ποιος είσαι;
poios eisai?
To ask "who are you?" in Greek, say ποιος είσαι.
ποιος είσαι asks for a person's identity. It is the singular, informal version used with friends, children or people you know well.
Which one should you use?
Ποια είσαι is used when you ask a woman informally. Ποιος είστε is the formal way to ask.
How does it change in a sentence?
When you ask a female about her identity, the question word changes to the feminine form ποια, giving ποια είσαι. Use ποιος είσαι for a male. The verb changes from είσαι to είστε for the formal or plural version.
How do you pronounce it?
It is pronounced poios eisai?
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use ποιος είσαι for a woman. Use ποια είσαι instead.
Did you know?
- Because the Greek verb είσαι encodes the person and number within itself, the word 'you' is completely invisible in the phrase.
- The word ποιος shares an ancient root with the English word 'who', both tracing back to the Proto-Indo-European root *kʷís.
- The verb είσαι comes from a root that evolved over thousands of years from Ancient Greek. This means you are using a grammatical structure that is recognizably related to the language of Plato and Aristotle.
Examples in context
- Τουρίστας: Καλημέρα, ποιος είστε εσείς;Tourist: Good morning, who are you?
- Συγγνώμη, ποιος είσαι;Sygnomi, poios eisai;Excuse me, who are you?
Example conversation
A man knocks on a woman's door at night.
- Αναστασία AnastasiaΠοιος είσαι;Poios eisai;Who are you?
- Κώστας KostasΕίμαι ο Κώστας, ο γείτονας.Eimai o Kostas, o geitonas.I am Kostas, the neighbor.
- Αναστασία AnastasiaΈλα μέσα, Κώστα.Ela mesa, Kosta.Come in, Kostas.
- Κώστας KostasΕυχαριστώ, Αναστασία.Efcharisto, Anastasia.Thank you, Anastasia.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ποιος, CC BY-SA 4.0.
