25/004 Greek Word – ακαταλαβίστικος

A quick one today. A word that popped up in this article https://www.iefimerida.gr/zoi/tragoydi-me-toys-akatalabistikoys-stihoys about lyrics Adriano Celentano put together in the early 70s. They were supposedly English but, in reality, they were gibberish (ασυναρτησίες). Celentano was trying to prove Italians would buy and buy into any American pop even it was total shit. It’s easy... Continue Reading →

25/003 Greek Word – πατσούρης  – a person who has let himself or herself go

An insult. Babiniotis lists the feminine form, πατσούρα, as the headword, and states the following: χαρακτηρισμός για συνήθως γυναίκα μεγάλης ηλικίας με γερασμένο και χαλαρό δέρμα και ατημέλητη. Επίσης πατσούρω έγινα πατσούρα από τη βροχή – my skin shrivelled up in the rain In www.slang.gr πατσούρω is even harsher as it adds ‘ugly’ to the definition. Ιδίωμα... Continue Reading →

25/002 Greek Word – γαλλικά = swearing

When you are about to drop or have just dropped an “F Bomb” in polite company, it is not unusual to excuse yourself by saying, “Excuse my French.” In much the same way in Greek, τα γαλλικά is a foul-mouthed tirade. Babiniotis: βρισιές: “ο ποδοσφαιριστής σε έξαλλη κατάσταση άρχισε τα Γαλλικά προς τον διαιτητή” =... Continue Reading →

24/010 Greek Word – δράκαινα = weever fish

A Greek friend had a serious medical episode following contact with the above. The original meaning is a female dragon (δράκος), an ogress, and its dorsal spines can inflict serious pain if you accidentally tread on it. The δράκαινα lurks in shallow waters and mudbanks, making fish and human contact more probable. Why ‘weever’? Nothing... Continue Reading →

24/009 Greek Word – χειροδικώ = slap

One indicator of progress in language learning is one’s ability to produce synonyms. Greek has several words for slap. A small list of nouns and their verbs: χαστούκι         χαστουκίζω σφαλιάρα        σφαλιαρίζω μπάτσα           μπατσίζω (μπάτσος is also slang for a policeman!) κόλαφος          κολαφίζω (used mainly metaphorically) But one should never underestimate the capacity of Greek to... Continue Reading →

24/007 Greek word

βίλλα/βίλλος - dick, cock in the Cypriot dialect I wonder why there are - like mainland Greek’s πούτσα/πούτσος - feminine and masculine variants. Not that I have been engaging in dick discussions with Cypriots. The word came up in a chat about football. I suppose it could be argued that the Beautiful Game has no... Continue Reading →

24/004 Greek Word – κουνουπίδι = cauliflower…

24/004 Greek Word – κουνουπίδι = cauliflower… … but on overhearing two young gentlemen in conversation, I learnt that κουνουπίδι as in έγινα κουνουπίδι means “I got hammered” ie very drunk. The discussion became livelier when one of them described his inebriation as έγινα κωλοτρυπίδι, an unlisted variant of κωλοτρυπίδα (literally arsehole). The best English... Continue Reading →

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