Palabra Lexi · common words in Greek

How to say "orange" in Greek

"Orange" in Greek is πορτοκάλι (portokáli), pronounced por-to-KA-li (stress on the syllable in capitals). It is a neuter noun (το πορτοκάλι, plural τα πορτοκάλια).

Pronunciation is spelled out in English, one syllable at a time, with the stressed syllable in capitals; Greek marks that syllable with an accent in writing too. The speaker button uses your browser's built-in Greek voice. Gender and plural: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA.

How to pronounce πορτοκάλι

Πορτοκάλι is pronounced por-to-KA-li, in IPA /poɾtoˈkali/. The stress falls on KA, the syllable in capitals. Greek shows this in writing: the accent mark sits on the stressed vowel.

Listen: normal and slow speed, in your browser's Greek voice. IPA: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA.

Is πορτοκάλι masculine, feminine or neuter?

Πορτοκάλι is neuter, so it takes the article το: το πορτοκάλι. The plural is τα πορτοκάλια. That fits the pattern: nouns ending in -ο and -ι are neuter.

Example sentences

Το πορτοκάλι είναι γλυκό
The orange is sweet

Χυμός πορτοκάλι
orange juice

"Orange" in Greek: everyday use and word roots

Πορτοκάλι is named after Portugal: sweet oranges reached Greece through Portuguese trade. The colour orange is πορτοκαλί.

Regional words and roots: Wiktionary and the Liddell–Scott Greek lexicon. Greek varies by region, so treat these as the most common patterns, not strict rules.

How to remember πορτοκάλι

πορτοκάλι [por-to-KA-li] sounds like the English “port o' call”. Picture this:

The ship docks at a port o' call where cranes unload mountains of oranges onto the pier.

A sound-alike plus a vivid scene is the keyword method, a well-studied way to learn vocabulary. How it works.

Practice πορτοκάλι

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