Στην τάξη η δασκάλα μάς καλωσορίζει πάντα στα ελληνικά, ακόμα κι όταν είμαστε κουρασμένοι.

In class the teacher always welcomes us in Greek, even when we are tired.

Breakdown of Στην τάξη η δασκάλα μάς καλωσορίζει πάντα στα ελληνικά, ακόμα κι όταν είμαστε κουρασμένοι.

• είμαι: to be
• πάντα: always
• σε: in
• κουρασμένος: tired
• μας: us
• η δασκάλα: the female teacher
• τα ελληνικά: the Greek language
• η τάξη: the class
• ακόμα κι όταν: even when
• καλωσορίζω: to welcome

Questions & Answers about Στην τάξη η δασκάλα μάς καλωσορίζει πάντα στα ελληνικά, ακόμα κι όταν είμαστε κουρασμένοι.

What exactly does Στην τάξη mean, and why στην and not σε την?

Στην τάξη literally is “in the classroom” / “in class.”

• σε = in / at / to
• την = the (feminine, singular, accusative)
• τάξη = class / classroom (feminine noun)

In everyday Greek, σε + την contracts to στην:

• σε την τάξη → στην τάξη

This contraction is completely regular and very common:

• σε την πόλη → στην πόλη (in the city)
• σε την κουζίνα → στην κουζίνα (in the kitchen)

So στην already contains the article; you never say σε την τάξη in normal speech or writing.

Why do we say η δασκάλα (with the article) instead of just δασκάλα for “the teacher”?

In Greek, nouns almost always appear with a definite article when you are talking about a specific person or thing.

• η δασκάλα = the (female) teacher
• ο δάσκαλος = the (male) teacher

In English we can say:

• “Our teacher welcomes us in Greek…”

Greek tends to keep the article:

• Στην τάξη η δασκάλα μάς καλωσορίζει…

Leaving the article out (δασκάλα μάς καλωσορίζει) sounds incomplete or poetic, not neutral.

So:

• Use the article (ο, η, το) with professions, roles, and specific people much more often than in English:
  • Ο γιατρός μιλάει. – The doctor is speaking.
  • Η μαθήτρια γράφει. – The (female) student is writing.

What is the difference between μας and μάς here? Why is it written with an accent?

Greek has two forms of this pronoun “us”:

1. μας (without accent): unstressed clitic

   • Usually attached to the verb.
   • Neutral, no special emphasis.
   • Example: Η δασκάλα μας καλωσορίζει. – The teacher welcomes us.

2. μάς (with accent): stressed / emphatic

   • Pronounced more strongly.
   • Used when you want to emphasize us (as opposed to someone else) or contrast it.

In your sentence:

• η δασκάλα μάς καλωσορίζει… suggests a slight emphasis:
  • “the teacher welcomes us” (e.g., not another group, or despite something).

In many textbooks you’ll see the unaccented μας in this position. Both are grammatically correct; the accent just adds emphasis in speech and writing.

Which tense and form is καλωσορίζει, and what is the base verb?

The verb is καλωσορίζω = to welcome.

καλωσορίζει is:

• Person: 3rd person singular
• Tense/aspect: present tense, imperfective
• Meaning: “(she) welcomes / is welcoming”

Basic present tense forms:

• εγώ καλωσορίζω – I welcome
• εσύ καλωσορίζεις – you welcome
• αυτός / αυτή / αυτό καλωσορίζει – he / she / it welcomes
• εμείς καλωσορίζουμε – we welcome
• εσείς καλωσορίζετε – you (pl.) welcome
• αυτοί / αυτές / αυτά καλωσορίζουν(ε) – they welcome

Here it’s η δασκάλα (she) → καλωσορίζει.

The present tense in Greek covers both English “welcomes” and “is welcoming”, and with πάντα (“always”) it expresses a habitual action.

Why is πάντα placed after καλωσορίζει? Could we put πάντα somewhere else?

πάντα means always. It is quite flexible in position:

• Η δασκάλα μάς καλωσορίζει πάντα στα ελληνικά.
• Η δασκάλα πάντα μάς καλωσορίζει στα ελληνικά.

Both are natural and mean the same.

Typical positions:

• Before the verb: Πάντα έρχεται νωρίς. – He always comes early.
• After the verb: Έρχεται πάντα νωρίς.

In your sentence, placing πάντα after καλωσορίζει is very common and sounds neutral:

• μάς καλωσορίζει πάντα = always welcomes us

What does στα ελληνικά literally mean, and why not just ελληνικά?

στα ελληνικά literally is “in Greek” (in the Greek language).

Breakdown:

• σε + τα → στα = in the (neuter plural)
• ελληνικά = Greek (language), neuter plural

So στα ελληνικά = in Greek (language).

You can also hear just:

• … μιλάει ελληνικά. – …he/she speaks Greek.

Difference:

• μιλάει ελληνικά – speaks Greek (in general)
• μας καλωσορίζει στα ελληνικά – welcomes us in Greek (as opposed to some other language, e.g. English)

Using στα ελληνικά makes the “in” very explicit and slightly emphasizes the medium (the Greek language).

What does ακόμα κι όταν mean, and why κι instead of και?

ακόμα κι όταν means “even when”.

Parts:

• ακόμα = still / even
• και = and / even (here: “even”)
• όταν = when

In this expression, ακόμα και όταν → even when.

κι is just a shortened form of και used before words starting with a vowel (for smoother pronunciation):

• και όταν → κι όταν
• και έχουμε → κι έχουμε

So:

• ακόμα κι όταν είμαστε κουρασμένοι
  = even when we are tired

You could write ακόμα και όταν, but κι is more natural in speech and very common in writing.

How does είμαστε κουρασμένοι work grammatically?

είμαστε κουρασμένοι = “(we) are tired.”

• (εμείς) είμαστε – we are
  (the εμείς is usually omitted because είμαστε already shows the person)
• κουρασμένοι – tired

κουρασμένοι is:

• masculine
• nominative
• plural

It agrees with the implied subject εμείς (we).

If the group is:

• male or mixed (men + women): είμαστε κουρασμένοι
• only female: είμαστε κουρασμένες

Greek uses the masculine plural as the default for mixed groups, just like in many other Indo‑European languages.

Why is the adjective κουρασμένοι plural, when we don’t see “we” written?

In Greek, verbs carry person and number, so the subject pronoun is often dropped.

• είμαστε already tells you the subject is “we” (1st person plural).
• Adjectives must agree with the subject in number, gender, and case.

So even if εμείς is not written, the structure is:

• (Εμείς) είμαστε κουρασμένοι. – We are tired.

That’s why κουρασμένοι is plural: it agrees with the plural subject εμείς.

Why does the sentence start with Στην τάξη? Could we also start with Η δασκάλα?

Yes, you can change the word order. Greek word order is flexible.

Your version:

• Στην τάξη η δασκάλα μάς καλωσορίζει πάντα στα ελληνικά…

This puts extra focus on “in class” – as opposed to, say, during the break or online.

You could also say:

• Η δασκάλα μάς καλωσορίζει πάντα στα ελληνικά στην τάξη.
• Η δασκάλα στην τάξη μάς καλωσορίζει πάντα στα ελληνικά.

All are grammatically correct. The main difference is which part you highlight:

• Starting with Στην τάξη emphasizes the setting: “In class, (this is what happens)…”
• Starting with Η δασκάλα emphasizes the teacher as the topic: “The teacher (in class) always welcomes us in Greek…”