Learn Hardcore Greek: Ο δάσκαλος λέει ότι η πρόοδος είναι πιο σημαντική από το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα στην αρχή. - The teacher says that progress is more important than a perfect result at the beginning.

Ο δάσκαλος literally means the teacher, but in context it can also mean a/the teacher in general.
If the speaker has a specific, known teacher in mind, ο δάσκαλος is exactly like the teacher.
If the teacher is more generic (e.g. in a story or as a role), Greek still prefers ο δάσκαλος, whereas English might say a teacher.

You can say Ένας δάσκαλος λέει ότι…, but that shifts the meaning to A teacher says that…, emphasizing that it’s just some (unspecified) teacher, not one we already know about.

What does λέει ότι mean exactly, and why do we use ότι here?

λέει = he/she says (3rd person singular of λέω = to say).
ότι here is a conjunction meaning that, introducing a content clause.

So λέει ότι … = (he) says that …

Greek often uses:

ότι or πως (both mean that in this context):
- Ο δάσκαλος λέει ότι…
- Ο δάσκαλος λέει πως…

Both are normal in modern Greek. πως sounds slightly more informal or conversational, but the difference is small.

Important: This ότι is not the same as ό,τι (with comma), which means whatever / anything that. In your sentence, it’s the conjunction ότι = that.

Why is it η πρόοδος and not just πρόοδος without the article?

In Greek, abstract nouns (like πρόοδος = progress) usually take the definite article when you’re talking about them in a general or specific sense:

η πρόοδος είναι σημαντική = progress is important (in general)
μου αρέσει η μουσική = I like music (literally: the music)

So:

η πρόοδος είναι πιο σημαντική…
literally: the progress is more important…,
but it corresponds to English progress is more important…

Leaving the article out (πρόοδος είναι…) is possible in some more telegraphic or poetic styles, but in normal prose η πρόοδος is standard.

Why is σημαντική (feminine) and not σημαντικός?

Adjectives in Greek agree in gender, number, and case with the noun they describe.

η πρόοδος is:
- gender: feminine
- number: singular
- case: nominative (subject)

So the adjective must also be:

σημαντική (feminine, singular, nominative)

If the noun were masculine or neuter, the adjective would change:

ο στόχος είναι σημαντικός = the goal is important (masculine)
το θέμα είναι σημαντικό = the topic is important (neuter)

In your sentence:

η πρόοδος είναι πιο σημαντική…
The feminine form σημαντική matches η πρόοδος.

How does the comparison πιο σημαντική από work? Is this the normal way to say more important than?

Yes. The regular comparative pattern in Greek is:

πιο + adjective + από = more + adjective + than

So:

πιο σημαντική από = more important than
πιο γρήγορος από = faster than
πιο ενδιαφέρον από = more interesting than

In your sentence:

η πρόοδος είναι πιο σημαντική από το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα
= progress is more important than the perfect result

Some adjectives have irregular comparative forms (like καλύτερος = better instead of πιο καλός), but σημαντικός uses the normal πιο σημαντικός/ή/ό pattern.

Why is it από το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα and not απὸ τὸ τέλειος αποτέλεσμα?

Several things are happening here:

από
- article:
- από = from / than
- Before το, από το often contracts in speech to απ’ το, but writing από το is perfectly correct.
- We need από in comparisons: πιο … από … = more … than …
Adjective agreement:
- αποτέλεσμα (result) is neuter:
  - το αποτέλεσμα (the result)
- τέλειος is the adjective perfect. It must agree with αποτέλεσμα:
  - neuter singular nominative/accusative: τέλειο
- So we say το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα (the perfect result), not τέλειος αποτέλεσμα.

Putting it together:

από το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα = than the perfect result

Why is it το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα (with article) and not just τέλειο αποτέλεσμα?

Greek tends to use the definite article more often than English, especially when we are contrasting two ideas:

η πρόοδος vs το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα

This sets up a clear contrast: the progress vs the perfect result.

You could say πιο σημαντική από ένα τέλειο αποτέλεσμα (more important than a perfect result), but that slightly shifts the nuance to some perfect result rather than the perfect result (as a goal/ideal).

In many contexts, το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα corresponds to the English idea the perfect result as a general ideal, not a specific instance.

What exactly does στην αρχή mean, and why is it written like that?

στην αρχή comes from:

σε (in, at, to) + την (the, feminine accusative) → στην

This is a common contraction:

σε + την → στην
σε + τον → στον

αρχή means beginning, and it is feminine:

η αρχή = the beginning

So:

στην αρχή literally = in/at the beginning

In your sentence:

…από το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα στην αρχή.
= …than the perfect result at the beginning.

Meaning: at the start (of learning, of a process), progress is more important than getting a perfect result.

Can I move στην αρχή to a different place in the sentence, and is the meaning the same?

Yes, Greek word order is fairly flexible, and στην αρχή is an adverbial phrase of time. You could say:

Στην αρχή, ο δάσκαλος λέει ότι η πρόοδος είναι πιο σημαντική από το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα.
Ο δάσκαλος λέει ότι, στην αρχή, η πρόοδος είναι πιο σημαντική από το τέλειο αποτέλεσμα.

All of these are grammatically correct. The main meaning stays the same: at the beginning, progress is more important than the perfect result.

Placing στην αρχή:

at the very start makes “at the beginning” more prominent.
in the middle (as in the original sentence) sounds very natural and neutral in Greek.

Why is the verb είναι used after ότι and not some special form like the subjunctive?

After ότι (or πως) that introduce reported speech or statements, Greek normally uses the indicative mood, just like English:

Λέει ότι είναι κουρασμένος. = He says that he is tired.
Λένε ότι θα βρέξει. = They say that it will rain.

Subjunctive forms (with να) are used after different types of connectors (like να, για να, πριν να etc.), usually for wishes, purposes, or possibilities:

Θέλω να είναι χαρούμενος. = I want him to be happy.

In your sentence:

λέει ότι η πρόοδος είναι πιο σημαντική…
This is a straightforward statement, so είναι (indicative) is correct and expected.

What tense is λέει, and why is it used instead of a past tense like είπε?

λέει is the present tense, 3rd person singular of λέω.

Ο δάσκαλος λέει ότι… = The teacher says that… / The teacher is saying that…

Using the present here gives the idea of:

something the teacher regularly says (habitual), or
something the teacher is saying now.

If you used είπε (past tense: he/she said):

Ο δάσκαλος είπε ότι η πρόοδος είναι πιο σημαντική…
= The teacher said that progress is more important…

That would refer to a specific moment in the past. Both are correct; the choice depends on whether you want a general / ongoing statement (λέει) or a single past event (είπε).