Learn Hardcore Greek: Η δασκάλα λέει ότι αυτή η πρόταση είναι εξαίρεση και δεν ταιριάζει με τον κανόνα. - The teacher says that this sentence is an exception and does not match the rule.

In Greek, the subject normally appears in the nominative case, so both article and noun are in the nominative and agree in gender, number, and case.

Why is the verb λέει used here, and what tense and person is it?

λέει comes from the verb λέω (to say, to tell).

λέει = 3rd person singular, present indicative active

It literally means “she says” or “she is saying”. In Greek, the same present form covers both English simple present and present continuous, so η δασκάλα λέει can mean:

the teacher says
the teacher is saying

Context will decide which English tense is more natural.

What is the function of ότι here? Can I replace it with something else?

ότι is a complementizer meaning “that”, introducing an object clause after the verb λέει.

Η δασκάλα λέει ότι … = The teacher says that …

You can usually replace ότι with πως in modern Greek without changing the meaning:

Η δασκάλα λέει πως αυτή η πρόταση είναι εξαίρεση…

Both are common and correct.

Be careful not to confuse ότι with ό,τι (with a comma), which means “whatever / anything that” and is not used here.

Why is there no comma before ότι, even though in English we might write “The teacher says, that…”?

In standard modern Greek punctuation, you do not put a comma before ότι/πως when they mean “that” introducing a subordinate clause.

Correct: Η δασκάλα λέει ότι αυτή η πρόταση…
Wrong: Η δασκάλα λέει, ότι αυτή η πρόταση…

So Greek here is actually closer to good English style without the comma:
The teacher says that this sentence…

In αυτή η πρόταση, how do the words agree grammatically, and could the order change?

αυτή η πρόταση literally = “this sentence”.

αυτή = demonstrative pronoun/adjective, feminine, nominative, singular
η = definite article, feminine, nominative, singular
πρόταση = noun, feminine, nominative, singular

All three agree in gender (feminine), number (singular) and case (nominative).

Alternative, also common word orders:

η πρόταση αυτή – same meaning, often a bit more “afterthought” or contrastive: this sentence (as opposed to others)
αυτή η πρόταση εδώ – this sentence here (more emphatic)

In your sentence, αυτή η πρόταση is the subject of the subordinate clause, so it is nominative.

Why is it αυτή and not αυτήν in αυτή η πρόταση?

The full accusative form is αυτήν, but:

In modern spoken and written Greek, the final -ν on feminine words (like αυτήν, την) is often dropped before consonants other than κ, π, τ, ξ, ψ, γκ, μπ, ντ, τσ, τζ.

Here αυτή is nominative, not accusative, so the correct form is αυτή, not αυτήν.

Nominative: αυτή η πρόταση = this sentence (subject)
Accusative: αυτήν την πρόταση or αυτή τη(ν) πρόταση = this sentence (object)

So in your sentence the nominative αυτή is grammatically required.

What does πρόταση usually mean in Greek? Is it always “sentence”?

πρόταση can mean several things, depending on context:

Sentence (in grammar):
- αυτή η πρόταση = this sentence
Proposal / suggestion:
- έχω μια πρόταση = I have a proposal / suggestion
Offer (e.g., job, business proposal):
- μια επαγγελματική πρόταση = a professional offer

In your sentence, because we are talking about a grammar “rule” and an “exception,” πρόταση clearly means “sentence”.

Why is there no article before εξαίρεση in είναι εξαίρεση? In English we say “it is an exception”.

Greek often omits the article after the verb είμαι (to be) when describing what something is in a general or classifying way:

είναι εξαίρεση = it is an exception
είναι δάσκαλος = he is a teacher
είναι πρόβλημα = it is a problem

You could say είναι η εξαίρεση in Greek, but that would usually mean “it is the (specific, unique) exception”, stressing that it is the one special exception.

So the version without the article is more natural for a general statement.

How is the verb ταιριάζει used here, and what does δεν ταιριάζει με mean?

ταιριάζει comes from ταιριάζω, which broadly means:

to fit, to match, to go well with, to be suitable for

In this sentence, δεν ταιριάζει με τον κανόνα means:

it does not fit the rule
it does not match the rule
it does not conform to the rule

The pattern is:

ταιριάζω με κάτι = to fit / match something
- αυτό το χρώμα ταιριάζει με τα μάτια σου. = this color matches your eyes.

Why is it με τον κανόνα and not some other preposition or case?

με is the preposition meaning “with”. With με, the noun that follows is in the accusative case.

ο κανόνας (nominative, singular) = the rule
τον κανόνα (accusative, singular) = the rule (as an object)

So:

με + τον κανόνα → with the rule

The phrase δεν ταιριάζει με τον κανόνα literally: it does not match with the rule.

You might also see σύμφωνα με τον κανόνα (according to the rule), where με is again followed by accusative.

Can you explain the forms of ο κανόνας and why it becomes τον κανόνα?

κανόνας is a masculine noun. Its main singular forms:

Nominative: ο κανόνας – the rule (subject)
Genitive: του κανόνα – of the rule
Accusative: τον κανόνα – the rule (object, or after many prepositions)

Since με takes the accusative, we must use τον κανόνα.

Plural (for reference):

Nominative: οι κανόνες
Genitive: των κανόνων
Accusative: τους κανόνες

Is the word order είναι εξαίρεση και δεν ταιριάζει με τον κανόνα fixed, or can it be changed?

Word order in Greek is relatively flexible, but what you have is very natural:

…είναι εξαίρεση και δεν ταιριάζει με τον κανόνα.

You could also say, for example:

…δεν ταιριάζει με τον κανόνα και είναι εξαίρεση.

Both are grammatical. The original puts “it is an exception” first, then explains how it is an exception (by not fitting the rule). Changing the order slightly changes the emphasis but not the basic meaning.

Could I leave out ότι and just say Η δασκάλα λέει αυτή η πρόταση είναι εξαίρεση…?

No, in standard Greek you need a complementizer (ότι or πως) introducing the clause after λέει in this structure.

Correct: Η δασκάλα λέει ότι αυτή η πρόταση είναι εξαίρεση…
Also correct: Η δασκάλα λέει πως αυτή η πρόταση είναι εξαίρεση…
Incorrect: Η δασκάλα λέει αυτή η πρόταση είναι εξαίρεση…

There are some informal spoken patterns where you might hear something similar to the “incorrect” version, but for proper grammar you should always use ότι or πως here.

The verb is in the present (λέει). Could we use the past (είπε) instead, and does Greek change the tense inside the ότι-clause like English sometimes does?

Yes, you can use the past:

Η δασκάλα είπε ότι αυτή η πρόταση είναι εξαίρεση…
= The teacher said that this sentence is an exception…

Greek does not strictly follow English “sequence of tenses” rules. If the statement “this sentence is an exception” is still true now, Greek normally keeps it in the present inside the ότι-clause, even after a past reporting verb:

είπε ότι είναι εξαίρεση (most natural if it is still an exception)
είπε ότι ήταν εξαίρεση (emphasizes it was an exception at that time; context-dependent)

So your original present λέει simply presents this as something she is saying now or generally.

Where is the negative word placed in δεν ταιριάζει με τον κανόνα, and is that always the position of δεν?

δεν is the basic negation particle for verbs, and it normally comes immediately before the verb:

δεν ταιριάζει = does not fit / does not match
δεν είναι = is not
δεν λέει = does not say / is not saying

So the structure is:

δεν + [verb] + …

In your sentence:
δεν (negation) + ταιριάζει (verb) + με τον κανόνα (prepositional phrase) = does not fit the rule.