Below you will find a helpful dictionary for Greek Life. Students who have recently joined a fraternity or sorority or those interested in joining are encouraged to become familiar with the letters and terms listed below.
Greek Alphabet
Α |
α |
Alpha (al-fah) |
Ν |
ν |
Nu (new) |
Β |
β |
Beta (bay-tah) |
Ξ |
ξ |
Xi (zzEYE) |
Γ |
γ |
Gamma (gam-ah) |
Ο |
ο |
Omicron (omm-e-cron) |
Δ |
δ |
Delta (del-tah) |
Π |
π |
Pi (pie) |
Ε |
ε |
Epsilon (ep-si-lon) |
Ρ |
ρ |
Rho (roe) |
Ζ |
ζ |
Zeta (zay-tah) |
Σ |
ς |
Sigma (sig-mah) |
Η |
η |
Eta (ay-tah) |
Τ |
σ |
Tau (taw) |
Θ |
θ |
Theta (thay-tah) |
Υ |
τυ |
Upsilon (yoop-si-lon) |
Ι |
ι |
Iota (eye-o-tah) |
Φ |
φ |
Phi (fie) |
Κ |
κ |
Kappa (cap-ah) |
Χ |
χ |
Chi (kEYE) |
Λ |
λ |
Lambda (lamb-dah) |
Ψ |
ψ |
Psi (sigh) |
Μ |
μ |
Mu (mew) |
Ω |
ω |
Omega (o-may-gah) |
Greek Dictionary
- Active—A member of an organization that is initiated and enrolled in school.
- Bid—An invitation for a potential new member to join a particular organization.
- Chapter—An individual Greek organization established at a university.
- Dues – The amount of money paid to a chapter by an active each semester.
- Fraternity—A men's organization established through the bonds of brotherhood.
- Formal Recruitment – The process of fall recruitment followed by NPC sororities.
- Greek—Another name for an organization established by the use of the Greek alphabet, or a member of such an organization.
- Hazing – A banned process at Michigan Tech for any and all student organizations and sports teams. For more information, click here.
- Interfraternity Council (IFC) - The governing body of the men’s fraternities.
- Initiation—A ceremony in which a student becomes a full member of an organization.
- Local—An organization whose chapter is only established at one university.
- National—An organization which has chapters across the nation and has a (inter)national headquarters.
- National Panhellenic Council (NPC; Panhel) – The governing body of the four national sororities as well as four local sororities.
- New Member/Associate Member—A student who has already received a bid and is going through the pledging process, but has not yet been initiated into the organization in order to become a full member (active).
- New Member Process – The process that a new member must complete to become an active or full member of a Greek organization. Time length varies by organization but generally lasts five to eight weeks usually concluding with a week of close chapter events. Previously known as pledging.
- Philanthropy – The process of raising money for a specific organization or cause
- Potential New Member – A student attending recruitment events; previously known as a rushee.
- Preference—An invitation only recruitment event. A chance for a student to express an interest in receiving a bid by that organization.
- Recruiting – The process of introducing potential new members to the Greek community.
- Rush/Recruitment Event—An event which an organization sponsors to meet students.
- Silent Period – The period of time between a NPC organization handing out a bid and a student’s official answer; no NPC organization may be in contact with a potential new member at this time.
- Sorority—A women's organization established through the bonds of sisterhood.