Learn Hardcore Greek: Χωρίς επανάληψη δεν υπάρχει αληθινή πρόοδος, όσο έξυπνος κι αν είσαι. - Without revision there is no real progress, no matter how smart you are.

Χωρίς – without
επανάληψη – repetition (noun, feminine, accusative singular)
δεν – not (negation for the verb)
υπάρχει – there is / exists
αληθινή – true, real (adjective, feminine, nominative singular)
πρόοδος – progress (noun, feminine, nominative singular)
όσο – as… (here in the pattern όσο + adjective… = however… / no matter how…)
έξυπνος – smart (adjective, masculine, nominative singular)
κι – shortened form of και (and), here part of the fixed pattern κι αν
αν – if
είσαι – you are (2nd person singular of είμαι)

Literal structure: Without repetition not exists real progress, as smart and if you are.
Natural English: Without repetition there is no real progress, no matter how smart you are.

Why is επανάληψη in the accusative case?

The preposition χωρίς (without) in Greek always takes the accusative case.

Nominative: η επανάληψη – the repetition (subject form)
Accusative: (τη) επανάληψη – (the) repetition (object form)

In the sentence we have:

Χωρίς επανάληψη – without repetition

So επανάληψη is accusative because it is governed by χωρίς.

Why is there no article before επανάληψη or αληθινή πρόοδος?

Greek often omits the article when talking about things in a general or abstract sense, especially with uncountable or abstract nouns.

Χωρίς επανάληψη – without repetition (in general)
δεν υπάρχει αληθινή πρόοδος – there is no real progress (in general)

If you added the article:

Χωρίς την επανάληψη – without the repetition (a more specific repetition previously mentioned)
δεν υπάρχει η αληθινή πρόοδος – the real progress doesn’t exist (sounds odd here; it points to some specific, defined kind of progress)

In this proverb-like, general statement, the absence of articles sounds natural and correct.

Why do we use υπάρχει and not είναι for “there is no progress”?

Greek uses υπάρχει (literally “exists”) to express existence / non-existence, just like English uses “there is / there are”:

δεν υπάρχει αληθινή πρόοδος – there is no real progress / real progress does not exist

If you used είναι (είναι αληθινή πρόοδος), it would sound wrong here, because είμαι is used more for identity or description:

Η πρόοδος είναι αληθινή. – The progress is real.

Here we’re not describing some specific progress; we’re denying its existence without repetition, so υπάρχει is the normal verb.

What is the gender and role of αληθινή πρόοδος in the sentence?

πρόοδος is a feminine noun (nominative singular).
αληθινή is a feminine adjective modifying it, also nominative singular.

In δεν υπάρχει αληθινή πρόοδος, the construction is:

υπάρχει – “there is” (3rd person singular)
αληθινή πρόοδος – the subject (what does or doesn’t exist)

Greek often places the subject after υπάρχει:

Υπάρχει λύση. – There is a solution.
Δεν υπάρχει αληθινή πρόοδος. – There is no real progress.

So αληθινή πρόοδος = the subject of υπάρχει, both in the feminine nominative singular.

Can the adjective and noun be reversed (e.g. πρόοδος αληθινή)?

Yes, in Greek the adjective can come before or after the noun, and both orders are grammatical, but not always equally natural.

αληθινή πρόοδος – very natural, neutral order here
πρόοδος αληθινή – possible, but feels a bit more emphatic or poetic: progress that is real

In ordinary modern speech, adjective + noun is more common:

μεγάλο σπίτι – big house
καλός φίλος – good friend
αληθινή πρόοδος – real progress

What does όσο έξυπνος κι αν είσαι literally mean, and what’s its function?

This is a common Greek pattern:

όσο + adjective + κι αν + verb

Meaning: “no matter how + adjective + (subject) + verb”, or “however + adjective + (subject) + verb.”

