Το σύρμα κοπής κόβει τον πηλό.

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.

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.

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.

The Greek genitive often shows a relationship such as type, purpose, or function.

Here, κοπής tells us the purpose of the wire: it is a wire for cutting. Greek commonly uses this pattern:

• noun + genitive noun

So σύρμα κοπής is a very normal Greek way to say cutting wire.

Because σύρμα κοπής is being used as a general type or label, almost like a compound noun.

Greek often leaves out the article on the second noun in this kind of expression when the meaning is general:

• σύρμα κοπής = cutting wire

If you added an article before κοπής, it would usually make the phrase sound more specific or change the structure.

Κόβει is the third person singular present active form of κόβω, meaning to cut.

It matches the subject το σύρμα, which is singular. So κόβει means:

• it cuts
• or it is cutting

depending on the context.

It can mean either one.

The Greek present tense often covers both:

• The cutting wire cuts the clay
• The cutting wire is cutting the clay

Greek does not always separate these two ideas as clearly as English does. Context tells you which one is intended.

The dictionary form is πηλός. That is the nominative singular.

But here clay is the direct object of κόβει, so Greek uses the accusative singular:

• nominative: ο πηλός
• accusative: τον πηλό

This is a common pattern with masculine nouns.

Yes. Greek word order is more flexible than English because case markings help show grammatical roles.

The sentence as written is the most neutral pattern:

• subject + verb + object

But Greek could move parts around for emphasis. Even if the order changes, the cases still help you understand who is doing what.

A rough English-style pronunciation is:

to SEER-ma ko-PEES KO-vee ton pee-LO

A few helpful points:

• σύρμα is stressed on the first syllable
• κοπής is stressed on the last syllable
• κόβει is stressed on the first syllable
• πηλό is stressed on the last syllable

Also, in Modern Greek, υ, η, and ι often sound like ee.

Yes. Even though it is written as two words, Greek speakers understand it as one unit meaning cutting wire.

This is very common in Greek, especially in technical or practical vocabulary. A noun plus a genitive noun often works like a fixed term.