Λέω στον εαυτό μου να είμαι γενναίος όταν μιλάω ελληνικά μπροστά στην τάξη.

to be

Breakdown of Λέω στον εαυτό μου να είμαι γενναίος όταν μιλάω ελληνικά μπροστά στην τάξη.

• μιλάω: to speak
• ελληνικά: in Greek
• να: to

Questions & Answers about Λέω στον εαυτό μου να είμαι γενναίος όταν μιλάω ελληνικά μπροστά στην τάξη.

What does Λέω στον εαυτό μου literally mean, and how is it different from just saying σκέφτομαι?

Λέω στον εαυτό μου literally means “I say to myself.”

It describes an inner speech, like talking to yourself in your head, often as encouragement, orders, or reminders:

• Λέω στον εαυτό μου να ηρεμήσω. = I tell myself to calm down.
• Λέω στον εαυτό μου ότι όλα θα πάνε καλά. = I tell myself that everything will be fine.

Σκέφτομαι means “I think”, more generally about thoughts, not necessarily “speaking to yourself”:

• Σκέφτομαι να πάω διακοπές. = I’m thinking of going on vacation.

In this sentence, the idea is “I tell myself / I encourage myself,” so Λέω στον εαυτό μου is more expressive than just Σκέφτομαι.

Why is it στον εαυτό μου and not something like σε εαυτό μου or τον εαυτό μου?

Στον εαυτό μου breaks down like this:

• σε (to) + τον (the, masculine accusative) → στον
• εαυτό = “self”
• μου = “my”

So στον εαυτό μου = “to myself” (literally: to-the self my).

You need:

1. σε because of the verb λέω σε κάποιον = “I say to someone”.
2. The article τον because εαυτός is a noun and normally takes an article.