Summer Words Freebie in Greek & English
So we’re off to a fake Greek Summer holiday this May (because actual summer wouldn’t work out logistically). But hey, that counts! I whipped up some new material for the girls to look at before the trip and I’m excited to share it with you.
The new addition to The Greek & Bilingual Printable Library is naturally summer themed: a set of printable Greek/English summer vocabulary flashcards, perfect for kids starting to recognise letters. This new resource aims to help our little ones connect with their Greek heritage while enhancing their word recognition in both languages.
Our summer-themed flashcards feature cute illustrations of things you’d find during your Greek summer by the sea, with clear bilingual labels.
Why Learn with Flashcards?
Flashcards are a highly effective learning tool for language acquisition. Paired with spaced repetition, they promote active recall – the process of retrieving information from memory – which strengthens neural connections and aids in transferring knowledge from short-term to long-term memory (source: LSA College).
Flashcards are a valuable tool for language acquisition. Nakata (2011) demonstrated that flashcards significantly enhance vocabulary retention among language learners. Their repetitive nature and the inclusion of visual aids make them effective for learning new words and phrases. And our visual aids are really gorgeous (Simply Put Psych has a whole article on this topic, if you fancy reading more.)
Using labelled flashcards helps create a print-rich environment. Through daily interactions with print, kids develop their reading comprehension and overall literacy skills.
On top of all that science, flashcards are CARDS! And if your kids are anything like mine they will be more than happy to engage with a pack of cards as a physical, tactile object (even if that includes throwing them on the floor or chewing them a little – it’s all part of the process).
Related: Free Printable Greek/English Colour Flashcards: A Fun Way to Boost Bilingual Learning
Related: Greek Alphabet Tracing Workbook (FREE!)
You can download these summer vocabulary flashcards for free and use them wherever learning happens – the classroom, at home, during travel, or even at the beach. I’d love to hear how they fit into your bilingual learning adventures!
Keep reading to explore creative ways to incorporate these summer vocabulary flashcards into your activities, tips for making them durable for repeated use, and instructions to download!
Save me for later! π‡οΈ
π Learning Greek in Context
Have you tried memorising a list of vocabulary and found it slipping away the next minute? That’s where contextual learning steps in. It’s about embedding words within real-life experiences, making them stick. Research supports this approach, highlighting that contextual learning enhances understanding and retention by linking new information to personal experiences.
Mediterranean Summers
Think of summer for a moment. What popped in your head? In Canada, summer might mean barbecues and lake swims. In Scotland, cultural festivals, hikes and picnics, endless daylight and battling the midges.
Greek summers are a sensory overload (in a good way). The rhythmic chirping of cicadas during a midday siesta, the sweet taste of figs picked straight from the tree, the communal joy of a small village festivities in August, dance and laughter filling the air.β
So yes, apart from the obligatory beach-related words, this set of flashcards aims to capture the essence of a Greek summer with more words meant to be taught within a cultural context.
Who are these Greek Summer Word Flashcards for?
These Greek summer flashcards are designed for anyone eager to connect with the Greek language and culture. We use them as part of our wider toolkit for teaching our girls Greek as their heritage language, but they can be used by adults learning the language from scratch (or just brushing up), or families exploring Greek together.
I know I talked about context but no, you don’t necessarily need to be in Greece to make the most of these. Use the flashcards to spark conversations and share stories. If you don’t have firsthand memories yourself, you can explore the meanings and cultural significance of each word together with your kids.
Greek Summer Words
Let’s have a sneak peak at some more niche mediterranean summer vocabulary included in these Greek Summer word flashcards.
π₯ Panigyri (ΟΞ±Ξ½Ξ·Ξ³ΟΟΞΉ) β The village bash
A whole village turning into a dance floor overnight: thatβs a ΟΞ±Ξ½Ξ·Ξ³ΟΟΞΉ – a local festival where Saints are honoured with food, music, and dancing until sunrise. The greatest one of the calendar, the Assumption of Virgin Mary on August 15th marks the liveliest and most festive celebrations of the summer across Greece. Despite the late start of these feasts, kids are a part of it like everyone else (even if they end up half-asleep on a chair clutching a piece of bread π).
