Η φίλη μου βάζει συχνά θαυμαστικό όταν είναι χαρούμενη.

Η is the feminine singular definite article, meaning the.

So:

• η φίλη = the friend / the female friend

Greek articles change for gender, number, and case, unlike English the, which always stays the same.

Because φίλη is the feminine form of friend, while φίλος is the masculine form.

• ο φίλος = the male friend
• η φίλη = the female friend

Since the person in the sentence is female, Greek uses φίλη.

μου means my here, so:

• η φίλη μου = my friend

In Greek, possessive words like μου usually come after the noun, not before it as in English.

Literally, Greek says something closer to:

• the friend my

But in natural English, that is simply my friend.

Also, μου is the same form for all genders and numbers in this type of use.

βάζει comes from βάζω, which literally means to put.

Here it does not mean physically putting something somewhere. In this sentence, it means something more like:

• uses
• puts in
• adds
• types/writes

So βάζει θαυμαστικό means puts an exclamation mark or uses an exclamation mark.

This is a very common thing in Greek: a verb may have a broader literal meaning, but in context it gets translated more naturally.

βάζει is the third person singular present tense form of βάζω.

It matches the subject:

• η φίλη μου = my friend = she

So:

• εγώ βάζω = I put
• εσύ βάζεις = you put
• αυτή βάζει = she puts

That is why βάζει is used here.

συχνά means often.

It is an adverb, so it describes how frequently the action happens:

• βάζει συχνά θαυμαστικό = often uses an exclamation mark

Greek adverbs can often move around more freely than in English. This sentence could also be phrased with συχνά in a slightly different position without changing the basic meaning.

For example:

• Η φίλη μου συχνά βάζει θαυμαστικό...

That also sounds natural.

Here θαυμαστικό is being used in a general sense, meaning an exclamation mark or exclamation marks in general.

Greek often leaves out the article in cases like this, especially when talking about something as a type of thing rather than a specific individual item.

So:

• βάζει θαυμαστικό = uses an exclamation mark / puts exclamation marks

If you said:

• βάζει ένα θαυμαστικό

that would sound more like she puts one exclamation mark specifically.

θαυμαστικό is neuter.

That is why its form looks different from η φίλη and χαρούμενη, which are feminine.

In this sentence, θαυμαστικό is the object of the verb βάζει.

Yes. Greek speakers often say simply θαυμαστικό, but it can also be understood as short for:

• θαυμαστικό σημείο = exclamation mark

In everyday language, just θαυμαστικό is very common and perfectly natural.

όταν means when.

It introduces a time clause:

• όταν είναι χαρούμενη = when she is happy

Depending on context, όταν can sometimes feel like when or whenever in English.

So this sentence can suggest a repeated habit:

• she often uses an exclamation mark when she is happy
• or whenever she is happy

Greek often drops subject pronouns when they are already clear from the context.

So instead of saying:

• όταν αυτή είναι χαρούμενη

Greek normally just says:

• όταν είναι χαρούμενη

The subject is understood to be the same person already mentioned: η φίλη μου.

This is very normal in Greek and is one of the big differences from English.

χαρούμενη means happy in the feminine singular form.

It agrees with η φίλη μου, which is feminine singular.

So the adjective must match the person it describes:

• χαρούμενος = happy, masculine
• χαρούμενη = happy, feminine
• χαρούμενο = happy, neuter

Because the friend is female, Greek uses χαρούμενη.

Because it is not being used as a noun phrase like the happy one. It is a predicate adjective after the verb είναι:

• είναι χαρούμενη = she is happy

In Greek, predicate adjectives normally appear without an article.

Compare:

• η χαρούμενη φίλη = the happy friend
• η φίλη είναι χαρούμενη = the friend is happy

A simple breakdown is:

• Η φίλη μου: nominative — the subject
• θαυμαστικό: accusative — the direct object
• χαρούμενη: adjective agreeing with the subject after είναι

So structurally:

• my friend = subject
• puts/uses = verb
• exclamation mark = object
• when she is happy = time clause

Yes, to some extent. Greek word order is more flexible than English word order.

For example, these are all possible with little or no change in basic meaning:

• Η φίλη μου βάζει συχνά θαυμαστικό όταν είναι χαρούμενη.
• Η φίλη μου συχνά βάζει θαυμαστικό όταν είναι χαρούμενη.

The version you were given is very natural. The choice of position can slightly affect emphasis, but the core meaning stays the same.

It can be understood in a general/habitual way here.

Because the main verb is present tense and συχνά means often, the sentence describes a repeated behavior:

• She often uses an exclamation mark when she’s happy.

So this is less about one single event and more about what she tends to do.

Yes, very naturally.

Because of βάζει θαυμαστικό, many learners will understand this as referring to writing, texting, messaging, emails, or online chat rather than spoken language.

In English, we might say:

• My friend often uses an exclamation mark when she’s happy.

So the sentence likely refers to punctuation in writing.