Κράτησε το δηλητήριο μακριά από τα παιδιά.

Κράτησε is the singular imperative of the verb κρατώ / κρατάω (to keep, hold).

So here it means Keep ...

It is addressed to one person.
If you were speaking to more than one person, or using the polite plural, you would say Κρατήστε.

Both are imperatives of κρατώ / κρατάω, but they are not exactly the same.

• κράτα = imperfective imperative
• κράτησε = perfective imperative

In many everyday instructions, warnings, and one-time actions, Greek often uses the perfective imperative, so Κράτησε το δηλητήριο μακριά... sounds very natural for a warning or instruction.

A rough way to think about it:

• κράτα = keep holding / keep keeping
• κράτησε = keep / make sure you keep

In this sentence, Κράτησε fits the sense of a practical instruction.

το is the definite article, meaning the.

• το δηλητήριο = the poison

Greek uses the definite article very often, including in places where English might also use the. Here it is simply the direct object of the verb:

• Κράτησε = keep
• το δηλητήριο = the poison

So το is there because δηλητήριο is a specific noun phrase: the poison.

Because δηλητήριο is simply a neuter noun in Greek. Nouns in Greek have grammatical gender: masculine, feminine, or neuter.

For this noun:

• nominative singular: το δηλητήριο
• accusative singular: το δηλητήριο

So in this sentence, it appears with the neuter article το.

This grammatical gender does not mean poison is somehow “neutral” in meaning; it is just part of the noun’s grammar.

μακριά από means away from.

It works as a fixed expression:

• μακριά = far / away
• από = from

Together:

• μακριά από τα παιδιά = away from the children

This is a very common pattern in Greek. You will also see it in sentences like:

• Μείνε μακριά από τη φωτιά. = Stay away from the fire.
• Βάλε το φάρμακο μακριά από τον ήλιο. = Put the medicine away from the sun.

Because the preposition από normally takes the accusative case in Modern Greek.

So:

• τα παιδιά is accusative plural here

This is why you get:

• από τα παιδιά = from the children

A useful thing to notice is that παιδιά looks the same in the nominative and accusative plural:

• nominative plural: τα παιδιά
• accusative plural: τα παιδιά

So even though the form looks unchanged, it is still the accusative after από.

παιδιά is the plural of παιδί (child).

• singular: το παιδί = the child
• plural: τα παιδιά = the children

So:

• από το παιδί = from the child
• από τα παιδιά = from the children

This sentence uses the plural because the idea is a general safety warning: keep the poison away from children.

Greek often leaves out subject pronouns when they are already clear from the verb ending.

Here, Κράτησε already tells you the subject is you singular, so Greek does not need to say εσύ.

Including εσύ would usually add emphasis:

• Εσύ κράτησε το δηλητήριο... would sound marked or contrastive, something like you keep the poison away...

In normal instructions, Greek usually just uses the verb by itself.

Not completely. Greek word order is more flexible than English word order, because case endings and articles help show what each word is doing.

The neutral, natural order here is:

• Κράτησε το δηλητήριο μακριά από τα παιδιά.

But other orders are possible for emphasis, for example:

• Το δηλητήριο κράτησέ το μακριά από τα παιδιά.

That version gives extra emphasis to the poison.

So the original sentence is the most straightforward and natural order for a simple instruction.

Yes. This is a very common pattern for instructions and safety warnings:

• imperative + object + μακριά από + danger/person/place

For example:

• Κρατήστε τα φάρμακα μακριά από τα παιδιά. = Keep medicines away from children.
• Κράτησε τα σπίρτα μακριά από τη φωτιά. = Keep matches away from the fire.

So this sentence sounds very normal and idiomatic in Greek.

Yes. A very common alternative, especially in formal instructions, is:

• Να κρατάτε το δηλητήριο μακριά από τα παιδιά.

This literally uses να + verb, and it often appears in instructions, notices, and recommendations.

Another very common label-style warning would be:

• Μακριά από παιδιά. = Keep out of reach of children / Away from children.

So the sentence you have is natural, but Greek also has other common ways to express the same warning depending on style and context.