How to Express Your Love in Greek

Before we dive into specific terms you’d use for a partner, family member, or a friend, let’s look at the most common endearment terms and their pronunciations.

Quick note before we start: the word μου (mou) means “my” and is often added to terms of endearment to make them more personal. To form the ultimate heart-warming sentence, combine these endearment terms with a Σ’ αγαπώ (s’agapo) — it means I love you in Greek.

So Σ’ αγαπώ, αγάπη μου (s’agapo, agapi mou) means “I love you, my love.”

More on αγάπη μου and other words in the Greek terms of endearment list below:

You can call your romantic partner Αγάπη μου (agapi mou), which means “my love.” This is one of the most common ways to call your partner in Greek, but if you’re looking for more specific words, here are some more alternatives:

For your boyfriend:

• Αγόρι μου (Agori mou): “My boy”
• Λεβέντη μου (Levendi mou): “My handsome”
• Άντρα μου (Andra mou): “My man”

For your girlfriend:

• Κορίτσι μου (Koritsi mou): “My girl”
  • Όμορφη μου (Omorfi mou):* “My beautiful one”
• Γλυκιά μου (Gineka mou): “My woman”

Family is central to Greek culture. You’ll often hear people calling their family members with cute nicknames. For example, “mother” in Greek is μητέρα (mitera), but its cute version would be μανούλα (manoula). It’s kind of like “mommy” in English.

Add μου (mou) to the end and you have a cute nickname for each family member! Here are some examples:

• For mothers: Μανούλα μου (manoula mou) — “My mommy”
• For fathers: Μπαμπάκας μου (babakas mou) — “My daddy”
• For grandmothers: Γιαγιάκα μου (yiayiaka mou) — “My granny”
• For grandfathers: Παππούλης μου (pappoulis mou) — “My grannddad”
• For children: Παιδί μου (Paidi mou) — “My child”
• For sisters: Αδελφούλα μου (adelfoula mou) — “My little sister”
• For brothers: Αδελφούλης μου (adelfoulis mou) — “My little brother”
• For grandsons: * Εγγονούλης μου (engonoulis mou)* — “My little grandson”
• For granddaughters: * Εγγονούλα μου (engonoula mou)* — “My little granddaughter”

Greeks often use terms of endearment with friends. You might hear friends call each other γλυκέ/ γλυκή μου (glike/gliki mou) which means “my sweetheart,” or κούκλα μου (koukla mou) which means “my doll”.

If you’re looking to say “my friend” in Greek, here are some words:

• Φίλε (File): “Friend” (for men)
• Φίλη (Fili): “Friend” (for women)
• Κολλητέ/Κολλητή (Kollite/Kolliti): “Bestie”

Greeks love using nicknames, especially shortened versions of names with the diminutive endings. When you add one of the suffixes –άκι, –ίτσα, –ούλης, –ούλα, -άκης (aki, itsa, oulis, oula, akis) at the end of a name, you create the dimunitive form. The one you use depends on the name, but female names are usually followed by άκι or ίτσα, and male names by άκης.

• Γιώργος (Yiorgos) becomes Γιωργάκι (Yiorgaki)
• Μαρία (Maria) becomes Μαριάκι (Mariaki)
• Κώστας (Kostas) becomes Κωστάκι (Kostaki)
• Γιάννης (Yiannis) becomes Γιαννάκης (Yiannakis), meaning “little Yiannis”
• Ελένη (Eleni) becomes Ελενίτσα (Elenitsa), meaning “little Eleni”

Besides forenames, you can also use these suffixes for other endearment words:

• Αγάπη (Agapi) “love” becomes Αγαπούλα μου (Agapoula mou) “my little love”
• Καρδιά (Kardia) “heart” becomes Καρδούλα μου (Kardoula mou) “my little heart”
• Μωρό (Moro) “baby” becomes Μωράκι μου (Moraki mou) “my little baby”

Note: the simplest way to make any name or term of endearment more affectionate is to add μου (mou) at the end. You can do this with both first names and diminutives. For example:

• Κώστα μου (Kosta mou): “My Kosta”
• Μαρία μου (Maria mou): “My Maria”
• Γιαννάκι μου (Yiannaki mou): “My little Yiannis”
• Ελενίτσα μου (Elenitsa mou): “My little Eleni”

First of all, quick grammar tip: most terms of endearment end with μου” (mou), which means “my.” Don’t forget that it always comes after the noun. So it’s always αγάπη μου (agapi mou), never μου αγάπη.

And some pronunciation tips for the tricky sounds:

• ου is pronounced like “oo” in “moon”
• γ before ε or ι is pronounced like “y” in “yes”
• μπ is pronounced like “b” in “boy”

If you already remember these, great! If not, consider revising the Greek alphabet.

Some common Greek endearing nicknames include: καρδιά μου (kardia mou – “my heart”), ψυχή μου (psychi mou – “my soul”,) ζωή μου (zoi mou – “my life”), and μωρό μου (moro mou – “my baby”).

You can call your boyfriend in Greek using terms like αγάπη μου (agapi mou – “my love”), αγόρι μου (agori mou – “my boy”), and μωρό μου (moro mou – “my baby”).

The Greek love names represent different types of love in ancient Greek philosophy: eros (romantic love), philia (friendly love), storge (familial love), agape (unconditional love), ludus (playful love), pragma (enduring love), philautia (self-love), and mania (obsessive love).

The Greek word for “darling” is typically αγάπη μου (agapi mou), which literally means “my love.”

From the most common αγάπη μου (agapi mou) to the playful diminutives like Γιωργάκι (Yiorgaki), you’re now familiar with quite a few Greek endearment words. So now is the time to surprise your Greek loved ones!

To impress them even more, check out our other favorite Greek resources. You’ll find everything from free YouTube channels to language apps.