Questions & Answers about Κάνω περίπου είκοσι λεπτά να φτάσω στη δουλειά με τη μοτοσικλέτα, αν δεν έχει κίνηση.
Why does κάνω mean it takes here? I thought κάνω meant do or make.
Yes, κάνω very often means do or make, but in Greek it is also used in time expressions to mean take.
So:
- Κάνω είκοσι λεπτά = I take twenty minutes
- Κάνω περίπου είκοσι λεπτά να φτάσω = It takes me about twenty minutes to arrive
This is a very common Greek structure:
- Κάνω + amount of time + να + verb
Examples:
- Κάνω δέκα λεπτά να ετοιμαστώ. = It takes me ten minutes to get ready.
- Κάνει μία ώρα να πάμε εκεί. = It takes an hour for us to get there.
So here κάνω is not about making something; it is about the amount of time needed.
Why is there να φτάσω after κάνω περίπου είκοσι λεπτά?
Because Greek usually says it takes X time to do something with the pattern:
- κάνω + time expression + να + verb
So να φτάσω means to arrive / for me to arrive in this structure.
Literally, the sentence is something like:
- I do about twenty minutes to arrive at work...
but natural English is:
- It takes me about twenty minutes to get to work...
The να introduces the action that takes that amount of time.
Why is it φτάσω and not φτάνω?
Because after να, Greek often uses the form associated with the aorist subjunctive when talking about a single completed action.
Here, φτάσω means arrive as a complete event: reaching work.
Compare:
- να φτάσω = to arrive, to reach the destination
- να φτάνω = to be arriving / to arrive habitually or continuously
In this sentence, the speaker means the whole trip up to the moment of arrival, so να φτάσω is the natural choice.
This is very common after να:
- Θέλω να πάω. = I want to go.
- Μπορώ να έρθω; = Can I come?
- Κάνω είκοσι λεπτά να φτάσω. = It takes me twenty minutes to arrive.
What exactly does περίπου do, and where can it go in the sentence?
Περίπου means about / approximately.
In Κάνω περίπου είκοσι λεπτά, it modifies είκοσι λεπτά:
- about twenty minutes
This is the most natural position here, directly before the number.
You may also hear similar placement in other sentences:
- Περίπου είκοσι άτομα ήρθαν. = About twenty people came.
- Θα έρθω σε περίπου δέκα λεπτά. = I’ll come in about ten minutes.
So in your sentence, περίπου simply softens the number and makes it approximate instead of exact.
Why is it στη δουλειά and not σε τη δουλειά?
Because στη is the contracted form of:
- σε + τη = στη
So:
- στη δουλειά = to work / at work
- literally: to the work/job
This contraction is extremely common in modern Greek:
- στο = σε + το
- στη = σε + τη
- στην = σε + την
- στους = σε + τους
- στις = σε + τις
Examples:
- Πάω στο σπίτι. = I’m going home.
- Είμαι στη δουλειά. = I’m at work.
- Πηγαίνω στην Αθήνα. = I’m going to Athens.
Does στη δουλειά mean to the job, to work, or at work?
It can mean different things depending on context, but in this sentence στη δουλειά means to work.
Greek often uses η δουλειά literally the work / the job, but in everyday speech:
- πάω στη δουλειά = go to work
- είμαι στη δουλειά = be at work
- γυρίζω από τη δουλειά = come back from work
So even though the Greek has the article τη, the English translation usually does not:
- στη δουλειά → to work, not usually to the work
Why does Greek say με τη μοτοσικλέτα? Is that the normal way to say by motorcycle?
Yes. Greek commonly uses με + accusative to express the means of transport.
So:
- με τη μοτοσικλέτα = by motorcycle / on the motorcycle
- literally: with the motorcycle
Other examples:
- με το αυτοκίνητο = by car
- με το λεωφορείο = by bus
- με το τρένο = by train
- με τα πόδια = on foot
English uses several different prepositions here, but Greek often just uses με.
Why is there an article in με τη μοτοσικλέτα? English usually says by motorcycle, not by the motorcycle.
Greek uses the definite article much more often than English.
So με τη μοτοσικλέτα is perfectly normal Greek, even though literal English would be with the motorcycle.
In natural English we usually drop the article in this situation:
- by motorcycle
- by car
- by bus
But in Greek, keeping the article is standard:
- με το αυτοκίνητο
- με τη μοτοσικλέτα
- με το ποδήλατο
So this is a good example of where you should not translate word for word.
What does αν δεν έχει κίνηση mean literally, and why does Greek use έχει here?
Literally, αν δεν έχει κίνηση is something like:
- if it doesn’t have traffic
But natural English is:
- if there isn’t traffic
- if there’s no traffic
Greek very often uses έχει in an impersonal way to mean there is / there are, especially in everyday speech.
So:
- Έχει κόσμο. = There are people / It’s crowded.
- Δεν έχει χρόνο. = There isn’t time.
- Έχει κίνηση. = There is traffic.
In this sentence:
- αν = if
- δεν έχει = there isn’t / it doesn’t have
- κίνηση = traffic
So the whole part means if there’s no traffic.
What does κίνηση mean exactly? Does it always mean traffic?
Not always. The basic meaning of κίνηση is movement.
Depending on context, it can mean:
- movement
- motion
- traffic
- activity
In everyday travel situations, έχει κίνηση specifically means there is traffic or traffic is heavy.
Examples:
- Στον δρόμο έχει πολλή κίνηση. = There’s a lot of traffic on the road.
- Δεν έχει κίνηση σήμερα. = There’s no traffic today.
So in your sentence, because the context is getting to work, κίνηση clearly means traffic.
Why is λεπτά in this form? Shouldn’t numbers affect the noun somehow?
They do, and this is the normal form.
- λεπτό = minute
- λεπτά = minutes
After numbers above 1, Greek uses the plural:
- ένα λεπτό = one minute
- δύο λεπτά = two minutes
- είκοσι λεπτά = twenty minutes
So είκοσι λεπτά is exactly what you would expect.
Also notice there is no article here, because it is just a quantity expression:
- about twenty minutes
Is the whole sentence in the present tense even though it talks about a repeated routine?
Yes. Κάνω and έχει are both present tense forms, and that is normal.
Greek present tense often covers:
- what is happening now
- general truths
- habits and routines
So Κάνω περίπου είκοσι λεπτά να φτάσω στη δουλειά... means something like:
- It takes me about twenty minutes to get to work
- I usually take about twenty minutes to get to work
It describes a typical situation, not just one trip happening right now.
Could I also say Πηγαίνω στη δουλειά με τη μοτοσικλέτα...? What is the difference?
Yes, but it would mean something slightly different.
- Πηγαίνω στη δουλειά με τη μοτοσικλέτα. = I go to work by motorcycle.
- Κάνω περίπου είκοσι λεπτά να φτάσω στη δουλειά με τη μοτοσικλέτα. = It takes me about twenty minutes to get to work by motorcycle.
So:
- πηγαίνω focuses on the fact of going
- κάνω ... λεπτά να φτάσω focuses on the duration of the trip
They can be combined:
- Πηγαίνω στη δουλειά με τη μοτοσικλέτα και κάνω περίπου είκοσι λεπτά να φτάσω.
- I go to work by motorcycle and it takes me about twenty minutes to get there.
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