Breakdown of Πρέπει να στείλω την αίτηση μέχρι την Κυριακή.
Questions & Answers about Πρέπει να στείλω την αίτηση μέχρι την Κυριακή.
Πρέπει is the usual Greek way to express necessity: must, have to, need to.
A key difference from English is that πρέπει is usually impersonal. It does not really mean I must by itself; more literally, it is closer to it is necessary.
So:
- Πρέπει να στείλω... = I must send... / I have to send...
- literally: It is necessary that I send...
That is why πρέπει stays the same no matter who the person is:
- Πρέπει να στείλω = I must send
- Πρέπει να στείλεις = you must send
- Πρέπει να στείλει = he/she must send
The person changes in the verb after να, not in πρέπει.
In Modern Greek, να is very commonly used before a verb where English might use an infinitive such as to send.
English says:
- I must send
Greek cannot simply say a direct equivalent of must send with an infinitive, because Modern Greek does not use the old infinitive in normal speech. Instead, it uses:
- πρέπει να στείλω
So να introduces the verb clause after πρέπει.
A useful way to think of it is:
- πρέπει να... = must / have to...
You will see this pattern constantly:
- Θέλω να φύγω = I want to leave
- Μπορώ να έρθω = I can come
- Πρέπει να στείλω = I must send