Breakdown of Το φως στο σαλόνι φωτίζει το πράσινο τραπέζι.
Questions & Answers about Το φως στο σαλόνι φωτίζει το πράσινο τραπέζι.
Στο means in the / at the.
It is a contraction of the preposition σε (in/at/to) + the neuter definite article το (the).
So σε + το σαλόνι → στο σαλόνι = in the living room.
This contraction is very common in Greek (e.g. σε + τον → στον, σε + την → στην).
Greek nouns have grammatical gender: masculine, feminine, or neuter.
The noun φως (light) is neuter, so it takes the neuter article το.
Basic forms of φως are:
- το φως (nominative/accusative singular)
- του φωτός (genitive singular)
In this sentence, το φως is the subject, so it is in the nominative case.
Greek normally uses an article with specific, known things, much more than English does.
Το πράσινο τραπέζι means the green table (a particular table that both speaker and listener know).
If you drop the article and say φωτίζει πράσινο τραπέζι, it sounds like it lights a green table (some green table, in general) and is also a bit unnatural in this context.
So the article το is repeated because we are talking about a specific table, not just any green table.
Το πράσινο τραπέζι is in the accusative case.
In this sentence, το φως (the light) is the subject, and το πράσινο τραπέζι (the green table) is the direct object of the verb φωτίζει (illuminates).
In Greek, direct objects normally appear in the accusative case, so the article το and the adjective πράσινο match that case and gender.
The noun τραπέζι (table) is neuter, so any article and adjective that agree with it must also be neuter.
Neuter singular nominative/accusative endings are typically -ο for adjectives: πράσινο.
So:
- το πράσινο τραπέζι = the green table
- masculine would be ο πράσινος τοίχος (the green wall)
- feminine would be η πράσινη πόρτα (the green door)
The normal way to say the green table in Greek is το πράσινο τραπέζι:
article + adjective + noun.
You can say το τραπέζι είναι πράσινο (the table is green) as a full sentence, but το τραπέζι πράσινο without a verb sounds incomplete or wrong in standard Greek.
So for noun phrases (not full sentences), use το + adjective + noun.
Φωτίζει is the 3rd person singular, present tense, active voice of the verb φωτίζω.
It means it illuminates, it lights up, or it sheds light on.
Very roughly:
- εγώ φωτίζω – I illuminate
- εσύ φωτίζεις – you illuminate
- αυτός/αυτή/αυτό φωτίζει – he/she/it illuminates
So in the sentence, το φως ... φωτίζει ... literally: the light illuminates the green table.
Greek word order is more flexible than English, but not every reordering sounds natural or keeps the same meaning.
- Το φως στο σαλόνι φωτίζει το πράσινο τραπέζι is the most neutral, clear order.
- Το φως φωτίζει στο σαλόνι το πράσινο τραπέζι is grammatically possible, but the position of στο σαλόνι becomes a bit more ambiguous and the sentence sounds slightly less natural.
- Το πράσινο τραπέζι φωτίζει το φως στο σαλόνι changes the meaning: now the green table is the subject that illuminates the light in the living room, which is logically odd.
So you must keep το φως as subject and το πράσινο τραπέζι as the object if you want the original meaning.
Grammatically, στο σαλόνι is attached to το φως, so the most straightforward reading is the light in the living room.
However, in real-life understanding, listeners would probably assume both the light and the table are in the living room, unless context says otherwise.
If you wanted to be very clear that only the table is in the living room, you could say: Το φως φωτίζει το πράσινο τραπέζι στο σαλόνι (but even then, many would still imagine both in the same room).
Το φως can mean both the light (as illumination) and, in everyday speech, the light fixture / lamp in a room.
For example, Άναψε το φως στο σαλόνι can mean Turn the light on in the living room, referring to the ceiling light or main lamp.
More specific words for the physical object are η λάμπα (the bulb or lamp) and το φωτιστικό (light fitting, lamp fixture).
Greek uses definite articles much more frequently than English, especially with concrete nouns.
When you talk about the usual, known light in a room and the particular table, Greek almost always uses το:
- το φως στο σαλόνι – the (usual) light in the living room
- το πράσινο τραπέζι – the specific green table
Leaving out the article often makes the phrase sound generic or incomplete to a native speaker.
Το σαλόνι usually means the living room / lounge, the main sitting room of a house where guests are received.
Το καθιστικό is very close in meaning (sitting room), but some speakers feel σαλόνι is a bit more formal or refers to the main, nicer living room, while καθιστικό is more neutral or everyday.
In most contexts, σαλόνι and καθιστικό can be used interchangeably for living room.
The written accent in Greek shows the stressed syllable:
- σαλόνι – sa-LO-ni (stress on λό)
- φωτίζει – fo-TI-zi (stress on τί)
- πράσινο – PRA-si-no (stress on πρά)
- τραπέζι – tra-PE-zi (stress on πέ)
Modern Greek words have one main stress; the accent mark (´) shows exactly where it is placed.
Yes, you can use the passive voice of φωτίζω. For example:
- Το πράσινο τραπέζι φωτίζεται από το φως στο σαλόνι.
– The green table is illuminated by the light in the living room.
In this version, το πράσινο τραπέζι becomes the subject, and από το φως στο σαλόνι (by the light in the living room) marks the agent doing the action.