Μην τρυπάς τον τοίχο χωρίς να ρωτήσεις τον ιδιοκτήτη.

Don't pierce the wall without asking the owner.

Breakdown of Μην τρυπάς τον τοίχο χωρίς να ρωτήσεις τον ιδιοκτήτη.

• μην: not
• ρωτάω: to ask
• ο τοίχος: the wall
• χωρίς να: without

Questions & Answers about Μην τρυπάς τον τοίχο χωρίς να ρωτήσεις τον ιδιοκτήτη.

Why is μην used instead of δεν?

Because μην is the negative particle used for commands and the subjunctive.

• Μην τρυπάς... = Don’t drill...
• Δεν τρυπάς... would mean You are not drilling... or You don’t drill...

So for negative instructions like don’t do X, Greek uses μη(ν), not δεν.

Why is the verb τρυπάς after μην? It looks like a normal present-tense form.

That is very common in Modern Greek. After μην, Greek uses the subjunctive, but for many verbs the form looks identical to the ordinary non-past form.

So in:

• μην τρυπάς

the form τρυπάς is functioning as the verb in a negative command. You can think of it as:

• don’t be drilling / don’t drill

Even though it looks like the everyday you drill / you are drilling, the presence of μην changes its job in the sentence.

Why is it μην τρυπάς and not μην τρυπήσεις?