Breakdown of Σήμερα πήγαμε το κατοικίδιο στον κτηνίατρο, γιατί δεν έτρωγε καλά.
Questions & Answers about Σήμερα πήγαμε το κατοικίδιο στον κτηνίατρο, γιατί δεν έτρωγε καλά.
Why is πήγαμε (we went) used here if the meaning is “we took the pet to the vet”?
In Greek, πηγαίνω / πάω can be used transitively (with a direct object) to mean take (someone/something somewhere), especially in everyday speech.
So πήγαμε το κατοικίδιο στον κτηνίατρο literally looks like “we went the pet to the vet,” but it means “we took the pet to the vet.”
A more explicit alternative is πήγαμε το κατοικίδιο μας στον κτηνίατρο (we took our pet to the vet) or το πήγαμε στον κτηνίατρο (we took it to the vet).
Why is it το κατοικίδιο (with το)—what gender is it and how does that affect the sentence?
κατοικίδιο is neuter, so it takes the neuter article το in the singular.
Here it’s also the direct object of πήγαμε (“we took what?”), so it appears in the accusative, which for neuter looks the same as the nominative: το κατοικίδιο.
What does στον κτηνίατρο mean grammatically, and why isn’t it σε τον?
στον is a contraction of σε + τον (“to the”). Greek commonly contracts σε + definite article:
- σε + τον → στον
- σε + την → στην
- σε + το → στο
κτηνίατρο is in the accusative because σε takes the accusative: (to) the vet.
Why is κτηνίατρο not κτηνίατρος?
κτηνίατρος is the dictionary (nominative) form. After σε/στον, the noun must be accusative, so κτηνίατρος → κτηνίατρο.
So: ο κτηνίατρος (the vet, subject) but στον κτηνίατρο (to the vet).
Why does Greek allow dropping the subject pronoun—where is “we”?
Greek verb endings show the subject. πήγαμε already encodes “we” (1st person plural), so εμείς is usually unnecessary.
You’d add εμείς mainly for contrast or emphasis: Σήμερα εμείς πήγαμε το κατοικίδιο… (“we took the pet…”).
Why is there a comma before γιατί?
In Greek, it’s common to use a comma before γιατί when it introduces a reason clause, similar to English punctuation in many cases:
…, γιατί δεν έτρωγε καλά. = “..., because it wasn’t eating well.”
Why is δεν έτρωγε in the imperfect—what nuance does that give?
έτρωγε is imperfect, which typically describes an ongoing/repeated situation in the past.
So δεν έτρωγε καλά suggests the pet had not been eating well (for a while / repeatedly), which motivated the vet visit.
If you used aorist (δεν έφαγε καλά), it would sound more like a single completed instance (“it didn’t eat well [that time]”).
What exactly does καλά modify here, and could it mean “a lot”?
καλά is an adverb modifying έτρωγε: “eat well.”
So δεν έτρωγε καλά = “it wasn’t eating well” (not eating properly).
If you wanted “not eating much,” you’d more likely say δεν έτρωγε πολύ (“it wasn’t eating much”).
Can Σήμερα move in the sentence, and does word order change emphasis?
Yes. Greek word order is flexible; moving Σήμερα changes emphasis more than meaning:
- Σήμερα πήγαμε το κατοικίδιο… (emphasis on today)
- Πήγαμε σήμερα το κατοικίδιο… (still “today,” slightly less foregrounded)
- Το κατοικίδιο πήγαμε σήμερα στον κτηνίατρο… (emphasis on the pet, often contrastive)
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