Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα ο ένας με τον άλλον.

to speak

Breakdown of Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα ο ένας με τον άλλον.

• σε: at
• η συνάντηση: the meeting
• ήρεμα: calmly
• ο ένας με τον άλλον: each other

Questions & Answers about Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα ο ένας με τον άλλον.

What does Στη mean here, and why is it not σε τη or στην?

Σε is the basic preposition in / at / to. When it combines with the feminine article τη(ν), it contracts:

• σε + τη(ν) = στη(ν)

So στη συνάντηση literally is σε τη συνάντηση → στη συνάντηση = at the meeting.

About the final -ν:

• The full form is στην.
• In modern Greek, the final -ν is usually dropped before most consonants.
• It is kept mainly before: κ, π, τ, ξ, ψ, μπ, ντ, γκ, τσ, τζ and before vowels.

Since συνάντηση starts with σ, the ν is dropped:
στην συνάντηση → στη συνάντηση.

So στη here is just the contracted form of σε + τη(ν) with the usual loss of ν.

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What case is συνάντηση, and what does the article τη (in στη) tell me?

συνάντηση is a feminine noun meaning meeting / encounter, and in this sentence it is in the accusative singular:

• Nominative: η συνάντηση (the meeting – subject)
• Accusative: τη(ν) συνάντηση (the meeting – object / after preposition)

After the preposition σε, Greek uses the accusative case.
So σε + τη(ν) συνάντηση → στη συνάντηση = at the meeting.

The hidden article τη inside στη tells you:

• gender: feminine
• number: singular
• case: accusative

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Why is μιλάμε used here instead of λέμε? Don’t they both mean “say / speak”?

Both μιλάμε and λέμε involve speech, but their usage differs:

• μιλάμε (from μιλάω) = we speak / we talk / we are talking

  • Focuses on the act of speaking or conversing.
  • Often used with languages (μιλάω ελληνικά = I speak Greek) or for general talking.

• λέμε (from λέω) = we say / we tell

  • Focuses on the content, what is being said.
  • E.g. λέω μια ιστορία = I tell a story.

In Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα ο ένας με τον άλλον, the idea is how we communicate (we talk calmly with each other), so μιλάμε is the natural choice.

Using λέμε here (Στη συνάντηση λέμε ήρεμα…) would sound strange and unnatural.

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Does μιλάμε here mean “we speak (right now)” or “we usually speak”?

The present tense in Greek (μιλάμε) is flexible:

• It can describe an action happening now:
  
  • Τώρα στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα. = Right now at the meeting we are speaking calmly.
• It can describe a habit or general rule:
  
  • Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα ο ένας με τον άλλον. = At the meeting we (always / generally) speak calmly with each other.

With no time adverb like τώρα, and in a generic-sounding sentence, learners will usually understand it as a habitual rule:
At (our) meetings, we speak calmly with each other.

Context decides whether it is “are speaking” or “(usually) speak”.

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What exactly is ήρεμα, and how is it formed? Is it an adjective or an adverb?

ήρεμα is used here as an adverb meaning calmly.

It comes from the adjective ήρεμος (calm, tranquil):

• Masculine: ήρεμος
• Feminine: ήρεμη
• Neuter: ήρεμο

In Greek, many adverbs are formed from the neuter singular form of the adjective, often ending in -α or -ως depending on the pattern. For ήρεμος, the commonly used adverb is ήρεμα:

• μιλάμε ήρεμα = we speak calmly

So in this sentence:

• μιλάμε = we speak
• ήρεμα = calmly (how we speak → adverbial use)

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Can I say ήσυχα instead of ήρεμα? What’s the difference?

You could say μιλάμε ήσυχα, but there is a slight nuance difference:

• ήρεμα = calmly, in a calm manner
  
  • Focus on emotional state / tone: no tension, no anger.
• ήσυχα = quietly, softly, without noise
  
  • Focus on volume / noisiness.

In a meeting where the idea is no arguments, no shouting, keep calm, ήρεμα is the better choice.
If you mainly want to say don’t be loud, you would prefer ήσυχα.

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Is the word order fixed? Can I also say Στη συνάντηση ήρεμα μιλάμε ο ένας με τον άλλον or Μιλάμε ήρεμα στη συνάντηση?

