Learn Greek › B2 › λεει
λεει
he/she/it says /ˈle.i/
verbB2#2188 most common
Also: he/she tells, it states
Example sentences
Τι λέει το βιβλίο;
What does the book say?
Ο πατέρας μου λέει πάντα την αλήθεια.
My father always tells the truth.
Δεν ξέρω τι λέει αυτός ο άνθρωπος.
I don't know what this man is saying.
Λένε ότι θα βρέξει αύριο, αλλά αυτός λέει το αντίθετο.
They say it will rain tomorrow, but he says the opposite.
Ό,τι κι αν λέει ο κόσμος, εγώ θα κάνω αυτό που πιστεύω.
Whatever people say, I will do what I believe.
Το πώς το λέει κανείς έχει μεγαλύτερη σημασία από το τι λέει.
How someone says a thing matters more than what they say.
Conjugation
| Present Active | Simple Past Active | Simple Future Active | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | λέω | είπα | θα πω |
| 2sg | λες | είπες | θα πεις |
| 3sg | λέει | είπε | θα πει |
| 1pl | λέμε | είπαμε | θα πούμε |
| 2pl | λέτε | είπατε | θα πείτε |
| 3pl | λένε | είπαν | θα πουν |
Word family
λόγοςword, speech, reason
λεξικόdictionary
λεγόμενοςso-called
απολογίαapology, defense speech
διάλογοςdialogue
Etymology
Λέει comes from λέγω, the ancient Greek verb for speaking, which originally meant to gather or pick out. The sense shifted from collecting things to collecting words, and then to speaking them aloud. This is why Greek keeps two separate verbs for 'to say': λέω for everyday speech, and the older λέγω survives mainly in compounds and formal contexts.
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