ποστάρω (postaro) = post something online
My word of the week is loosely connected with my post on this year’s Epiphany. I mentioned a tweet posted by Professor Dermitzakis. The headline said: “Ο Δερμιτζάκης πόσταρε δύο φωτογραφίες…” = “Dermitzakis has posted two photographs…” I was taken aback by the verb ποστάρω because I thought the Greek word αναρτώ had taken root.
There is currently some controversy in Greece surrounding foreign loan words, particularly in the field of computing and online activities. That’s a discussion for a later date. What interests me right now is the increasing number of verbs ending in -άρω. I cannot find this category in my grammar books, and their conjugation does not seem to have been standardised.
Today’s www.iefimerida.gr (7 Jan 21) quotes Dermitzakis as saying, “Mε σόκαρε όταν είδα τις εικόνες με τον συνωστισμό – Κάποιοι απορρίπτουν την επιστήμη.” He is talking about overcrowding in churches and he says, “It shocked me when I saw the pictures of overcrowding – Some people reject science.” The verb he uses for ‘shock’ is ‘σοκάρω’.
Other verbs in this group are φρενάρω (brake), ρισκάρω (risk), λιντσάρω (lynch), ντεραπάρω (skid), ντουμπλάρω (dub an actor’s voice, line a piece of clothing), φοδράρω (also line a piece of clothing), τρολάρω (troll someone online), γκουγκλάρω (google something). The conjugation of these verbs is unsettled. The imperfect and aorist mostly share the same form. The gaps in the table mean that I have not encountered other forms.
| Present + να/θα | Imperfect & Aorist | Alternative Aorist | Imperative | Aorist Passive | Past Participle |
| φρενάρω | φρέναρα | φρέναρε φρενάρετε | |||
| λιντσάρω | λιντσάρισα | ||||
| σοκάρω | σόκαρα | σοκάρισα | σοκαρίστηκα | σοκαρισμένος | |
| ρισκάρω | ρισκάρισα |
It looks as if you can get away with the forms in Columns #1 and #2 above. Here they are in full:
| Present + να/θα | Imperfect & Aorist | Imperative | |
| εγώ | φρενάρω | φρέναρα | |
| εσύ | φρενάρεις | φρέναρες | φρέναρε |
| αυτός/αυτή | φρενάρει | φρέναρε | |
| εμείς | φρενάρουμε | φρενάραμε | |
| εσείς | φρενάρετε | φρενάρατε | φρενάρετε |
| αυτοί/αυτές | φρενάρουν | φρέναραν or φρενάρανε |