Κάθε μέρα ο συμφοιτητής μου μιλάει ελληνικά μαζί μου στο φροντιστήριο.

Every day my fellow student (male) speaks Greek with me at the language school.

Breakdown of Κάθε μέρα ο συμφοιτητής μου μιλάει ελληνικά μαζί μου στο φροντιστήριο.

• μιλάω: to speak
• ελληνικά: in Greek
• μου: my
• μαζί: together
• σε: at
• μου: me
• κάθε μέρα: every day
• το φροντιστήριο: the language school
• ο συμφοιτητής: the fellow student

Questions & Answers about Κάθε μέρα ο συμφοιτητής μου μιλάει ελληνικά μαζί μου στο φροντιστήριο.

Why does the sentence start with Κάθε μέρα? Could it also be placed somewhere else?

Κάθε μέρα means every day and expresses a habitual action.

In Greek, time expressions like κάθε μέρα, σήμερα, αύριο, το βράδυ can appear:

• at the beginning: Κάθε μέρα ο συμφοιτητής μου μιλάει…
• in the middle: Ο συμφοιτητής μου κάθε μέρα μιλάει…
• at the end: Ο συμφοιτητής μου μιλάει… κάθε μέρα.

All are grammatically correct; changing the position mostly affects emphasis, not basic meaning. Starting with Κάθε μέρα emphasizes the frequency of the action.

Why do we say ο συμφοιτητής μου and not just συμφοιτητής μου for “my classmate”?

In Greek, nouns very often take a definite article (ο, η, το) even when English does not use the.

• ο συμφοιτητής μου = literally the classmate my → my classmate

Using the article with a possessed noun (noun + μου/σου/του…) is the normal pattern in Greek. Leaving the article out (συμφοιτητής μου) is possible in some contexts (headings, very informal speech, certain fixed expressions), but here ο συμφοιτητής μου is the natural, standard form.

Why is μου after συμφοιτητής instead of before, like “my classmate”?

Greek possessive pronouns normally come after the noun, and they are unstressed “little words” (clitics):

• ο συμφοιτητής μου = my classmate
• το βιβλίο σου = your book
• η φίλη του = his friend

Putting μου before the noun (μου συμφοιτητής) is not normal modern Greek. Instead, stress-shifted forms like εμένα, εσένα (meaning “me, you” with emphasis) come before for contrast:

• ο δικός μου συμφοιτητής = my classmate (as opposed to someone else’s)

Is συμφοιτητής always male? How would I say “female classmate”?

Yes, ο συμφοιτητής is masculine: (male) classmate (at university).

The feminine form is:

• η συμφοιτήτρια = (female) classmate

Plural forms:

• οι συμφοιτητές μου = my (male / mixed) classmates
• οι συμφοιτήτριές μου = my female classmates

In mixed groups, Greek usually defaults to the masculine plural οι συμφοιτητές.

What is the difference between μιλάει and μιλά? Which one should I use?

Both μιλάει and μιλά are 3rd person singular present of μιλάω/μιλώ = to speak.

• μιλάει = more “full” form, very common in speech
• μιλά = shorter form, common in both speech and writing

Meaning is the same: he/she speaks / is speaking.

So in this sentence you could also say:

• …ο συμφοιτητής μου μιλά ελληνικά…

Both are correct; learners can safely use μιλάει or μιλά interchangeably.

Does μιλάει mean “speaks” or “is speaking”? Why is the present used for “every day”?

Modern Greek present tense covers both English simple present and present continuous. So:

• μιλάει can mean he speaks or he is speaking, depending on context.

Because the sentence has Κάθε μέρα, it clearly describes a habitual action:

• Κάθε μέρα ο συμφοιτητής μου μιλάει…
  = Every day my classmate speaks / is speaking…

English prefers speaks for habits here, but Greek just uses the plain present.

Why is it ελληνικά and not something like ελληνική?

