Learn Greek › B2 › κόφτο
κόφτο
limit (a point past which someone stops or should stop) /ˈkofto/
nounB2#2559 most common
Also: restraint, self-control, cutoff point
Example sentences
Ο Νίκος τρώει συνέχεια, δεν έχει κόφτο.
Nikos eats all the time, he has no restraint.
Δεν έχεις κόφτο όταν πίνεις.
You have no limit when you drink.
Πρέπει να βάλεις ένα κόφτο στα έξοδά σου.
You need to set a limit on your spending.
Η εταιρεία δεν έβαλε κόφτο στις υπερωρίες και οι υπάλληλοι εξαντλήθηκαν.
The company put no limit on overtime, and the staff wore themselves out.
Στην πολιτική συζήτηση, ο δημοσιογράφος δεν έβαλε κόφτο στις διακοπές του καλεσμένου.
In the political debate, the journalist put no stop to the guest's interruptions.
Η έλλειψη κόφτου στη δημόσια δαπάνη οδήγησε σε δημοσιονομική κρίση.
The lack of restraint in public spending led to a fiscal crisis.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | το κόφτο | τα κόφτα |
| Genitive | του κόφτου | των κόφτων |
| Accusative | το κόφτο | τα κόφτα |
| Vocative | κόφτο | κόφτα |
Word family
κόβωto cut
κόπτωto cut (formal register)
κόφτηςcutter; a person's sense of limit (masculine slang synonym)
κοπήcutting, a cut
κοφτερόςsharpEtymology
Κόφτο is a colloquial noun built on the verb κόβω/κόπτω, meaning to cut. The word treats a personal or practical limit as a place where something gets cut off. It functions as a plain nominal counterpart to the slang noun κόφτης, which carries the same sense of restraint. The deeper origin of κόπτω/κόβω is debated, with some scholars treating it as a word from a pre-Greek substrate rather than inherited Indo-European vocabulary, so no secure root can be given.
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