Η οικογένεια είναι πλούσια.

to be

Breakdown of Η οικογένεια είναι πλούσια.

• η οικογένεια: the family
• πλούσιος: rich

Questions & Answers about Η οικογένεια είναι πλούσια.

What does Η mean here?

Η means the.

In this sentence, it is the feminine singular definite article, because οικογένεια (family) is a feminine singular noun.

So:

• η = the for feminine singular nouns
• οικογένεια = family

Together: η οικογένεια = the family

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Why is οικογένεια feminine? Families are not biologically female.

In Greek, grammatical gender is not the same thing as natural sex.

A noun can be:

• masculine
• feminine
• neuter

and that is just part of how the noun behaves grammatically.

Οικογένεια is a feminine noun, so words that go with it, like the article and adjective, must match that gender:

• η οικογένεια
• πλούσια οικογένεια
• η οικογένεια είναι πλούσια

English speakers often need time to get used to this, because English usually does not assign grammatical gender to nouns like family.

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Why is it πλούσια and not πλούσιος or πλούσιο?