Όταν βλέπω αστραπή, κλείνω αμέσως το παράθυρο.

to see

Breakdown of Όταν βλέπω αστραπή, κλείνω αμέσως το παράθυρο.

• όταν: when
• κλείνω: to close
• το παράθυρο: the window

Questions & Answers about Όταν βλέπω αστραπή, κλείνω αμέσως το παράθυρο.

Does όταν mean when or whenever here?

Here it most naturally means whenever.

Because both clauses use the present tense, the sentence describes a habit or repeated reaction:

• Όταν βλέπω αστραπή, κλείνω αμέσως το παράθυρο.
• Whenever I see lightning, I immediately close the window.

If you were talking about one future occasion, Greek would normally use a different verb form:

• Όταν δω αστραπή, θα κλείσω αμέσως το παράθυρο.
• When I see lightning, I will immediately close the window.

Why are βλέπω and κλείνω in the present tense?

Because Greek often uses the present tense for habitual or general actions, just like English can use the simple present for routines.

So this sentence does not mean that the speaker is necessarily seeing lightning right now. It means this is what the speaker usually does in that situation.

Also, both forms are 1st person singular:

• βλέπω = I see
• κλείνω = I close

The ending helps show the subject, so Greek does not need a separate word for I.

Why is there no word for I in the sentence?