Greek word order is fairly flexible, but there is a neutral order that sounds most natural in everyday speech. Here:

• Neutral: Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα ο ένας με τον άλλον.

Alternative orders:

• Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα, ο ένας με τον άλλον.
  (natural, same meaning; a slight pause after ήρεμα)
• Μιλάμε ήρεμα στη συνάντηση ο ένας με τον άλλον.
  (also fine; a bit more focus on the act of speaking)
• Στη συνάντηση ήρεμα μιλάμε ο ένας με τον άλλον.
  (possible but sounds more marked/emphatic, like stressing ήρεμα).

For normal, unmarked style, keep [prepositional phrase] – [verb] – [manner adverb] – [rest]:

Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα ο ένας με τον άλλον.

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What does the expression ο ένας με τον άλλον literally mean?

Literally:

• ο ένας = the one (masculine singular)
• με = with
• τον άλλον = the other (masculine singular, accusative)

So ο ένας με τον άλλον = the one with the other.

Functionally, it means each other / one another. So the whole segment:

• μιλάμε ήρεμα ο ένας με τον άλλον
  = we talk calmly with each other

It’s a very common way to express reciprocal actions in Greek.

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Why is it ο ένας με τον άλλον and not just ο ένας τον άλλον?

Both forms exist:

• ο ένας τον άλλον
• ο ένας με τον άλλον

The version with με makes the “with each other” idea very explicit, which fits especially well with verbs of communication like μιλάω (speak, talk):

• μιλάμε ο ένας με τον άλλον sounds more natural than
  μιλάμε ο ένας τον άλλον.

Without με, the structure is often used with verbs like αγαπάω (love), βοηθάω (help), etc.:

• Αγαπιόμαστε ο ένας τον άλλον. = We love each other.
• Βοηθάμε ο ένας τον άλλον. = We help each other.

So here με is added because μιλάμε με κάποιον (“we talk with someone”) is the usual pattern.

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Why are ένας and άλλον masculine singular, even if the group can be women or mixed?

In expressions like ο ένας με τον άλλον, Greek uses a default masculine form when:

• the group is mixed (men + women), or
• the gender is unspecified / general.

This is similar to how English sometimes uses “he” / “him” historically as a generic, though modern English avoids that; Greek still uses this masculine default very widely.

If you are clearly talking about a group of only women, you can make it feminine:

• Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα η μία με την άλλη.
  (we women speak calmly with each other)

But in mixed or general situations, ο ένας με τον άλλον is the standard, idiomatic form.

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What case is τον άλλον, and why do we need the article τον?

τον άλλον is in the accusative masculine singular:

• Nominative: ο άλλος (the other – subject)
• Accusative: τον άλλον (the other – object)

We need the article τον because in this expression the word άλλος is used like a definite noun (“the other”), not like a bare adjective:

• ο ένας = the one (subject)
• τον άλλον = the other (object of με)

So με τον άλλον = with the other (person).

The article is part of the fixed expression ο ένας με τον άλλον = “each other”.

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Could I replace ο ένας με τον άλλον with μεταξύ μας? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say:

• Στη συνάντηση μιλάμε ήρεμα μεταξύ μας.

μεταξύ μας means among ourselves / between us and is very natural here.

Difference in nuance:

• ο ένας με τον άλλον:
  
  • Highlights the pairs / reciprocal actions “one with the other”.
  • Slightly more explicit and a bit more formal or textbook-like.
• μεταξύ μας:
  
  • Focuses on the group as a whole – within our group, among us.
  • Very common in everyday speech.

In many contexts they are interchangeable in meaning; here both sentences are correct and natural.

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How would I say “At this meeting we will speak calmly with each other” using the same structure?

You mainly need to:

1. Specify this meeting: σε αυτή τη συνάντηση (or σ’ αυτή τη συνάντηση)
2. Change μιλάμε (present) to θα μιλήσουμε (future simple).

A natural sentence:

• Σε αυτή τη συνάντηση θα μιλήσουμε ήρεμα ο ένας με τον άλλον.

This means: At this meeting we will speak calmly with each other.