Σηκώνω το χέρι μου όταν θέλω να κάνω μια ερώτηση.

Σηκώνω is the 1st person singular present form, so it means I raise / I lift.

In this sentence, it means I raise my hand.

A useful thing to know is that σηκώνω can mean different things depending on context:

• σηκώνω το χέρι μου = I raise my hand
• σηκώνω μια βαλίτσα = I lift a suitcase
• sometimes it can even mean pick up or get up, depending on the object and situation

So the object tells you a lot about the meaning.

Greek often uses the definite article where English might not, especially with:

• body parts
• possessions
• general everyday nouns

So το χέρι μου literally looks like the hand my, but it means my hand.

This is completely normal Greek structure. With body parts, Greek very often says:

• το κεφάλι μου = my head
• τα μάτια μου = my eyes
• το πόδι μου = my leg

So το χέρι μου is the natural way to say my hand.

In Greek, weak possessive forms like μου, σου, του, της usually come after the noun.

So:

• το χέρι μου = my hand
• η τσάντα σου = your bag
• το βιβλίο του = his book

This is different from English, where the possessive comes before the noun.

So Greek says:

• the hand my rather than
• my hand

That word order is standard and very common.

Χέρι is a neuter noun, so it takes the neuter singular article το in the nominative/accusative singular.

That is why you get:

• το χέρι

Greek nouns have grammatical gender:

• masculine
• feminine
• neuter

You often just have to learn the noun together with its article:

• το χέρι
• η ερώτηση
• ο άνθρωπος

That helps you remember gender and the correct agreement.

Modern Greek does not use an infinitive the way English does. Instead, after verbs like θέλω (I want), Greek usually uses:

να + verb

So:

• θέλω να κάνω = I want to do / I want to make
• θέλω να πάω = I want to go
• θέλω να δω = I want to see

In English, we say I want to ask.
In Greek, the pattern is more like I want that I ask/do, though you should think of να + verb as the normal equivalent of an English infinitive construction.

Because Greek often uses the expression:

κάνω μια ερώτηση = ask a question

Literally, it is make/do a question, but idiomatically it means ask a question.

This kind of verb+noun combination is very common in Greek, just as English has expressions like:

• take a walk
• have a look
• make a decision

So even though English uses the verb ask, Greek commonly says κάνω μια ερώτηση.

Yes, often you can express a similar idea with ρωτάω / ρωτώ (I ask) or a form of ρωτήσω in a να clause.

For example:

• Σηκώνω το χέρι μου όταν θέλω να ρωτήσω. = I raise my hand when I want to ask.

But there is a small nuance:

• κάνω μια ερώτηση focuses on asking a question
• ρωτάω is the direct verb ask

Both are natural, but κάνω μια ερώτηση is a very common everyday expression.

Because ερώτηση is a feminine noun.

So the feminine form of one / a is:

• μια (or μία in more careful spelling)

Compare:

• μια ερώτηση = a question
• ένα βιβλίο = a book
• ένας άνθρωπος = a person / a man

The article/number word must agree with the noun’s gender.

They are basically the same word. Both mean a / one in the feminine singular.

• μια is the very common everyday spelling
• μία may be used when someone wants to show the stress more clearly or be a bit more formal/careful

In most learner situations, you can treat them as the same word.

Όταν means when.

It introduces a time clause:

• όταν θέλω να κάνω μια ερώτηση = when I want to ask a question

So the whole sentence has:

• a main clause: Σηκώνω το χέρι μου
• a subordinate clause: όταν θέλω να κάνω μια ερώτηση

This is a very common conjunction in Greek for repeated or general situations.

Because the sentence describes a habitual action or a general rule:

• Σηκώνω = I raise
• θέλω = I want
• κάνω = I ask/make

The idea is not about one specific occasion, but about what I generally do:

• I raise my hand when I want to ask a question

Greek often uses the present tense here exactly as English does for habits and routines.

Greek word order is fairly flexible, although some orders sound more neutral than others.

The given sentence is very natural:

• Σηκώνω το χέρι μου όταν θέλω να κάνω μια ερώτηση.

But you could also say:

• Όταν θέλω να κάνω μια ερώτηση, σηκώνω το χέρι μου.

That puts more emphasis on the when-clause first, similar to English:

• When I want to ask a question, I raise my hand.

So yes, the order can change, but the original version is a perfectly normal neutral sentence.

It is in the accusative, because it is the direct object of σηκώνω.

You are raising what?

• το χέρι μου

For this noun, the nominative and accusative singular look the same:

• nominative: το χέρι
• accusative: το χέρι

So you cannot see a form change here, but grammatically it is the object, so it is accusative.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

See-KO-no to HE-ri moo O-tan THE-lo na KA-no mya e-RO-ti-see

A few helpful notes:

• η / ι / υ / ει / οι are all pronounced like ee in Modern Greek
• χ in χέρι is not like English ch; it is a throaty sound, somewhat like the h in some pronunciations of Scottish loch
• the stressed syllables are marked by the accent:
  • σηκώνω
  • χέρι
  • όταν
  • θέλω
  • κάνω
  • ερώτηση

Paying attention to the written accent marks is very helpful in Greek pronunciation.