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Verbal Aspect

Perfective vs imperfective stems

Every verb has two stems: imperfective and perfective

Imperfective conveys ongoing/habitual action; perfective conveys completion.

💬 Examples
γράφ- (imperfective) / γράψ- (perfective)
write (ongoing) / write (complete)
📝 same verb, two stems
διαβάζ- / διαβάσ-
read (ongoing) / read (complete)
📝 imperfective vs perfective stem
Aspect applies across all tenses

Present, past and future all distinguish imperfective/perfective.

📊 Aspect overview
Aspect Present Past Future
imperfective γράφω έγραφα θα γράφω
perfective — έγραψα θα γράψω
💬 Examples
γράφω (pres.) / έγραφα (imperf. past) / θα γράφω (fut.)
imperfective throughout
📝 same imperfective stem in all tenses
θα γράψω (fut.) / έγραψα (aor.)
perfective throughout
📝 same perfective stem
Choosing the right aspect is essential

Wrong aspect = grammatically possible but semantically wrong.

💬 Examples
Έγραφα όταν χτύπησε το τηλέφωνο.
I was writing when the phone rang.
📝 imperfective background + aorist event
Έγραψα δύο γράμματα χθες.
I wrote two letters yesterday.
📝 aorist = completed quantity