New Shapes I

📖 Lesson 3 of 6 ⏱ ~12 min 🎯 5 letters
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The last unfamiliar shapes

You now know 14 of 24 Greek letters — all the ones with Latin or Cyrillic lookalikes. This lesson adds the five letters that are genuinely new: no Latin shape to anchor on, no Cyrillic parallel. They're not hard — just unfamiliar. Each one has a visual hook to help it stick.

After this lesson you'll know 19 of 24 letters and can read most of what you'll see in Greece on GeoGuessr — including ΦΑΡΜΑΚΕΙΟ (pharmacy), ΣΧΟΛΗ (school), and ΕΛΛΑΣ (Greece).

5 new shapes

new
Λ
λ
tent / inverted V
"L"
like "l" in lamp DE: wie in Land ↑ imagine a tent or mountain peak
new
Π
π
doorframe / goalpost
"P"
like "p" in park DE: wie in Papa ↑ the math π symbol — two pillars, one beam
new
Σ
σ / ς
zig-zag E (uppercase)
"S"
like "s" in sun — always voiceless DE: wie in Sonne ↑ two lowercase forms — see below
new
Φ
φ
circle with stick
"F"
like "f" in four DE: wie in Feuer ↑ math phi (φ) — a circle pierced by a vertical line
watch
Γ
γ
backwards L
"G" or "Y"
G before Α Ο Υ ΩΥ; Y before Ε Η Ι DE: Gut oder Ja ↑ an L rotated — the only letter with two sounds

Σ sigma: two lowercase forms

Sigma is the one Greek letter with two different lowercase versions — used depending on where it appears in a word. The sound is identical: always a plain "S".

Start or middle of word
σ
like a "6" or crescent moon
End of word only
ς
like a "c" with a tail — final sigma

Example: σπίτι (house — σ at start) vs. Ελλάς (Greece — ς at end). When you see ς, it tells you you're at the last letter of the word — useful visual marker for parsing text.

Γ gamma: the two-sound rule

Γ is the only letter in this lesson with context-dependent pronunciation. The rule is simple: before Ε, Η, or Ι → say Y (like "yes"). Everywhere else → say G (like "go").

Γ followed by… Sound German anchor Example
Α, Ο, consonant G (go) DE: Gut ΓΑΛΑ = GA-la (milk)
Ε, Η, Ι, Υ Y (yes) DE: Ja ΓΕΙΑ = YA (hello/cheers)

For GeoGuessr reading you won't need to produce the sound, just recognize which words contain Γ. You'll encounter it in ΑΓΟΡΑ (a-GO-ra, market), ΛΙΜΑΝΙ (port), and city names across Greece.

Letters unlocked

After three lessons you know 19 of 24 Greek letters — almost the full alphabet.

Α Ε Ι Κ Μ Ο Τ Ζ Β Η Ρ Υ Χ Ν Λ Π Σ Φ Γ

Grey = L1–2 · Green = Lesson 3 · Remaining 5 (Δ Θ Ξ Ψ Ω) in Lesson 4

Drill — new shapes

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Word reading — sound it out

All 19 letters in play. Real words from Greek signs. Say each one aloud before revealing.
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Lesson complete!
Ask your teacher anything. If a letter sound is unclear, or you want more words to practice, just ask in the chat. Your teacher (Claude) can drill you on any letter, explain the rule, or give you more examples.