Learn Hardcore Greek: Πήγα να ξεχάσω το ραντεβού μου, αλλά με ειδοποίησε έγκαιρα το κινητό. - I almost forgot my appointment, but my phone notified me in time.

Breakdown of Πήγα να ξεχάσω το ραντεβού μου, αλλά με ειδοποίησε έγκαιρα το κινητό.

Why does Πήγα να ξεχάσω mean I almost forgot? Doesn’t πήγα literally mean I went?

Yes, πήγα literally means I went, but πήγα να + verb is also a common idiomatic pattern in Greek.

In this pattern, it often means:

So Πήγα να ξεχάσω το ραντεβού μου is not understood as I went to forget my appointment, but as:

This is especially common with actions that nearly happened, often unexpectedly or undesirably.

For example:

Why is the verb ξεχάσω after να, and not ξέχασα?

Because after να, Greek does not use the normal past indicative form like ξέχασα.

Instead, it uses a subjunctive/non-indicative form. In this sentence, ξεχάσω is the form used after να.

So:

Here, ξεχάσω is based on the aorist/perfective stem, which fits well because forgetting the appointment is seen as a single whole event.

So: