Learn Hardcore Greek: Χτίζω τη ζωή μου γύρω από λίγες αλλά καλές συνήθειες. - I build my life around a few but good habits.

Χτίζω ends in -ω, which marks 1st person singular, present tense → I build / I am building.
Adding εγώ is only needed for emphasis or contrast:
- Εγώ χτίζω τη ζωή μου… = I build my life… (not someone else).

So Χτίζω τη ζωή μου… already clearly means I build my life… without εγώ.

What is the exact form and tense of χτίζω here?

Χτίζω is:

Verb: χτίζω = to build
Person: 1st person
Number: singular
Tense/aspect: present (imperfective) → ongoing, repeated, or habitual action
Mood: indicative
Voice: active

So it means I build / I am building / I (habitually) build.

You could say, for example:

Κάθε μέρα χτίζω τη ζωή μου γύρω από καλές συνήθειες.
Every day I build my life around good habits.

I’ve also seen κτίζω. What’s the difference between χτίζω and κτίζω?

They are essentially the same verb, two spellings of the same word:

χτίζω – the ordinary, everyday modern spelling.
κτίζω – an older / more learned spelling, connected to Ancient Greek κτίζω.

In modern usage:

In everyday writing and speech: χτίζω is much more common.
In some more formal or traditional contexts (e.g. church language, older texts) you may see κτίζω.

Meaning and conjugation are the same.

Why is it τη ζωή μου and not just ζωή μου or μια ζωή μου?

Greek normally uses the definite article with possessives:

τη ζωή μου = literally the life my, but it means my life.

So:

η ζωή μου = my life (subject)
τη ζωή μου = my life (object, as here)

You almost always put:

The article before the noun: τη ζωή
The possessive after the noun as an enclitic: ζωή μου

So:

τη ζωή μου = correct, natural
ζωή μου = possible in special emphasis/poetic style, but not the normal neutral phrasing
μια ζωή μου would mean a life of mine, and sounds odd here.

Why is it τη ζωή and not την ζωή?

The feminine accusative singular article is:

την before vowels and certain consonants (κ, π, τ, ξ, ψ, μπ, ντ, γκ)
τη elsewhere in modern spelling

Ζωή starts with ζ, which is not in that list, and it’s a consonant, so the usual modern spelling is:

τη ζωή (without ν)

You may still see την ζωή in older texts or more conservative spelling, but τη ζωή is the standard modern form.

Why does the possessive μου come after the noun (ζωή μου) and not before it, like in English?

In Greek, short possessive pronouns (μου, σου, του, της, μας, σας, τους) usually appear after the noun and behave like enclitics:

η ζωή μου = my life
το σπίτι σου = your house
τα βιβλία μας = our books

Putting them before the noun (μου ζωή) is incorrect in standard Greek.

If you want to emphasize the possessor, you use a different structure:

η δική μου ζωή = my life (as opposed to someone else’s)
but even there, the possessive agrees as an adjective and still follows η.

Why is ζωή in the accusative case here?

Ζωή is the direct object of the verb χτίζω:

(Εγώ) χτίζω τι; → τη ζωή μου

In Greek:

The subject is in the nominative: η ζωή
The direct object is in the accusative: τη ζωή

Since we are saying I build my life, life is what is being built, so τη ζωή (μου) must be in the accusative.

What does the phrase γύρω από literally mean, and why is από needed?

Γύρω από is a prepositional phrase meaning around / around (something).

γύρω on its own means around / approximately / around here.
από is a preposition that, combined with γύρω, forms the unit γύρω από + accusative = around.

So:

Χτίζω τη ζωή μου γύρω από συνήθειες.
= I build my life around habits.

You can sometimes hear γύρω σε in speech, but γύρω από + accusative is the most standard and neutral form.

Why are λίγες and καλές both before συνήθειες, and why do they both end in -ες?

Both λίγες and καλές are adjectives modifying συνήθειες:

συνήθειες = habits (feminine, plural)
Case: accusative plural (because it’s governed by γύρω από)

Greek adjectives must agree in gender, number, and case with the noun:

λίγες → feminine plural accusative of λίγος (few)
καλές → feminine plural accusative of καλός (good)
συνήθειες → feminine plural accusative of συνήθεια (habit)

That’s why:

λίγες αλλά καλές συνήθειες
not e.g. λίγα αλλά καλό συνήθειες (which would be ungrammatical).

Placing adjectives before the noun is the standard position when they are simple descriptive adjectives like here.

What is the role of αλλά in λίγες αλλά καλές συνήθειες?

Αλλά means but and connects two adjectives that describe the same noun:

λίγες αλλά καλές συνήθειες
= few but good habits

So the nuance is:

I don’t have many habits (they are few),
but the ones I have are good.

This contrast is exactly what αλλά expresses.

What is the difference between λίγες συνήθειες and μερικές συνήθειες?

Both can be translated as a few habits, but there is a nuance:

λίγες συνήθειες
usually implies “not many”, often with a sense of small quantity (and sometimes that’s intentional or emphasized).
μερικές συνήθειες
is more like “some habits”, more neutral, less focus on the small number.

In your sentence:

λίγες αλλά καλές συνήθειες suggests the speaker deliberately keeps the number of habits small, but makes sure they are good.

What is the base form of συνήθειες, and is it always feminine?

Συνήθειες is:

Nominative/accusative feminine plural of η συνήθεια (habit).

Forms:

Singular:
- Nominative: η συνήθεια
- Accusative: τη συνήθεια
Plural:
- Nominative: οι συνήθειες
- Accusative: τις συνήθειες

The noun συνήθεια is always feminine in Greek.

Could the word order be Χτίζω γύρω από λίγες αλλά καλές συνήθειες τη ζωή μου? Is that still correct?

Yes, that word order is grammatically possible, but it sounds less natural and more marked. The most natural, neutral word order is:

Χτίζω τη ζωή μου γύρω από λίγες αλλά καλές συνήθειες.

Moving τη ζωή μου to the end can:

Sound slightly more literary or emphatic.
Put more focus first on γύρω από λίγες αλλά καλές συνήθειες and then wrap up with τη ζωή μου.

In everyday speech and writing, the original order is preferred.