Learn Greek › B2 › χάλι
χάλι
mess, ruin, terrible state /ˈxa.li/
nounB2#2073 most common
Also: wreck, bad shape, awful condition
Example sentences
Το δωμάτιό μου είναι χάλια.
My room is a mess.
Είμαι χάλια σήμερα, δεν κοιμήθηκα καλά.
I feel awful today, I didn't sleep well.
Το αυτοκίνητο έγινε χάλι μετά το ατύχημα.
The car became a wreck after the accident.
Ο δρόμος είναι χάλια εξαιτίας των λακκούβων.
The road is in terrible condition because of the potholes.
Μετά το διαζύγιο, η ζωή του ήταν χάλια για μήνες.
After the divorce, his life was a mess for months.
Παρά τις μεταρρυθμίσεις, το σύστημα υγείας παραμένει σε χάλια κατάσταση εδώ και χρόνια.
Despite the reforms, the healthcare system has remained in an appalling state for years.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | το χάλι | τα χάλια |
| Genitive | του χαλιού | των χαλιών |
| Accusative | το χάλι | τα χάλια |
| Vocative | χάλι | χάλια |
Word family
χάλιa wreck, a ruin (singular, often of an object)
χάλιαa mess, terrible shape (plural, used of people, places, situations)
είμαι χάλιαto be in bad shape, to feel awful
στα χάλια μουin a wretched state, down and out
Etymology
Χάλι came into Greek from Turkish hal, meaning state or condition. Turkish took the word from Arabic حال (ḥāl), which also means state or condition. Greek narrowed the sense to a bad state, so today χάλι and its plural χάλια almost always carry a negative meaning, unlike the neutral source word.
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