Σήμερα νιώθω άσχημα, γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά.

Today I feel bad, because I didn't sleep well.

Breakdown of Σήμερα νιώθω άσχημα, γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά.

• καλά: well
• δεν: not
• σήμερα: today
• γιατί: because
• κοιμάμαι: to sleep
• νιώθω: to feel
• άσχημα: bad

Questions & Answers about Σήμερα νιώθω άσχημα, γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά.

What does each word in Σήμερα νιώθω άσχημα, γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά. literally mean?

Word-by-word:

• Σήμερα – today
• νιώθω – I feel
• άσχημα – bad(ly) (adverb from άσχημος = ugly/bad)
• , – comma
• γιατί – because (also why in other contexts)
• δεν – not (negation)
• κοιμήθηκα – I slept (aorist, one-time past action, from κοιμάμαι = I sleep)
• καλά – well (adverb from καλός = good)

Natural translation: Today I feel bad because I didn’t sleep well.

Why is there no word for “I” in the Greek sentence?

Greek normally drops subject pronouns because the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

• νιώθω ends in -ω, which marks 1st person singular → I feel
• κοιμήθηκα ends in -κα, also a typical 1st person singular aorist ending → I slept

You could say:

• Εγώ σήμερα νιώθω άσχημα… – I, today, feel bad…

…but εγώ is only used for emphasis or contrast (e.g. I feel bad, but you don’t).
In neutral, everyday speech, leaving εγώ out is more natural: Σήμερα νιώθω άσχημα…

Why is it άσχημα and not άσχημος after νιώθω?

• άσχημα is an adverb → badly / in a bad way / awful
• άσχημος is an adjective → ugly / bad (as a quality of a noun)

With νιώθω, using the adverb is the common way to express feeling unwell or emotionally bad:

• νιώθω άσχημα – I feel bad / awful / not well (physical or emotional discomfort)

If you said:

• νιώθω άσχημος – you would mean something like I feel (that I am) ugly, describing your own appearance, not your general condition.

So νιώθω άσχημα matches the English I feel bad in the sense of unwell / terrible, not ugly.

Could I use αισθάνομαι instead of νιώθω here? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say:

• Σήμερα αισθάνομαι άσχημα, γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά.

Both νιώθω and αισθάνομαι mean to feel, and in many everyday situations they’re interchangeable.

Nuances (very general tendencies):

• νιώθω – a bit more colloquial and very common in speech.
• αισθάνομαι – slightly more formal or “standard,” and also common.

In this specific sentence, both are perfectly natural. A modern speaker might slightly prefer νιώθω in casual speech.

How can γιατί mean both “why” and “because”? How do I know which one it is here?

γιατί has two main uses:

1. As a question word = why

   • Γιατί νιώθεις άσχημα; – Why do you feel bad?

2. As a conjunction = because

   • Νιώθω άσχημα, γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά. – I feel bad because I didn’t sleep well.

How to tell which one it is:

• If it introduces a question, it means why.
• If it links two clauses where the second gives a reason, it means because, as in your sentence.

In writing, a question mark and the word order help you see it’s a question:
Γιατί νιώθεις άσχημα; (Greek question mark is ;)

Why is there a comma before γιατί?

The sentence has two clauses:

1. Σήμερα νιώθω άσχημα – main clause: Today I feel bad
2. γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά – reason clause: because I didn’t sleep well

Greek often uses a comma before γιατί when it introduces a separate reason clause, much like English often does before because:

• …νιώθω άσχημα, γιατί… – …I feel bad, because…

In very short sentences the comma might be dropped, but here it is natural and correct.

What tense is κοιμήθηκα, and why not something like “I have not slept well”?

κοιμήθηκα is the aorist (simple past) of κοιμάμαι (I sleep):

• κοιμήθηκα – I slept (one completed event in the past)

Greek typically uses the aorist where English might use either:

• I slept well / badly (last night).
• I haven’t slept well.

In your sentence:

• …γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά.
  → literally: because I did not sleep well (on that occasion / last night).

Greek does have a form similar to a present perfect (έχω κοιμηθεί), but it is used less often than English have slept, and would sound too heavy or unusual in this everyday context. So δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά is the natural choice.

What is the relationship between κοιμάμαι and κοιμήθηκα? Why that -θηκα ending?

• κοιμάμαι – present tense, I sleep (middle/mediopassive form)
• κοιμήθηκα – aorist (simple past), I slept

κοιμάμαι is one of many Greek verbs that are mediopassive/deponent:
they look “passive” in form but have an active meaning.

For this type of verb:

• Present: κοιμάμαι – I sleep
• Past (aorist): κοιμήθηκα – I slept

The -θηκα ending is the typical 1st person singular aorist for mediopassive verbs:

• θυμάμαι → θυμήθηκα – I remember → I remembered
• φοβάμαι → φοβήθηκα – I am afraid → I got scared
• κοιμάμαι → κοιμήθηκα – I sleep → I slept

So κοιμήθηκα is just the regular past form of κοιμάμαι.

Why is it καλά and not καλός? What does καλά modify?

• καλά is an adverb = well
• καλός is an adjective = good

In δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά, καλά modifies the verb κοιμήθηκα:

• κοιμήθηκα καλά – I slept well
• δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά – I didn’t sleep well

If you used καλός, you would need to describe a noun:

• καλός ύπνος – good sleep
• Είχα καλό ύπνο. – I had good sleep.

So in your sentence, καλά is correct because it describes how you slept, not what kind of sleep you had.

Where does the negative δεν go in Greek, and can it move around?

In modern Greek, δεν (or δε before many consonants in casual speech) normally goes immediately before the verb:

• κοιμήθηκα – I slept
• δεν κοιμήθηκα – I didn’t sleep

If there are object pronouns, they come between δεν and the verb:

• δεν τον είδα – I didn’t see him
• δεν το έκανα – I didn’t do it

In your sentence, the negation is correctly placed:

• …γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά. – because I did not sleep well.

You should not move δεν away from the verb.

Can I move σήμερα to another position in the sentence?

Yes. Greek word order is relatively flexible, especially with adverbs of time such as σήμερα. Common options:

• Σήμερα νιώθω άσχημα, γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά.
• Νιώθω άσχημα σήμερα, γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά.
• Νιώθω σήμερα άσχημα, γιατί δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά.

All are understandable and grammatical. Differences are minor and mostly about emphasis or rhythm. Putting σήμερα at the very beginning is very natural and slightly emphasizes today.

How do you pronounce key words like νιώθω, άσχημα, and κοιμήθηκα?

Approximate pronunciations (IPA in slashes, rough English hints in parentheses):

• Σήμερα – /ˈsimera/ – SEE-me-ra (stress on Σή)
• νιώθω – /ˈɲo.θo/ – NYO-tho
  
  • νι before ώ becomes a palatal sound, a bit like Spanish ñ: ny
  • θ as in English think
• άσχημα – /ˈa.sçi.ma/ – AH-shee-ma
  
  • χ is a voiceless fricative (like German Bach or Scottish loch)
  • before η, it gets slightly palatal: somewhere between h and kh
• γιατί – /ʝaˈti/ – ya-TEE
  
  • γ before ι sounds like a soft y sound /ʝ/
• κοιμήθηκα – /ciˈmi.θika/ – kee-MEE-thi-ka
  
  • οι = /i/ (like ee)
  • θ again as in think
  • stress on μή
• καλά – /kaˈla/ – ka-LA (stress on λά)

The written acute accent (´) in Greek shows which syllable is stressed, and modern Greek words have one stress each.