Η ανιψιά μου όμως είναι πολύ γενναία όταν πηγαίνει μόνη της στη σκηνή στο σχολείο.

My niece however is very brave when she goes alone onto the stage at school.

Breakdown of Η ανιψιά μου όμως είναι πολύ γενναία όταν πηγαίνει μόνη της στη σκηνή στο σχολείο.

• είμαι: to be
• πάω: to go
• πολύ: very
• μου: my

Questions & Answers about Η ανιψιά μου όμως είναι πολύ γενναία όταν πηγαίνει μόνη της στη σκηνή στο σχολείο.

In the phrase Η ανιψιά μου, why do we need the article Η when we already have μου (“my”)? In English we just say “my niece”, not “the my niece”.

In Greek, a noun with a possessive pronoun almost always takes the definite article:

• η ανιψιά μου = the niece of mine → “my niece”
• ο αδελφός σου = the brother of yours → “your brother”
• το σπίτι μας = the house of ours → “our house”

So the structure is really:

• η (the) + ανιψιά (niece) + μου (of me / my)

Leaving out the article (ανιψιά μου) is possible, but it sounds:

• vocative / exclamatory: Ανιψιά μου! = “My niece!” (calling her)
• or poetic/unusual in normal sentences.

So in normal statements like this one, use the article with a possessive.

What does όμως mean exactly, and where can it go in the sentence?