A collection of idiomatic expressions in Greek with English equivalents and translations.
| Idioms | English versions |
|---|---|
| μπαίνω στον κόπο (baíno ston kópo) |
to get in the trouble = to bother |
| μου ανέβηκε το αίμα στο κεφάλι (mou anévike to aíma sto kefáli) |
the blood climbed up my head = it made my blood boil |
| τα κάνω άνω κάτω (ta káno áno káto) |
to make them upside down = to create a mess |
| κάτσε στ'αβγά σο (kátse st avgá so) |
to sit on your eggs = to stay put, stay uninvolve |
| έγινε άλλος άνθρωπος (égine állos ánthropos) |
to became another person = about someone who changed a lot (usually positive) |
| κάνει τη πάπια (káni ti pápia) |
to do the duck = to keep quiet or not mention something in order to avoid being blamed for it |
| βγήκα απ'τα ρούχα μου (vyíka ap'ta roúkha mou) |
I came out of my clothes = I was enraged, livid, hopping mad |
| βρέχει καρεκλοπόδαρα (vrékhi kareklopódara) |
it's raining chair-legs = it's raining cats and dogs (it's raining hard) |
| είμαι ανοιχτό βιβλίο (ímai anikhtó vivlío) |
I am an open book = I am wearing my heart on my sleeve |
| μαύρη μέρα κι άραχνη (mávri méra ki árakhni) |
black day and spidery = to have a bad day |
| δεν ξέρω την τύφλα μου (den xéro tin típhla mou) |
I don't know my blindness = to be clueless or not know anything |
| μου έφαγες τα αυτιά (mou éphayes ta aftiá) |
You ate my ears = You're being too loud or talking too much, or too pushy |
| μου έφαγες τα αυτιά (mou éphayes ta aftiá) |
You ate my ears = You're being too loud or talking too much, or too pushy |
Some idioms and recordings provided by Danae Florou of Alpha Beta Greek
More Greek idioms
https://www.listenandlearn.org/blog/its-all-greek-to-me-7-great-greek-idioms/
https://matadornetwork.com/abroad/21-funniest-greek-expressions-use/1/
https://atyourservice.com.cy/blog/posts/idioms-english-greek
https://www.proz.com/glossary-translations/greek-to-english-translations/152
Information about Greek | Phrases | Numbers | Family words | Time | Idioms | Proverbs | Tongue twisters | Tower of Babel | Articles | Links | Learning materials | Books about the Greek alphabet
If you would like to make any corrections or additions to this page, or if you can provide recordings, please contact me.
It's all Greek to me | It's raining cats and dogs | As easy as falling off a log | A sandwich short of a picnic | It's small world | When pigs fly | Out of sight, out of mind | Crystal-clear | Penny Pinching | Practice makes perfect | The grass is always greener | As Snug as a Bug in a Rug
Czech | French | Greek | Icelandic | Lithuanian | Manx | Russian | Slovak | Spanish | Swedish | Welsh
Useful phrases | Silly phrases | Numbers | Numerals | Colours | Telling the time | Dates | Weather words | Family words | Terms of endearment | Language names | Country names | Idioms | Proverbs | Tongue twisters | Signs | Compass directions | UDHR | Tower of Babel | Songs | Omniglot | Seven dwarfs | Zodiac signs | Computer parts | Compass directions | Animal sounds
[top]
You can support this site by Buying Me A Coffee, and if you like what you see on this page, you can use the buttons below to share it with people you know.
If you like this site and find it useful, you can support it by making a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or by contributing in other ways. Omniglot is how I make my living.
Note: all links on this site to Amazon.com
[top]
