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Η συνάδελφος, το email της οποίας διάβασα χτες, μου έστειλε και το σωστό αρχείο σήμερα.

Η συνάδελφος, το email της οποίας διάβασα χτες, μου έστειλε και το σωστό αρχείο σήμερα.
The colleague, whose email I read yesterday, also sent me the correct file today.
FromLesson 85inHardcore Greek

Questions & Answers about Η συνάδελφος, το email της οποίας διάβασα χτες, μου έστειλε και το σωστό αρχείο σήμερα.

What does της οποίας mean here?

It means whose.

So το email της οποίας literally means the email of whom, which is how Greek expresses whose email in a more formal style.

Breakdown:

  • της = of the / her
  • οποίας = which one / whom, in the feminine genitive singular

Together, της οποίας refers back to η συνάδελφος and means whose.

So:

  • Η συνάδελφος, το email της οποίας διάβασα χτες, ...
  • The colleague, whose email I read yesterday, ...
Why is it της οποίας and not just που?

Because Greek has two common ways to make relative clauses:

  1. που
    This is the everyday, very common option.

  2. ο οποίος / η οποία / το οποίο and its forms
    This is more formal, more explicit, and often used in writing.

In this sentence, της οποίας is the formal relative form. A more everyday version would often be:

Η συνάδελφος, που διάβασα το email της χτες, μου έστειλε και το σωστό αρχείο σήμερα.

That version is very natural in speech.

So the sentence you were given is correct, but slightly more formal or written in tone.

Why is της οποίας in the genitive?

Because it shows possession.

The idea is:

  • the email belongs to the colleague
  • so Greek uses the genitive: the email of whom

That is exactly what English whose does.

Here is the structure:

  • η συνάδελφος = the colleague
  • το email της οποίας = whose email / the email of whom

So της οποίας is genitive because it depends on email and shows ownership.

Why does the sentence start with Η συνάδελφος instead of just συνάδελφος?

Greek uses the definite article much more often than English.

So η συνάδελφος is completely normal Greek for:

  • the colleague
  • and depending on context, it may even correspond to English my colleague or that colleague

Greek often includes the article with nouns where English might not.

Also, συνάδελφος is one of those nouns that can be used for either a man or a woman:

  • ο συνάδελφος = male colleague
  • η συνάδελφος = female colleague

So here η tells you the colleague is female.

Why is email written as το email? Is it a Greek word?

email is a borrowed word from English, and in Modern Greek it is very commonly used as an indeclinable noun.

That means the form email itself usually does not change, but Greek still gives it:

  • a gender
  • an article

Here it is treated as neuter, so:

  • το email

You will often see borrowed words work like this in Greek:

  • το ίντερνετ
  • το σάιτ
  • το μέιλ / το email

Some speakers may also prefer more Greek-looking spellings such as ιμέιλ, but email is very common.

Why is there a comma before and after το email της οποίας διάβασα χτες?

Because this is a non-restrictive relative clause.

That middle part is extra information about the colleague:

  • Η συνάδελφος, το email της οποίας διάβασα χτες, ...

The sentence is not trying to identify which colleague out of many. It is assuming you already know which colleague is meant, and then it adds extra information about her.

That is why the clause is set off with commas, just like in English:

  • My colleague, whose email I read yesterday, ...

If the clause were essential for identifying the person, the punctuation would be different.

Why is μου before έστειλε?

Because μου is a weak object pronoun, also called a clitic, and these usually come before the finite verb in Modern Greek.

So:

  • μου έστειλε = sent me

This word order is standard:

  • μου είπε = told me
  • μου έδωσε = gave me
  • μου έστειλε = sent me

You usually do not say:

  • έστειλε μου

That would sound wrong in standard Modern Greek.

What exactly does και mean here?

Here και means also / too, not just plain and.

So:

  • μου έστειλε και το σωστό αρχείο σήμερα means
  • she also sent me the correct file today

The sense is something like:

  • I read her email yesterday,
  • and today she also sent me the correct file.

In Greek, και often covers both meanings:

  • and
  • also / too / even, depending on context

Here it clearly has the also meaning.

Why is διάβασα used here? What tense is it?

διάβασα is the aorist form of διαβάζω.

The Greek aorist usually expresses a single completed action:

  • I read
  • I did read
  • I finished reading

So in this sentence:

  • διάβασα χτες = I read yesterday

It refers to a completed event in the past, which fits perfectly here.

If Greek wanted to emphasize an ongoing or repeated action in the past, it would use the imperfect instead.

Why is it σωστό αρχείο and not αρχείο σωστό?

Because in Greek, adjectives often come before the noun, especially in neutral, normal descriptions.

So:

  • το σωστό αρχείο = the correct file

This is the standard order.

Greek adjectives must agree with the noun in:

  • gender
  • number
  • case

Here:

  • αρχείο is neuter singular nominative/accusative
  • so the adjective is σωστό, also neuter singular

You can sometimes place the adjective after the noun in Greek, but that usually has a different style or emphasis. In this sentence, το σωστό αρχείο is the natural choice.

Why is it χτες and not χθες?

Both are correct.

  • χτες is a very common modern spoken form
  • χθες is a more conservative spelling/form, but also common

They both mean yesterday.

So:

  • διάβασα χτες
  • διάβασα χθες

Both are fine. The version with χτες often feels a bit more everyday and conversational.

Could the time words χτες and σήμερα go in other places?

Yes. Greek word order is fairly flexible, especially with time expressions.

Your sentence has:

  • διάβασα χτες
  • έστειλε ... σήμερα

That is very natural.

But Greek could also say:

  • Η συνάδελφος, το email της οποίας χτες διάβασα, μου έστειλε και το σωστό αρχείο σήμερα.
  • Η συνάδελφος, το email της οποίας διάβασα χτες, σήμερα μου έστειλε και το σωστό αρχείο.

These are possible, but the original version is smoother and more neutral.

So the placement of χτες and σήμερα is natural, not the only possible one.

Is this sentence something people would actually say in everyday Greek?

Yes, but with one small note: της οποίας sounds more formal than everyday speech.

A native speaker in casual conversation would more likely say something like:

Η συνάδελφος, που διάβασα το email της χτες, μου έστειλε και το σωστό αρχείο σήμερα.

That sounds more conversational.

The version with της οποίας is absolutely correct, but it feels a bit more careful, written, or formal. So it is useful to understand, especially in writing, but you will probably hear που more often in daily life.

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