Learn Greek › C1 › κερνάω
κερνάω
to treat (someone) to a drink /cerˈna.o/
verbC1#3148 most common
Also: to buy someone a round, to serve/pour wine (older, literal sense)
Example sentences
Σε κερνάω καφέ.
I'll treat you to a coffee.
Ποιος κερνάει απόψε;
Who's buying tonight?
Ο Νίκος μας κέρασε όλους στο μπαρ.
Nikos treated all of us at the bar.
Θα σε κεράσω ένα ποτό για τα γενέθλιά σου.
I'll treat you to a drink for your birthday.
Στο γάμο, ο πατέρας της νύφης κερνούσε ούζο σε όλους τους καλεσμένους.
At the wedding, the bride's father was treating all the guests to ouzo.
Παλιά, όταν κάποιος έκλεινε μια καλή δουλειά, κερνούσε τους συναδέλφους του για να γιορτάσουν μαζί.
In the old days, when someone closed a good deal, he would treat his colleagues so they could celebrate together.
Conjugation
| Present Active | Simple Past Active | Simple Future Active | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | κερνάω / κερνώ | κέρασα | θα κεράσω |
| 2sg | κερνάς | κέρασες | θα κεράσεις |
| 3sg | κερνάει / κερνά | κέρασε | θα κεράσει |
| 1pl | κερνάμε | κεράσαμε | θα κεράσουμε |
| 2pl | κερνάτε | κεράσατε | θα κεράσετε |
| 3pl | κερνάνε / κερνούν | κέρασαν | θα κεράσουν |
Word family
κέρασμαa treat, a round of drinks bought for someone
κερασμένοςtreated, bought for (as in 'this coffee is on the house')
κεράστεplease help yourself / serve yourself
κεράννυμιto mix, especially wine with water
Etymology
Κερνάω comes from ancient κεράννυμι, meaning to mix, especially to mix wine with water before serving it, since Greeks rarely drank wine undiluted. Over time the act of mixing and pouring wine for guests shifted in meaning to the broader modern sense of treating someone to a drink or paying for their order. The verb kept the old stem κερν- and was refitted onto the common modern -άω conjugation pattern.
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