Η τύχη τη βοήθησε σήμερα, αλλά ξέρει ότι αύριο πρέπει να είναι έτοιμη χωρίς να βασίζεται μόνο σ’ αυτήν.

τη is the weak direct-object pronoun meaning her.

So in Η τύχη τη βοήθησε σήμερα:

• Η τύχη = the subject, luck
• τη = the object, her
• βοήθησε = helped

Greek often uses these short object pronouns before the verb, so the structure is literally something like Luck her helped today.

Both forms are related to the same pronoun, but in everyday Modern Greek the final -ν is often dropped in certain positions.

Here, τη appears before βοήθησε, and dropping the -ν is normal. So τη βοήθησε is the expected form.

A learner should mainly remember:

• τη = common shortened form
• την = fuller form, kept in some contexts depending on the following sound and style

So τη βοήθησε is completely natural.

Greek uses the definite article much more often than English, including with abstract nouns.

So Η τύχη can naturally mean luck in a general or contextually relevant sense. This is very normal Greek, even though English often leaves the article out.

βοήθησε is the aorist form of βοηθάω / βοηθώ, and it presents the action as a single completed event.

That fits the idea here: luck helped her today as one whole fact.

If Greek used an imperfect form instead, it would suggest ongoing, repeated, or background action. But βοήθησε simply states that the help happened.

Greek often omits subject pronouns when they are understood from context. This is very common.

So ξέρει by itself can mean:

• he knows
• she knows
• sometimes it knows, depending on context

Here, we understand the subject from the surrounding sentence. Later, έτοιμη shows that the person is feminine, so the intended subject is she.

έτοιμη is a feminine singular adjective, and it agrees with the understood subject.

Since the sentence refers to a woman or girl, Greek uses:

• έτοιμος for masculine
• έτοιμη for feminine
• έτοιμο for neuter

So πρέπει να είναι έτοιμη means that she must be ready.

In Modern Greek, πρέπει is normally followed by να plus a finite verb.

So:

• πρέπει να είναι = must be
• πρέπει να πάει = must go
• πρέπει να φύγει = must leave

This is one of the ways Greek does what English often does with an infinitive. Modern Greek generally does not use an infinitive the way English does, so να is essential here.

No. In Modern Greek, είναι is not an infinitive in the English sense.

In πρέπει να είναι, the pattern is:

• πρέπει = it is necessary / must
• να είναι = a να-clause

English learners often want to treat να είναι like to be, and that is useful for translation, but grammatically Greek is using να + a finite verb form, not an infinitive.

χωρίς να means without followed by a verbal clause.

So:

• χωρίς να βασίζεται = without relying

This is the normal Greek pattern. English can say without relying, but Greek uses χωρίς να + verb.

The form βασίζεται here shows an ongoing or general kind of action, which fits the meaning: she must be ready without being the kind of person who relies only on luck.

Because βασίζομαι is one of those Greek verbs that has middle/passive form but an active meaning.

Here it means rely or depend.

So:

• βασίζω = base something
• βασίζομαι σε = rely on, depend on

This is very common in Greek. A verb may look passive in form, but you still translate it actively in English.

This has two parts:

1. σ’ is a shortened form of σε
2. αυτήν is the pronoun after that preposition

So:

• σε αυτήν = on her / on it
• σ’ αυτήν = the contracted form before a vowel

The apostrophe shows that σε has been shortened.

This is used because βασίζομαι takes σε:

• βασίζομαι σε κάποιον / σε κάτι = rely on someone / something

So μόνο σ’ αυτήν means only on her/it, and here it refers back to τύχη.

Because the verb βασίζομαι does not take a direct object here. It requires σε + accusative.

So Greek needs the structure:

• βασίζεται σε κάτι = relies on something

That is why the sentence says σ’ αυτήν and not just a direct-object pronoun like την.

Also, αυτήν is stronger and clearer, especially when referring back to τύχη. It works well after a preposition.

Quite flexible. Greek word order is less rigid than English word order, although not completely free.

For example, σήμερα and αύριο can often move depending on emphasis:

• Η τύχη τη βοήθησε σήμερα
• Σήμερα η τύχη τη βοήθησε

Both are possible, but the nuance of emphasis changes slightly.

One thing that stays very common, though, is the position of weak object pronouns like τη before the finite verb. That is why τη βοήθησε sounds natural.