Το παιχνίδι είναι εύκολο.

The game is easy.

Breakdown of Το παιχνίδι είναι εύκολο.

• είμαι: to be
• το παιχνίδι: the game
• εύκολος: easy

Questions & Answers about Το παιχνίδι είναι εύκολο.

What gender is the noun παιχνίδι, and how can I tell?

παιχνίδι is neuter. You can tell from the article το (the neuter singular article) and the common neuter ending -ι. Many neuter nouns end in -ι or -ο.

Why does the adjective end in -ο (εύκολο) instead of -ος or -η?

Because adjectives agree with the noun in gender, number, and case. The subject το παιχνίδι is neuter singular nominative, so the predicate adjective must also be neuter singular nominative: εύκολο. The dictionary paradigm is εύκολος (masc.), εύκολη (fem.), εύκολο (neut.).

What case is used for the subject and the adjective here?

Nominative. Το παιχνίδι is nominative (subject), and the predicate adjective εύκολο matches it in nominative. Note: in neuter, nominative and accusative look the same; e.g., as an object you’d still see το παιχνίδι and εύκολο: Βρίσκω το παιχνίδι εύκολο.

What does το mean here? Could I omit it or use an indefinite article?

το is the definite article “the” for neuter singular. Greek uses definite articles more than English, especially with subject nouns. Omitting it (Παιχνίδι είναι εύκολο) sounds odd in standard prose. If you mean “a game,” use ένα (neuter): Ένα παιχνίδι είναι εύκολο (“A game is easy”)—though that’s unusual without context.

Can the word order change?

Yes. All of these are natural:

• Το παιχνίδι είναι εύκολο. (neutral)
• Είναι εύκολο το παιχνίδι. (slight focus on “easy”)
• Εύκολο είναι το παιχνίδι. (stronger focus on “easy”)

How do I pronounce the whole sentence?

[to peˈçniði ˈine ˈefkolo]

• το = [to]
• παι in παιχνίδι = [pe] (αι = “e”)
• χ before front vowels (e, i) = [ç] (soft h-like, as in German “ich”)
• δ = [ð] (as in “this”)
• είναι = [ˈine] (ει = [i], αι = [e])
• εύκολο = [ˈefkolo] (see next question on ευ)

Why is ευ in εύκολο pronounced ef and not ev?

ευ is:

• [ev] before a vowel or voiced consonant (β, γ, δ, ζ, λ, μ, ν, ρ)
• [ef] before a voiceless consonant (π, τ, κ, φ, θ, χ, σ, ξ, ψ) Since κ is voiceless, εύκολο is [ˈefkolo].

Where is the stress, and why are there accent marks?

Greek marks the stressed syllable with a single accent (τόνος) on polysyllabic words:

• παιχ-ΝΙ-δι → παιχνίδι
• ΕΙ-ναι → είναι
• ΕΥ-κο-λο → εύκολο

What form of the verb “to be” is είναι, and does it also mean “are”?

είναι is the present of είμαι for third person. In Modern Greek it’s both 3rd singular (“is”) and 3rd plural (“are”). Context decides:

• Το παιχνίδι είναι εύκολο. (is)
• Τα παιχνίδια είναι εύκολα. (are)

How do I make the sentence negative?

Put δεν before the verb: Το παιχνίδι δεν είναι εύκολο. = “The game is not easy.”

How do I ask “Is the game easy?” in Greek?

Any of these works:

• Είναι εύκολο το παιχνίδι;
• Το παιχνίδι είναι εύκολο; Note the Greek question mark is the semicolon character (;).

What’s the difference between “the easy game” and “the game is easy”?

• Το εύκολο παιχνίδι = “the easy game” (adjective attributive, identifies which game)
• Το παιχνίδι είναι εύκολο. = “The game is easy.” (adjective predicative, states a property)

How do I say “The games are easy”?

Pluralize both noun and adjective:

• Τα παιχνίδια είναι εύκολα. Neuter plural: noun -ια, adjective -α.

Does παιχνίδι mean only “game,” or can it also mean “toy”?

Both. παιχνίδι can mean a game (match, round, video game) or a toy, depending on context.

Is there a nuance difference between εύκολο and απλό?

Yes:

• εύκολο = easy (not difficult to do)
• απλό = simple (not complex/complicated) They overlap, but something can be simple yet not easy, and vice versa.

Is το here the article or the pronoun “it”?

Here it’s the definite article before a noun: το παιχνίδι. The clitic pronoun το means “it/that” as an object, e.g., Το βλέπω = “I see it.” Same form, different function.