When(ever) I’m tired, I don’t cook.
όταν is used for real, factual time relationships, especially with the present tense in general statements or habits.
αν means “if” and introduces a condition, not just time:
- Αν είμαι κουρασμένος, δεν μαγειρεύω.
If I’m tired, I don’t cook.
In many contexts that can overlap in meaning, but όταν focuses on time/habit, while αν focuses on condition (“on the condition that I’m tired”).
Both are grammatically correct, but they have slightly different emphasis.
- Όταν είμαι κουρασμένος… – neutral, most natural order.
- Όταν κουρασμένος είμαι… – unusual and marked; would only appear in very poetic or strongly emphatic speech/writing.
In everyday Greek, the normal pattern with είμαι is:
subject – είμαι – complement
(εγώ) είμαι κουρασμένος – I am tired.
You can move things around in Greek more freely than in English, but here the “normal” order is preferred.
κουρασμένος is an adjective meaning tired, masculine singular, nominative case.
The adjective must agree with the subject in gender, number and case:
- masculine speaker: είμαι κουρασμένος
- feminine speaker: είμαι κουρασμένη
- neuter subject: είναι κουρασμένο (e.g. το παιδί είναι κουρασμένο – the child is tired)
So the sentence as written implies the speaker is male (or we’re talking about a masculine noun like ο πατέρας).
If a woman were speaking, she would say:
- Όταν είμαι κουρασμένη, δεν μαγειρεύω…
Greek verbs encode the subject in their ending, so the subject pronoun is usually omitted:
- είμαι = I am
- μαγειρεύω = I cook
- κάνω = I do/make
You only add εγώ for emphasis or contrast:
- Όταν εγώ είμαι κουρασμένος, δεν μαγειρεύω.
When I am tired (as for me), I don’t cook.
In neutral sentences, you drop εγώ.
In Greek, the standard rule is:
δεν + verb (in the indicative mood)
So:
- δεν μαγειρεύω – I do not cook
- δεν είμαι – I am not
- δεν κάνω – I do not do / I don’t make
You almost always put δεν directly before the verb it negates.
(Contrast with μη(ν), which is used with infinitive-like forms, the subjunctive, imperatives, etc., but that’s another topic.)
μαγειρεύω means “I cook” and can be:
- transitive: I cook something
- Μαγειρεύω μακαρόνια. – I cook pasta.
- intransitive / general: I do the cooking / I cook (as an activity)
- Δεν μαγειρεύω. – I don’t cook.
In this sentence, it’s used in the general sense: I don’t cook (at all, I don’t bother cooking food). You don’t need to add φαγητό; it’s understood.
That mark · is the άνω τελεία (ano teleia) in Greek. It functions roughly like:
- a semicolon (;) or
- a colon (:)
in English; it shows a stronger break than a comma but weaker than a full stop.
So:
- …δεν μαγειρεύω· κάνω παραγγελία για πίτσα.
…I don’t cook; I order pizza.
It links two closely related statements.
Remember: in Greek, the semicolon (;) is actually used as a question mark, not as a semicolon.
Greek often uses a “light verb + noun” construction, like:
- κάνω παραγγελία – make/place an order
- κάνω βόλτα – take a walk
- κάνω μπάνιο – take a bath / have a swim
Here:
- κάνω = I do / I make
- παραγγελία = an order (for goods/food)
So κάνω παραγγελία literally means “I make an order”.
You can also simply say:
- Παραγγέλνω πίτσα. – I order pizza.
Both are correct. παραγγέλνω is more direct; κάνω παραγγελία για πίτσα sounds a bit more like “I place an order for pizza.”
για is a preposition that often means for.
παραγγελία για πίτσα = “an order for pizza”.
You see this pattern a lot:
- εισιτήρια για Αθήνα – tickets to Athens
- δώρο για τη Μαρία – a present for Maria
- ραντεβού για αύριο – an appointment for tomorrow
Without για, παραγγελία πίτσας is still possible but sounds more formal or written; παραγγελία για πίτσα is very natural in everyday language.
Yes, absolutely; and in casual speech many people would prefer it:
- Όταν είμαι κουρασμένος, δεν μαγειρεύω· παραγγέλνω πίτσα.
This is shorter and very natural: When I’m tired, I don’t cook; I order pizza.
κάνω παραγγελία για πίτσα is a bit more descriptive, like “I place an order for pizza”, but both are correct and idiomatic.
In Greek, you often omit the article when you talk about:
- something in a non-specific / generic way, or
- something like a type of food you are ordering / consuming.
Here, για πίτσα is like “for (some) pizza”. You’re not talking about a particular pizza already known in the conversation.
If you used the article:
- για την πίτσα – for the pizza (a specific one, already known).
E.g. Κάνω παραγγελία για την πίτσα που είδαμε στο φυλλάδιο.
“I’m placing an order for the pizza we saw in the flyer.”
So για πίτσα is the normal choice here.
In Greek, the present tense is regularly used for:
- actions happening now, and
- habits / general truths.
So:
- Όταν είμαι κουρασμένος, δεν μαγειρεύω.
= Whenever I am tired (in general), I don’t cook (as a habit).
This is parallel to English, which also uses the simple present for habits:
When I’m tired, I don’t cook; I order pizza.
You could use other tenses for different nuances, but for general habits, the plain present is standard.
Yes, in everyday spoken Greek you’ll often hear:
- Άμα είμαι κουρασμένος, δεν μαγειρεύω…
άμα in modern informal speech often works like όταν (“when(ever)”).
It can also overlap with αν (“if”) in casual language.
Rough differences:
- όταν – neutral, standard, works in spoken and written Greek.
- άμα – more colloquial / informal.
So your sentence with όταν sounds a bit more neutral/standard; with άμα, more conversational.