ποΈ Ξsland (Ξ½Ξ·ΟΞ―)
Greek summers often mean hopping on a ferry to an island. Each island has its own charm – and its own smell! Greek islands are where stories begin.β
π Watermelon (ΞΊΞ±ΟΟΞΏΟΞΆΞΉ)
My childhood summers often involved hailing a pickup truck full of watermelons and carrying one back to my grandmother’s house. I highly doubt my kids will ever relate to that π. But nothing beats biting into a juicy slice of watermelon on a scorching day.
βοΈ Pine tree (ΟΞ΅ΟΞΊΞΏ)
The shade cast by a pine tree is prime real estate – the best spot to pitch your tent or leave your belongings when you head for a swim. It’s lovely to see my eldest beginning to associate the value of pine tree shade with summer.
πΆ Cicada (ΟΞΆΞΉΟΞΆΞ―ΞΊΞΉ)
The cicadas perform the unofficial soundtrack of Greek summers. Their chirping was the most comforting white noise during our midday siestas. As kids, weβd try (and fail) to spot them in the trees – but sometimes we’d find an intact cicada molted skin on the ground and oh, the excitement!
π² Backgammon (Οάβλι)
If I close my eyes and imagine I’m at a seaside cafΓ© in Greece, I can hear the clack of dice. Backgammon is a classic Greek summer pastime. The term “tavli” comes from the Latin “tabula” meaning “board” and the game has deep roots in Greek culture. Tavli is a social ritual and another summer word I am glad to have given my daughters, because it connects them to a Greek summer institution (even if their current focus is on putting the checkers in their mouths).
Figs (ΟΟΞΊΞ±)
Last September while visiting the Peloponnese, I lifted my girls so they could reach and pick a few figs straight from the tree. Now they know not just the word but the smell of the tree, the warmth of the fig skin under the sunlight, the sweet taste meaning the summer is almost over.
These words arenβt only vocabulary, theyβre glimpses into a culture, moments that define a Greek summer. These flashcards aim to capture this, and of course, inspire you to include your own summer words to pass on.
Words included in the Greek Summer Flashcards
I have attached a list of all words included in the flashcards in Greek and English, as well as the phonetic pronunciation for families learning Greek together.
Are these words even Greek?
Spoilers —— some of these are loanwords or have foreign origins. The universal contributions of the Greek language are often celebrated, but quite a few foreign words have sneaked into our everyday vocabulary. To me that’s incredibly cool! I absolutely love it when languages and cultures mix (my own family is a testament to that).
Here’s a little spotlight on a few of them, for my fellow language nerds:
- ΞΞ±Ξ³ΞΉΟ (swimsuit) from the French maillot
- ΞΞ±ΟΞλο (hat) from the Italian cappello
- ΞΞ±ΟΟΞΏΟΞΆΞΉ (watermelon) from the Ottoman karpuz (coming from the Persian xarboze)
- ΞΞ¬ΟΞΊΞ± (mask) from the French masque (coming from the Latin masca which could possible be coming from Arabic or Germanic origins, the waters are getting a bit muddy there.)
- ΞΞΏΟ Ξ²Ξ±Ξ΄Ξ¬ΞΊΞΉ (pail), diminutive of ΞΊΞΏΟ Ξ²Ξ¬Ο (bucket) from the Ottoman kova
And the full list
| Greek | English |
| Ξ£ΟΞΊΞ± (SEE-kah) | Figs |
| Ξ€ΟΞΏΟΟΟΟΞ± (TSOO-chtra) | Jellyfish |
| ΞάλαΟΟΞ± (THA-la-ssa) | Sea |
| ΞΞ·ΟΞ― (nee-SEE) | Island |
| ΞΞ±ΟΟΞΏΟΞΆΞΉ (kar-POO-zee) | Watermelon |
| ΞΞ±ΟΞλο (ka-PE-lo) | Hat |
| ΞΞ¬ΟΞΊΞ± (MA-ska) | Diving mask |
| ΞΟάλα (BA-la) | Ball |
| ΞΞΏΟ Ξ²Ξ±Ξ΄Ξ¬ΞΊΞΉ (koo-va-THA-kee) | Pail |
| ΞΞ¬ΟΞΊΞ± (VAR-kah) | Boat |
| ΞΞ±Ξ³ΞΉΟ (ma-YO) | Swimsuit |
| Ξ Ξ±Ξ½Ξ·Ξ³ΟΟΞΉ (pa-nee-YEE-ree) | Festival |
| ΀΢ιΟΞΆΞ―ΞΊΞΉ (dzee-DZEE-kee) | Cicada |
| Ξ Ξ΅ΟΞΊΞΏ (PEF-ko) | Pine tree |
| ΀άβλι (TAV-lee) | Backgammon |
| ΞΞ±ΟΞ»ΟΟΟΟΞ± (ksa-PLO-stra) | Sun lounger |
| Αοδάκινο (ro-THA-kee-no) | Peach |