ελληνικά is the neuter plural form of the adjective ελληνικός, -ή, -ό (Greek). In this use, it functions as a noun meaning (the) Greek language:

• μιλάω ελληνικά = I speak Greek
• μαθαίνω ελληνικά = I’m learning Greek

This “neuter plural as language name” is very common:

• αγγλικά = English
• γαλλικά = French
• ιταλικά = Italian

You would see η ελληνική (γλώσσα) in more formal contexts, e.g.:

• η ελληνική γλώσσα = the Greek language (formal / descriptive)

What does μαζί μου mean exactly, and how is it different from με μένα?

μαζί μου literally means together with me, and in practice it just means with me:

• μιλάει ελληνικά μαζί μου = he speaks Greek with me

You could also say:

• μιλάει ελληνικά με μένα = he speaks Greek with me

Differences:

• μαζί μου is more idiomatic here; very common and neutral.
• με μένα slightly emphasizes me (as opposed to someone else).

So for a simple “with me,” μαζί μου is the best choice in this sentence.

What exactly is στο? Is it one word or two?

στο is a contraction of σε + το:

• σε = in / at / to / on (general preposition)
• το = the (neuter singular article)

So:

• στο φροντιστήριο = σε + το φροντιστήριο = at the tutoring school

Similar contractions:

• σε + τον → στον (e.g. στον φίλο μου)
• σε + την → στη(ν) (e.g. στη δουλειά)
• σε + τους → στους
• σε + τις → στις

What is a φροντιστήριο? Is it just a “school”?

το φροντιστήριο is not a regular state school. It’s a private tutoring center / cram school, often for:

• extra classes after normal school
• exam preparation
• foreign language lessons

So στο φροντιστήριο here likely means at the (language) tutoring center or at the cram school, not at a normal primary/secondary school (σχολείο) or university (πανεπιστήμιο).

Could the word order be different, for example: Ο συμφοιτητής μου κάθε μέρα μιλάει ελληνικά μαζί μου στο φροντιστήριο?

Yes. Greek word order is flexible, especially for adverbs and time expressions.

All of these are grammatical:

• Κάθε μέρα ο συμφοιτητής μου μιλάει ελληνικά μαζί μου στο φροντιστήριο.
• Ο συμφοιτητής μου κάθε μέρα μιλάει ελληνικά μαζί μου στο φροντιστήριο.
• Ο συμφοιτητής μου μιλάει κάθε μέρα ελληνικά μαζί μου στο φροντιστήριο.

The differences are mainly about emphasis:

• Early Κάθε μέρα = emphasizes every day
• Early ο συμφοιτητής μου = emphasizes my classmate as the topic

Why is there no word for “he” before μιλάει? Shouldn’t it be Αυτός μιλάει?

Greek is a pro-drop language: subject pronouns (εγώ, εσύ, αυτός, etc.) are often omitted because the verb ending already shows the person and number.

• μιλάει already tells you he/she/it (3rd singular), and context makes it clear it’s ο συμφοιτητής μου.

You use the pronoun αυτός when you need extra emphasis or contrast:

• Αυτός μιλάει ελληνικά, όχι εγώ.
  He is the one who speaks Greek, not me.

In your sentence, the neutral, natural form is without αυτός.

How are the main words here pronounced, especially συμφοιτητής, μιλάει, and φροντιστήριο?

Approximate pronunciation (stressed syllable in caps):

• Κάθε μέρα → KA-the ME-ra
• ο συμφοιτητής → o sim-fo-i-ti-TIS (the οι is like ee, so more like sim-fi-ti-TIS)
• μου → moo
• μιλάει → mi-LA-i (sounds like mi-LA-ee; in fast speech often close to mi-LÁ in rhythm)
• ελληνικά → e-li-ni-KA
• μαζί μου → ma-ZI moo
• στο φροντιστήριο → sto fron-di-STI-rio

Key points:

• αι is pronounced like e in get (here in μιλάει, spelling is -άει, but modern pronunciation is close to μιλά).
• οι is pronounced like ee in see.
• Stress is very important in Greek; it can distinguish words, so pay attention to the accented syllables.