όσο – as/however
έξυπνος – smart
κι αν – “and if” (reduced και αν), forming a concessive idea
είσαι – you are

Literal-ish: “as smart as you may be”
Natural English: “no matter how smart you are” or “however smart you are.”

Function: it introduces a concessive clause: it admits that you may indeed be smart, but still, without repetition there is no real progress.

Why is it έξυπνος and not έξυπνη? Does this refer only to a man?

έξυπνος is the masculine form of the adjective “smart.” In Greek, when speaking:

to an unknown person,
to “you” in a generic, general, or proverb-like way,

the masculine often functions as the default generic form.

So:

όσο έξυπνος κι αν είσαι can be addressed to:
- a man,
- a woman, or
- people in general.

If the speaker is clearly addressing a specific woman, they can say:

όσο έξυπνη κι αν είσαι – “no matter how smart (fem.) you are.”

For mixed or generic “you,” the masculine έξυπνος is very common and not felt as excluding women in everyday speech (though some speakers may choose to make it feminine if they are talking to a woman).

What is this κι between έξυπνος and αν?

κι is simply a shortened form of και (“and”).

Before a vowel, και often becomes κι in speech and writing:
- και αν → κι αν
- και είναι → κι είναι
- και όμως → κι όμως

So κι αν = και αν, literally “and if,” but here it functions together as part of a fixed pattern:

όσο + adjective + κι αν + verb
→ “no matter how + adjective + verb”

You would rarely say όσο έξυπνος και αν είσαι in full in casual speech; όσο έξυπνος κι αν είσαι is the normal version.

What exactly does αν do in κι αν είσαι? Is it the same “if” as in conditionals?

Yes, αν is the usual Greek word for “if”, but here it is part of a concessive construction together with όσο and the adjective:

όσο έξυπνος κι αν είσαι – literally “as smart as if you may be”
→ idiomatically: “however smart you may be / no matter how smart you are”

The κι αν + verb suggests something like “even if you are”:

κι αν είσαι έξυπνος, χωρίς επανάληψη δεν… – even if you are smart, without repetition there is no…

So αν is still “if,” but the whole phrase expresses concession (“even if / no matter if”) rather than a standard “if … then …” condition.

Could I say όσο κι αν είσαι έξυπνος instead? Is it the same?

You can say όσο κι αν είσαι έξυπνος, and it is understood, but:

όσο έξυπνος κι αν είσαι is the more natural, idiomatic word order in modern Greek.

The usual pattern is:

όσο + adjective + κι αν + verb

Some similar examples:

όσο δύσκολο κι αν είναι – no matter how difficult it is
όσο κουρασμένος κι αν είσαι – no matter how tired you are

Putting the adjective right after όσο is what you will hear most often.

Why is there a comma before όσο έξυπνος κι αν είσαι?

In Greek punctuation, commas commonly separate:

a main clause from
a subordinate clause (e.g. concessive, temporal, conditional).

Here:

Main clause: Χωρίς επανάληψη δεν υπάρχει αληθινή πρόοδος
Subordinate concessive clause: όσο έξυπνος κι αν είσαι

So the comma before όσο is standard and helps show the structure:

Χωρίς επανάληψη δεν υπάρχει αληθινή πρόοδος, όσο έξυπνος κι αν είσαι.

How is the sentence pronounced? Are there any tricky parts?

Approximate pronunciation (stress in bold):

Χωρίς – kho-REES
επανάληψη – e-pa-NA-lip-see
δεν υπάρχει – then ee-PAR-khee
αληθινή – a-lee-thee-NEE
πρόοδος – PRO-o-thos (the οο is like po-o in “pooh–oh”)
όσο – O-so
έξυπνος – E-kseep-nos
κι αν – kee AN
είσαι – EE-se

Details:

χ (as in χωρίς, υπάρχει) is a voiceless velar fricative, like German Bach.
Double οο in πρόοδος is pronounced as two syllables: πρό-ο-δος, not a single long vowel.
Stress is important; moving it can change meaning or sound incorrect.