Learn Hardcore Greek: Το τρένο δεν είναι τόσο αργό όσο το πλοίο και φτάνει στο κέντρο της πόλης σε μία ώρα. - The train is not as slow as the ship and it arrives in the city center in one hour.

You can’t attach it to the verb like English “isn’t”; it must remain a separate word before the verb: δεν είναι, not ~είναι δεν~ or a contraction.

How does τόσο αργό όσο work, and why is it used here?

τόσο … όσο is a very common Greek structure meaning “as … as”.

τόσο = so / that … (in comparisons: as)
όσο = as

So τόσο αργό όσο το πλοίο literally means:
“so slow as the ship” → “as slow as the ship/boat”

Full pattern:

τόσο + adjective + όσο + noun/pronoun

Examples:

τόσο γρήγορο όσο ένα αεροπλάνο = as fast as a plane
τόσο μεγάλο όσο το σπίτι μου = as big as my house

In the sentence:

Το τρένο δεν είναι τόσο αργό όσο το πλοίο
= The train is not as slow as the boat.

Why is αργό ending in -ό, and how does it agree with το τρένο?

Greek adjectives agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.

το τρένο is neuter, singular, nominative.
The adjective form must match: αργό (neuter, singular, nominative).

Basic adjective pattern (for many adjectives like αργός):

Masculine: αργός
Feminine: αργή
Neuter: αργό

So:

ο άντρας είναι αργός = the man is slow (masc.)
η μηχανή είναι αργή = the machine is slow (fem.)
το τρένο είναι αργό = the train is slow (neut.)

Here we have: Το τρένο δεν είναι τόσο αργό…
The -ό ending is there because τρένο is neuter.

Why do both το τρένο and το πλοίο use το? Aren’t trains and boats different genders?

In Greek, grammatical gender doesn’t always match biological or intuitive gender. Both τρένο (train) and πλοίο (ship/boat) are neuter nouns, so they both take the neuter article το.

το τρένο = the train (neuter)
το πλοίο = the ship/boat (neuter)

That’s why we see:

Το τρένο δεν είναι τόσο αργό όσο το πλοίο.
Both nouns have το and take neuter adjectives when needed.

What does στο κέντρο της πόλης literally mean, and how is it formed?

στο κέντρο της πόλης breaks down as:

σε = in, at, to
το = the (neuter)
σε + το → στο (mandatory contraction in speech and writing)
κέντρο = center
της πόλης = of the city (genitive)

So:

στο κέντρο = in/to the center
της πόλης = of the city

Literally: “to the center of the city” → “to the city center / into the city center”.

Grammatically:

πόλη (city) is feminine.
της πόλης is the genitive singular: “of the city”.

Why is it σε μία ώρα and not something like μέσα σε μία ώρα or μετά από μία ώρα?

All of these exist, but they mean slightly different things.

σε μία ώρα (used in the sentence)
Often means “within one hour / in one hour (duration)”.
Here it describes how long it takes the train to reach the center.
- φτάνει … σε μία ώρα = it arrives in one hour (it needs one hour to get there).
μέσα σε μία ώρα
Emphasizes within the space of one hour (sometimes “within at most an hour”).
μετά από μία ώρα
Means “after one hour (from now)”, focusing on the time that will have passed before something happens.

In your sentence, we’re talking about duration/travel time, so σε μία ώρα is the natural choice.

I’ve seen μία also written as μια. Is there a difference between σε μία ώρα and σε μια ώρα?

In modern everyday Greek, μία and μια are pronounced the same in this context and are both used.

μία ώρα / μια ώρα = one hour

Historically, some people distinguish:

μια = the indefinite article “a/an”
μία = the numeral “one”

But in practice, especially in the phrase (σε) μια/μία ώρα, they are interchangeable and both mean “in one hour” / “in an hour”.

Your sentence is perfectly fine as written:

… φτάνει στο κέντρο της πόλης σε μία ώρα.

Can I change the word order, for example to Το τρένο δεν είναι όσο το πλοίο τόσο αργό?

Greek word order is more flexible than English, but τόσο … όσο is a fixed comparative structure. You shouldn’t split it in the way you suggest.

Correct and natural:

Το τρένο δεν είναι τόσο αργό όσο το πλοίο.

Very odd / wrong:

Το τρένο δεν είναι όσο το πλοίο τόσο αργό.

You can move other parts for emphasis, but τόσο must stay with the adjective and όσο must introduce the thing it’s being compared to:

Το τρένο δεν είναι τόσο αργό όσο το πλοίο και σε μία ώρα φτάνει στο κέντρο της πόλης.
(slight change in emphasis, but structure stays intact)

How does the verb φτάνει work here? Is it present tense, and why is present used?

Yes, φτάνει is present tense, 3rd person singular of φτάνω (to arrive).

φτάνω = I arrive
φτάνεις = you arrive
φτάνει = he/she/it arrives

In Greek (as in English), the present tense is often used:

for general truths,
for regular schedules / timetables.

So:

Το τρένο … φτάνει στο κέντρο της πόλης σε μία ώρα.
= The train arrives in the city center in one hour.
(Meaning “this is how long it normally takes / this is its schedule.”)

It’s like English:

“This train arrives at 8.” (not “will arrive”)

Why is και used here, and what exactly is it connecting?

και means “and”, just like English “and”.

In this sentence it connects two clauses that share the same subject (το τρένο):

Το τρένο δεν είναι τόσο αργό όσο το πλοίο
= The train is not as slow as the boat
(Το τρένο) φτάνει στο κέντρο της πόλης σε μία ώρα
= (The train) arrives in the city center in one hour

So the structure is:

[Clause 1] και [Clause 2]

The subject το τρένο isn’t repeated before φτάνει, but it is still understood to be the subject of the second clause.

Could I drop the second το and just say όσο πλοίο?

No, not in standard Greek. You need the article το before πλοίο here.

Correct: όσο το πλοίο = as (slow) as the boat
Incorrect: όσο πλοίο (sounds incomplete/unnatural in this context)

In comparisons with specific, countable nouns, Greek normally uses the definite article:

τόσο γρήγορο όσο το αυτοκίνητο = as fast as the car
τόσο βαρύ όσο η τσάντα = as heavy as the bag

So όσο το πλοίο is the correct and natural form.