Learn Hardcore Greek: Προσπαθώ να ακούω τις παρατηρήσεις της χωρίς να νιώθω άσχημα. - I try to listen to her remarks without feeling bad.

να ακούω (present / imperfective) focuses on an ongoing, repeated, or habitual action: to be listening / to keep listening.
να ακούσω (aorist / perfective) focuses on a single, complete action: to listen once / to manage to listen (at least once).

Here the idea is “I try, in general and repeatedly, to listen to her comments,” so the ongoing/habitual sense of να ακούω is chosen. If you said Προσπαθώ να ακούσω τις παρατηρήσεις της, it would sound more like “I’m trying (this time) to listen to her comments (at least once, successfully).”

What exactly does να do after Προσπαθώ? Is it like English “to”?

After verbs like προσπαθώ, θέλω, μπορώ etc., να introduces a clause in the subjunctive mood.
So προσπαθώ να ακούω literally means “I try that I listen,” but in English we translate it as “I try to listen.”

So yes, in meaning it often matches the English infinitive “to,” but grammatically it’s not an infinitive marker – it’s a particle that turns ακούω into a subjunctive form. You cannot drop it: ✗ Προσπαθώ ακούω is wrong; you must say Προσπαθώ να ακούω.

Why is παρατηρήσεις in the plural? Could it be singular?

Παρατήρηση = “remark / comment / observation,” often with a corrective or critical tone.
In this context, the speaker means “her comments” in a general or repeated sense, so plural τις παρατηρήσεις της sounds most natural.

You could say την παρατήρησή της if you meant one specific comment on one occasion. But when talking about someone who tends to make remarks, especially repeatedly, Greek very often uses the plural.

What’s the nuance of παρατηρήσεις compared to words like σχόλια or κριτική?

παρατηρήσεις: “remarks/corrections,” usually pointing out mistakes, problems, or things to improve; often mildly critical.
σχόλια: “comments” in a broader sense; they can be neutral, positive, or negative.
κριτική: “criticism” or “review,” more explicitly evaluative or judgmental.

In this sentence, παρατηρήσεις suggests she is making corrective or critical remarks, which explains why the speaker might feel bad about them.

Why do we have τις before παρατηρήσεις? What is it doing grammatically?

Τις is the feminine accusative plural definite article: “the.”
So τις παρατηρήσεις της literally is “the comments of hers,” i.e. “her comments.”

Greek normally uses the article together with a possessive pronoun.
Without the article (ακούω παρατηρήσεις της) the phrase sounds incomplete or odd here; with the article it clearly refers to specific, known comments of hers.

Why is the possessive της placed after παρατηρήσεις instead of before, like in English “her comments”?

The usual Greek order with the weak (clitic) possessive pronoun is:

article + noun + possessive
→ τις παρατηρήσεις της = “her comments.”

Putting της before the noun is only done with a different, emphatic structure:

οι δικές της παρατηρήσεις = “her own comments (as opposed to someone else’s).”

But the neutral, everyday way is exactly as in the sentence: τις παρατηρήσεις της.

What does χωρίς να νιώθω άσχημα literally mean, and why use χωρίς να here?

Χωρίς means “without,” and when followed by a verb, Greek uses χωρίς να + subjunctive.
So χωρίς να νιώθω άσχημα ≈ “without (me) feeling bad.”

It’s the standard way to say “without doing X”:

χωρίς να μιλάω = “without talking”
χωρίς να σκέφτομαι = “without thinking”

An alternative would be και να μην νιώθω άσχημα (“and not to feel bad”), but χωρίς να emphasizes the absence of that feeling as the manner or condition under which the action is done.

Why νιώθω here and not αισθάνομαι or just είμαι?

Both νιώθω and αισθάνομαι can mean “I feel.”

νιώθω άσχημα is very common and colloquial, perfectly natural in everyday speech.
αισθάνομαι άσχημα is similar but can sound a bit more formal or “inner”/psychological.

Using είμαι άσχημα would usually refer more to a physical or general state (“I’m in a bad way”), and it doesn’t fit as naturally here for “I feel bad (about it).” That’s why νιώθω άσχημα is the best match in this emotional context.

Why is it άσχημα and not άσχημος / άσχημη after νιώθω?

Άσχημος/άσχημη/άσχημο are adjective forms (“ugly / bad”), while άσχημα here is the adverb form, meaning “badly.”
With νιώθω, Greek normally uses the adverb: νιώθω καλά, νιώθω άσχημα, νιώθω περίεργα.

English says “I feel bad,” using an adjective, but Greek patterns more like “I feel badly” (adverb) in form. So νιώθω άσχημα is the standard expression for “I feel bad (emotionally).”

Why is the subject “I” not written? Would Εγώ προσπαθώ να ακούω… be wrong?

In Greek, verb endings show the person, so the subject pronoun is usually dropped: προσπαθώ already means “I try.”
So omitting εγώ is completely normal and actually more natural in neutral sentences.

Εγώ προσπαθώ να ακούω… is grammatically correct but adds emphasis on “I”:

“I try to listen to her comments (even if others don’t), without feeling bad.”

So the version without εγώ is simply the unmarked, neutral form.

Can the word order change? For example, could you say Προσπαθώ χωρίς να νιώθω άσχημα να ακούω τις παρατηρήσεις της?

Greek word order is flexible, but not all permutations sound equally natural.
The usual pattern here is either:

Προσπαθώ να ακούω τις παρατηρήσεις της χωρίς να νιώθω άσχημα.
or (with a pause/comma)
Προσπαθώ, χωρίς να νιώθω άσχημα, να ακούω τις παρατηρήσεις της.

Your version (Προσπαθώ χωρίς να νιώθω άσχημα να ακούω…) is understandable but feels clumsy and less natural, because χωρίς να νιώθω άσχημα gets awkwardly stuck between προσπαθώ and να ακούω. Native speakers tend to keep each να-clause as a clearer unit.

How would the sentence change if I wanted to say “his comments” or “their comments” instead of “her comments”?

You only change the possessive pronoun:

τις παρατηρήσεις της = her comments
τις παρατηρήσεις του = his comments
τις παρατηρήσεις τους = their comments

The rest of the structure stays the same:
Προσπαθώ να ακούω τις παρατηρήσεις του / τους χωρίς να νιώθω άσχημα.

Why is Προσπαθώ in the present tense and not past or future? What would change with Προσπάθησα or Θα προσπαθήσω?

Προσπαθώ (present) expresses something ongoing or generally true: “I (habitually/currently) try.”

Προσπάθησα να ακούω τις παρατηρήσεις της… = “I tried to listen to her comments…” (on some occasion in the past).
Θα προσπαθήσω να ακούω τις παρατηρήσεις της… = “I will try to listen to her comments…” (in the future).

So with προσπαθώ, the speaker is talking about their current, ongoing effort, not just a completed attempt in the past or a plan for the future.