Breakdown of Η συνεργάτιδά μου είναι πολύ απασχολημένη αυτή την εβδομάδα, αλλά προσπαθεί να με βοηθήσει όποτε μπορεί.
Questions & Answers about Η συνεργάτιδά μου είναι πολύ απασχολημένη αυτή την εβδομάδα, αλλά προσπαθεί να με βοηθήσει όποτε μπορεί.
Is συνεργάτιδα specifically feminine?
Yes. Η συνεργάτιδα refers to a female colleague, coworker, or collaborator. The masculine form is ο συνεργάτης.
A learner may also hear ο/η συνάδελφος, which is very common for colleague and can refer to either a man or a woman.
Why does the sentence start with η?
Η is the definite article, meaning the.
Here it is:
- feminine
- singular
- nominative
It matches συνεργάτιδα, which is the subject of the sentence.
Why is it η συνεργάτιδά μου and not η συνεργάτιδα μου?
Because μου is an enclitic possessive pronoun, meaning my here.
In Greek, possession is very often expressed as:
article + noun + possessive pronoun
So:
- η συνεργάτιδά μου = my colleague
The extra accent in συνεργάτιδά happens because συνεργάτιδα is normally stressed on the third syllable from the end, and when an enclitic like μου follows, Greek spelling adds an extra accent to the final syllable of the noun:
- συνεργάτιδα
- συνεργάτιδά μου
This is a normal stress rule.
Why is μου placed after the noun?
That is the normal Greek pattern for simple possession.
Greek usually says:
- η φίλη μου = my friend
- το σπίτι μου = my house
- η συνεργάτιδά μου = my colleague
If you want extra emphasis, Greek often uses δικός μου / δική μου / δικό μου:
- η δική μου συνεργάτιδα
But in a neutral sentence, η συνεργάτιδά μου is the natural choice.
Why is it απασχολημένη and not απασχολημένος?
Because it has to agree with the subject.
The subject is η συνεργάτιδά μου, which is feminine singular, so the adjective/participle must also be feminine singular:
- απασχολημένος = masculine
- απασχολημένη = feminine
- απασχολημένο = neuter
So:
- Η συνεργάτιδά μου είναι πολύ απασχολημένη
Why is it πολύ and not πολλή?
Because πολύ here is an adverb meaning very, and it modifies απασχολημένη.
So:
- πολύ απασχολημένη = very busy
By contrast, πολλή is an adjective meaning much / a lot of with a feminine noun:
- πολλή δουλειά = a lot of work
So the difference is:
- πολύ
- adjective/adverb = very
- πολλή
- feminine noun = much / a lot of
Why is it αυτή την εβδομάδα and not αυτή η εβδομάδα?
Because this is a time expression, and Greek uses the accusative for expressions like this week, this year, that day, etc.
So:
- αυτή η εβδομάδα = this week as a subject
- αυτή την εβδομάδα = this week as a time expression, meaning during this week
Also, Greek normally uses: demonstrative + article + noun
So:
- αυτή την εβδομάδα
not just
- αυτή εβδομάδα
Why is it την and not τη before εβδομάδα?
Because εβδομάδα starts with a vowel, so the final -ν is kept.
That is why you get:
- αυτή την εβδομάδα
The short form τη is often used before certain consonants in less careful speech or writing, but before a vowel, την is standard.
What does να do in προσπαθεί να με βοηθήσει?
Να introduces a subordinate verb clause. In many cases, it corresponds to English to + verb.
So:
- προσπαθεί να με βοηθήσει = she tries to help me
Modern Greek does not use an infinitive the way English does. Instead, it usually uses:
- να
- verb form
That is why Greek says something more like:
- she tries that she help me even though the natural English translation is she tries to help me.
Why is it να με βοηθήσει, and why με rather than μου?
Με means me as a weak object pronoun, and it comes before the verb in this kind of clause:
- να με βοηθήσει
It is με, not μου, because βοηθάω / βοηθώ takes a direct object in Modern Greek:
- βοηθάω κάποιον = I help someone
So:
- με βοηθάει = she helps me
not
- μου βοηθάει
Also, weak object pronouns normally go before the verb in ordinary statements and να-clauses.
Is βοηθήσει a future tense form?
Not here.
Βοηθήσει looks like the form used after θα, but in this sentence it comes after να, so it is not future tense. It is the perfective verb form used in a να-clause.
Compare:
- θα με βοηθήσει = she will help me
- να με βοηθήσει = to help me / that she help me
So in this sentence, βοηθήσει does not mean future by itself.
Why use βοηθήσει instead of βοηθάει after να?
This is a question of aspect.
- να με βοηθήσει presents the helping as a whole, complete act
- να με βοηθάει would suggest more continuous or repeated helping
In this sentence, προσπαθεί να με βοηθήσει όποτε μπορεί means she tries, on each occasion when she can, to help. Greek naturally uses the perfective form βοηθήσει for that.
What does όποτε μπορεί mean, and how is it different from όταν μπορεί?
Όποτε means whenever or any time that.
So:
- όποτε μπορεί = whenever she can
This suggests repeated or indefinite occasions.
By contrast:
- όταν usually means when
So:
- όταν μπορεί can sometimes work in similar contexts, but όποτε μπορεί is a better match for whenever she can.
Why is there a comma before αλλά?
Because αλλά means but, and here it joins two full clauses:
- Η συνεργάτιδά μου είναι πολύ απασχολημένη αυτή την εβδομάδα
- αλλά προσπαθεί να με βοηθήσει όποτε μπορεί
Greek commonly uses a comma before αλλά in this kind of sentence, much like English often uses a comma before but.
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