Είτε κάνω μάθημα στην τάξη είτε μόνος μου στο σπίτι, προσπαθώ να μιλάω δυνατά.

Whether I have class in the classroom or alone at home, I try to speak out loud.

Breakdown of Είτε κάνω μάθημα στην τάξη είτε μόνος μου στο σπίτι, προσπαθώ να μιλάω δυνατά.

• το σπίτι: the home
• μιλάω: to speak
• να: to
• σε: at

Questions & Answers about Είτε κάνω μάθημα στην τάξη είτε μόνος μου στο σπίτι, προσπαθώ να μιλάω δυνατά.

What does Είτε … είτε … mean, and how is it different from just using ή (“or”)?

Είτε … είτε … means “whether … or …” and is used for two alternative situations that are both being considered.

• Είτε κάνω μάθημα στην τάξη είτε μόνος μου στο σπίτι
  = Whether I have a lesson in class or (I’m) alone at home…

Differences from ή:

• ή … ή … = “either … or …” (more like choosing one of two options)
• είτε … είτε … = “whether … or …” (stresses that in both cases something holds true)

In this sentence, the idea is: In both situations (in class or at home), I try to speak aloud. That’s why είτε … είτε … is natural here.

Why is there no subject pronoun εγώ (“I”) at the beginning?

Greek is a “pro-drop” language: the verb ending already shows the subject, so you usually omit the pronoun unless you want to emphasize it.

• κάνω = I do / I make
• προσπαθώ = I try
  The -ω ending shows first person singular, so εγώ is not needed.

You could say:

• Εγώ, είτε κάνω μάθημα…
  to emphasize I, but it isn’t necessary and would slightly shift the focus to me.

What does literally mean, and why is it used for “having a lesson/class”?