Δυσκολεύομαι να επιλέξω ποιο βιβλίο να πάρω σήμερα.

Δυσκολεύομαι means I have difficulty, I find it hard, or I struggle.

It comes from δυσκολεύω / δυσκολεύομαι and is very commonly used in Greek to talk about difficulty doing something:

• Δυσκολεύομαι να καταλάβω. = I have trouble understanding.
• Δυσκολεύεται να μιλήσει. = He/She has difficulty speaking.

In this sentence, Δυσκολεύομαι να επιλέξω... means I’m finding it hard to choose...

A learner may notice that the form looks like a middle/passive form. That is true grammatically, but in practice you should learn δυσκολεύομαι as the normal verb for I have difficulty / I struggle.

In Greek, many verbs are followed by να plus another verb to express to do something, that someone do something, or an action that is intended, possible, desired, difficult, etc.

So:

• Δυσκολεύομαι να επιλέξω = I struggle to choose

English uses an infinitive (to choose), but Modern Greek does not use an infinitive in this way. Instead, it uses:

• να
  • verb form

This is one of the most important structural differences from English.

After να, Greek usually uses the subjunctive, and very often the aorist subjunctive when talking about a single complete action.

Here:

• επιλέγω = I choose / I am choosing (present)
• να επιλέξω = to choose / that I choose as one complete act

Since choosing a book is viewed as a single completed decision, Greek naturally uses the aorist form:

• να επιλέξω

If you said να επιλέγω, it would sound more like to be choosing habitually or to choose repeatedly, which does not fit this sentence well.

Because there are two linked actions:

1. να επιλέξω = to choose
2. να πάρω = to take / get

So the sentence is literally structured like:

• I struggle [to choose] [which book to take today].

More analytically:

• Δυσκολεύομαι να επιλέξω = I struggle to choose
• ποιο βιβλίο να πάρω σήμερα = which book to take today

Greek often repeats να in embedded clauses where English would just use one infinitive structure.

ποιο βιβλίο means which book.

ποιο is the interrogative/relative-like word which, and it must agree with the noun it refers to:

• βιβλίο is neuter singular
• so the matching form is ποιο

Examples of agreement:

• ποιος άνθρωπος = which person (masculine)
• ποια μέρα = which day (feminine)
• ποιο βιβλίο = which book (neuter)

So ποιο is used simply because βιβλίο is neuter.

Because ποιο means which, while τι means what.

• ποιο βιβλίο = which book
  implies a choice among identifiable options
• τι βιβλίο = what kind of book / what book
  can sound broader or less specific

In this sentence, the speaker is choosing among books, so ποιο βιβλίο is the natural choice.

Yes, πάρω is from παίρνω and literally means take, but in Greek it is used very broadly. Depending on context, it can mean:

• take
• get
• pick
• buy
• have
• receive

So ποιο βιβλίο να πάρω can mean:

• which book to take
• which book to get
• sometimes even which book to buy, depending on context

Greek uses παίρνω much more widely than English uses take.

This is the same pattern as επιλέξω.

After να, Greek often uses the aorist subjunctive for a single complete action:

• παίρνω = I take / I am taking
• να πάρω = to take / that I take, as one complete act

Here, the speaker is thinking about one decision today: choosing one book and taking it. So να πάρω fits naturally.

Yes, very often you could.

• επιλέγω / επιλέξω = choose, select
• διαλέγω / διαλέξω = choose, pick out

In everyday speech, many Greeks would naturally say:

• Δυσκολεύομαι να διαλέξω ποιο βιβλίο να πάρω σήμερα.

This is very close in meaning.
A rough nuance is:

• επιλέγω can sound a little more neutral or slightly more formal
• διαλέγω often sounds a bit more everyday and conversational

But both are completely normal.

σήμερα means today.

Here it modifies the idea of taking/getting the book today. Greek often puts time words like this toward the end of the sentence, though word order is flexible.

So:

• ποιο βιβλίο να πάρω σήμερα = which book to take/get today

You could move σήμερα earlier for emphasis, but the given order is very natural.

Greek word order is more flexible than English word order, because endings and particles like να help show the relationships.

The original sentence is very natural:

• Δυσκολεύομαι να επιλέξω ποιο βιβλίο να πάρω σήμερα.

But you might also hear variations such as:

• Δυσκολεύομαι να επιλέξω σήμερα ποιο βιβλίο να πάρω.
• Ποιο βιβλίο να πάρω σήμερα δυσκολεύομαι να επιλέξω.
  This is possible, but much more marked and less neutral.

So the original version is the best one to learn as the standard, natural phrasing.

It is neutral standard Greek. It works well in both speech and writing.

It is not especially formal, but it is also not slangy. A native speaker could easily say it in normal conversation.

If someone wanted to sound a bit more casual, they might choose a slightly different verb, such as:

• Δυσκολεύομαι να διαλέξω ποιο βιβλίο να πάρω σήμερα.

But the original sentence is completely natural and standard.

A useful way to break it down is:

• Δυσκολεύομαι = I struggle / I have difficulty
• να επιλέξω = to choose
• ποιο βιβλίο = which book
• να πάρω = to take/get
• σήμερα = today

So the underlying pattern is:

• I struggle + να + verb
• which + noun + να + verb
• today

A very literal guide would be:

• I struggle to choose which book to take today.

That helps show why there are two να clauses: Greek is building the sentence with clause-like verb forms where English uses infinitives.