Το σύρμα κοπής κόβει τον πηλό.

The cutting wire cuts the clay.

Breakdown of Το σύρμα κοπής κόβει τον πηλό.

• κόβω: to cut
• ο πηλός: the clay
• το σύρμα κοπής: the cutting wire

Questions & Answers about Το σύρμα κοπής κόβει τον πηλό.

Why are there two different words for the here: το and τον?

Because Greek articles change for gender, number, and case.

• το goes with σύρμα, which is neuter singular
• τον goes with πηλό, which is masculine singular accusative

So unlike English, Greek does not use just one form of the for everything.

How do I know that το σύρμα κοπής is the subject and τον πηλό is the object?

Greek often shows this through case, not just word order.

• το σύρμα is in the nominative, so it is the subject
• τον πηλό is in the accusative, so it is the direct object

That means the wire is doing the action, and the clay is receiving it.

What exactly is κοπής?

Κοπής is the genitive singular form of κοπή, a noun meaning cutting or cut.

In this sentence, it modifies σύρμα and tells you what kind of wire it is:

• σύρμα κοπής = literally wire of cutting
• more natural English: cutting wire or wire for cutting

So κοπής is not an adjective here. It is a noun used in the genitive.