Θέλεις να κάνουμε μια βουτιά πριν φάμε;

Θέλεις means you want or, in a question like this, do you want? It is the 2nd person singular form of θέλω (to want).

So it is addressed to one person, informally, like saying Do you want...? to a friend, partner, sibling, and so on.

Να is a very common Greek particle used before a verb in clauses like:

• I want to...
• Can I...
• Let's...
• It is necessary to...

In this sentence, θέλεις να κάνουμε... means something like do you want us to do... or do you want to... with the idea of a following action.

English often uses to here, but να is not exactly the same as English to in every situation. It is just the normal Greek way to introduce this kind of verb clause.

Because the two verbs have different subjects:

• Θέλεις = you want
• να κάνουμε = for us to do / that we do

So the sentence is not Do you want to take a swim? in the sense of you alone. It is more like:

• Do you want us to take a swim...?
• Do you want to go for a swim...? with you and me implied

The form κάνουμε is 1st person plural: we do / we make.

Formally, κάνουμε is the same shape as the present form we do / we are doing, but after να it functions as part of a subjunctive-style construction.

In Modern Greek, many verb forms look the same in the present and after να. So the important clue is the να, not a special verb ending.

Here, να κάνουμε means to do / for us to do / that we do, depending on how you translate it.

Literally, κάνουμε μια βουτιά means we make/do a dive/dip.

But the natural meaning is:

• take a dip
• go for a swim
• have a quick swim

Greek often uses κάνω (do/make) with a noun to express an action, just as English says take a walk, have a look, and so on.

So κάνουμε μια βουτιά is a very natural Greek expression.

Because βουτιά is a feminine noun, so it takes the feminine form μια (a / one).

• μια βουτιά = a dip / a swim

You may also see μία with a fuller spelling, but μια is extremely common in everyday writing.

Βουτιά literally means something like:

• dive
• dip
• plunge

But in everyday speech, μια βουτιά can also mean a quick swim or a dip in the water.

So in this sentence it does not necessarily mean a dramatic dive into the sea. It more generally suggests going into the water for a swim/dip.

Because πριν (before) is followed here by a form that refers to a single, complete event: before we eat.

• φάμε is the natural form here for before we eat
• τρώμε would sound like we are eating / we eat habitually, which does not fit as well

So πριν φάμε means before we eat as one whole event in the future.

Φάμε is the 1st person plural form used here from the verb meaning to eat, connected with the aorist stem.

Greek uses different stems for this verb:

• τρώω = I eat / I am eating
• έφαγα = I ate
• να φάμε = for us to eat / let's eat / that we eat, depending on context

So in this sentence, πριν φάμε is the normal way to say before we eat.

A useful contrast is:

• τρώμε = we are eating / we eat
• φάμε = we eat as a single complete action, often after words like να, όταν, πριν, etc.

Yes, you may hear πριν να φάμε, and it is understandable Greek. But πριν φάμε is very common and very natural.

So for a learner, πριν φάμε is an excellent pattern to remember.

It is informal, because it uses Θέλεις, the singular informal you form.

If you were speaking to more than one person, or speaking politely to one person, you would use Θέλετε:

Θέλετε να κάνουμε μια βουτιά πριν φάμε;

That means Do you want us to take a swim before we eat? addressed politely or to a group.

Because in Greek, the question mark is written as ;

So:

• Greek ; = English ?

That means Θέλεις να κάνουμε μια βουτιά πριν φάμε; is a normal Greek question.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

THE-lis na KA-nou-me MIA vou-TYA prin FA-me?

A more careful transliteration would be:

Thélis na kánoume mia voutiá prin fáme?

A few helpful notes:

• Θ sounds like th in think
• θέλεις sounds roughly like THE-lis
• βουτιά has the stress on the last syllable: vou-TYA
• φάμε sounds roughly like FA-me