| ΞΟΟΞ΅ΟΞ―Ξ±Ο (a-ste-REE-as) | Starfish |
| ΞΞ±ΟΟΞ±ΟΞΏΟΞδιλα (va-tra-ho-PE-thee-la) | Swimming fins |
| ΞΞ¬Ξ²ΞΏΟ ΟΞ±Ο (KA-vou-ras) | Crab |
| ΞΟΞΌΞ± (KEE-ma) | Wave |
| ΞΞ±Ο ΟΞ―Ξ»ΞΏΟ (naf-TEE-los) | Nautilus |
| ΞλάΟΞΏΟ (HLA-ros) | Seagull |
How to Use this File
As with my previous greek printables this is a simple, ready to print PDF file. The size is US Letter but it is designed to print well on an A4 sheet too, with 4 cards per page. If your printer can handle it I recommend using card stock for a sturdier base and run it through a laminator so they last longer.
Creative Ways to Use the Flashcards
Make some art
Use the flashcards as prompts for drawing. Encourage your child to draw or paint their interpretation of each word, or a scene including two of them, for example “a crab on a boat”, “a ball under a pine tree”. This sneaks in some preposition learning too.
Match the initial sound
Shout out loud an initial sound and let the kids find the flashcard that matches. For example if you shout out P, they could fetch “pail”, “ΟΞ±Ξ½Ξ·Ξ³ΟΟΞΉ”, “peach” or “ΟΞ΅ΟΞΊΞΏ”. If you shout S they could fetch both “starfish” and “ΟΟΞΊΞ±”. This increases both phonemic awareness and letter recognition, and it works for both languages simultaneously.
Craft a story
Pick four random cards and let the kids make up a story with all the elements. This allows them to use the words in context and in complete sentences.
Would you rather game
Pick two random Greek summer words from the pack and make up a funny dilemma for the kids to answer in the target language. (eg. Would you rather be a seagull or a jellyfish? Would you rather sleep on a sun lounger or on a boat?)
What happens in the winter?
Discuss what happens to each object or concept in the flashcards when it’s not summer. Some will still be the same, some will be different, some will not exist at all. Another great storytelling device, this makes the kids associate the words with the season and use their imagination to picture them at a different time of the year.
Fellow bilingual parents
Friends you’re doing an amazing job raising your kids bilingually. I know it can feel like a lot sometimes, especially when you’re juggling everything else, but you know it’s worth it. You’re giving them a gift that not only connects them to their roots and their family but it also unlocks a whole other world for them.
Even if they mix up words or resist speaking it, they’re absorbing more than you think. Keep at it, share stories, sing songs, and just make it a part of everyday life. You’re not alone in this, and every little effort counts!
And a Greek Summer song for you
Closing with a nostalgic tune full of Greek summer images. ΞαλοκαίΟΞΉ (summer) – pure poetry by Dionysis Savvopoulos.
OK, OK, but how do I access the Greek Summer Word Flashcards?
Already a subscriber? Head over to the Greek & Bilingual Printable Library. Inside, you’re find a growing collection of free Greek and bilingual resources designed for families and educators, including this one!
New here? Welcome! To access these exclusive printables, simply subscribe by entering your email address at the end of this post. After that, you’re in!
By subscribing, you’ll gain access to a variety of engaging Greek and bilingual printables, perfect for children learning Greek as a heritage language or in bilingual households. I regularly update the library with new resources to support our own bilingualism journey – and yours! π©΅π.
I hope you’ve enjoyed these Greek summer words and that you can make use of the flashcards, whatever your learning setting. Many thanks for reading – catch you next time!
M.
Save me for later! π‡οΈ
Related:
Greek Alphabet Tracing Workbook (FREE!)
13 Fun Activities for Families with Kids in Athens (that don’t include ancient stuff)
