Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα.

to be

Breakdown of Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα.

• τώρα: now
• το ποτήρι: the glass
• καθαρός: clear

Questions & Answers about Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα.

Why does the sentence start with Το? What does that word do?

Το is the Greek definite article "the" for neuter, singular, nominative nouns.

• Greek has three genders: masculine, feminine, neuter.
• ποτήρι (glass) is neuter, so its article in the nominative (subject) form is το.
• Together Το ποτήρι means "the glass" (a specific glass, not just any glass).

So Το shows that we are talking about a particular glass and agrees with ποτήρι in gender, number, and case.

Why is ποτήρι considered neuter, and how does that affect the rest of the sentence?

In Greek, every noun has a grammatical gender (masculine, feminine, or neuter), and ποτήρι happens to be neuter.

Because ποτήρι is neuter:

• Its article must also be neuter: το ποτήρι
• Any adjective describing it must be in the neuter form too:
  
  • The adjective is καθαρός (m.) – καθαρή (f.) – καθαρό (n.)
  • Here we use καθαρό (neuter) to match ποτήρι

So the agreement pattern is:

• Το (neuter article)
• ποτήρι (neuter noun)
• καθαρό (neuter adjective)

What are the subject, verb, and adjective in this sentence?

In Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα. we have:

• Subject (noun phrase): Το ποτήρι – the glass
• Verb: είναι – is (3rd person singular of είμαι = to be)
• Predicative adjective: καθαρό – clean (describing the subject)
• Adverb of time: τώρα – now

So the structure is:

[The glass] [is] [clean] [now].
→ Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα.

What exactly is είναι? How is the verb είμαι (to be) conjugated?

είναι is a form of the verb είμαι (to be) in the present tense. It is used for:

• he / she / it is (3rd person singular)
• they are (3rd person plural)
• and also you are (formal/plural) in many contexts

Full present tense of είμαι:

• (εγώ) είμαι – I am
• (εσύ) είσαι – you are (singular, informal)
• (αυτός) είναι – he is
• (αυτή) είναι – she is
• (αυτό) είναι – it is
• (εμείς) είμαστε – we are
• (εσείς) είστε / είσαστε – you are (plural / formal)
• (αυτοί / αυτές / αυτά) είναι – they are

In Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα., είναι corresponds to "is" (it is).

Why does καθαρό end in -ό and not -ος or -η?

The adjective καθαρός (clean) changes its ending to match the noun it describes:

• καθαρός – masculine (e.g. ο καθαρός δρόμος – the clean road)
• καθαρή – feminine (e.g. η καθαρή κουζίνα – the clean kitchen)
• καθαρό – neuter (e.g. το καθαρό ποτήρι – the clean glass)

Since ποτήρι is neuter, we must use the neuter form καθαρό.
Using καθαρός or καθαρή here would be grammatically wrong.

Why is the adjective καθαρό after the verb, instead of before the noun like in English (the clean glass)?

Greek can do both, but the meaning changes slightly:

1. Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό.

   • Literally: The glass is clean.
   • You are stating a current state of the glass.

2. Το καθαρό ποτήρι.

   • Literally: The clean glass.
   • This is a noun phrase, not a full sentence.
   • You’re using clean as an attribute that identifies which glass you mean (the clean one, not the dirty one).

So in a full sentence describing the state of something, Greek often uses: [Noun] + είναι + [adjective]
→ Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό.

Can the word order change? For example, can I say Το ποτήρι είναι τώρα καθαρό or Τώρα το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό?

Yes, Greek word order is quite flexible, and all of these are possible:

• Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα. (very natural, neutral)
• Το ποτήρι είναι τώρα καθαρό. (slight emphasis on now)
• Τώρα το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό. (stronger emphasis on now, something changed)

They all translate as "The glass is clean now.", but moving τώρα can subtly shift what you emphasize:

• At the end (…καθαρό τώρα): simple statement of the time.
• Right after είναι (είναι τώρα καθαρό): highlights the new state starting now.
• At the beginning (Τώρα…): strong focus on "Now (as opposed to before)".

Could I leave out Το and just say Ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα?

No, that would sound wrong in standard Greek.

In Greek, the definite article (ο, η, το) is used much more consistently than in English. When you are talking about a specific, known glass, you must say:

• Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα.

You can drop the article only in special cases (titles, some fixed expressions, or when the noun is very generic in certain constructions), but not in a normal sentence like this with a specific object.

How would I say "A glass is clean now" instead of "The glass is clean now"?

To say "a glass", you use the indefinite article ένα (neuter):

• Ένα ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα. – A glass is clean now.

So:

• Το ποτήρι… – The glass… (specific glass)
• Ένα ποτήρι… – A glass… (any one glass, not specified)

Is there an explicit word for "it" in this sentence, like "It is clean now"?

Greek usually does not use an explicit subject pronoun like "it" in such sentences.

• In Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα., the subject is Το ποτήρι, so there is no need for "it".

If you really wanted to say "It is clean now" referring to something already mentioned, you could say:

• Είναι καθαρό τώρα. – It is clean now.
  (The subject "it" is understood from the context.)

You would not normally say Αυτό είναι καθαρό τώρα unless you want to stress this one (this thing here, as opposed to another).

How do I make the sentence negative, like "The glass is not clean now"?

To make a sentence negative in Greek, you put δεν right before the verb.

So:

• Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα. – The glass is clean now.
• Το ποτήρι δεν είναι καθαρό τώρα. – The glass is not clean now.

Pattern: [Subject] + δεν + [verb] + [rest of the sentence]

How do I pronounce each word in this sentence?

Here is a simple pronunciation guide with stress marked in capitals:

• Το – to (like toh)
• ποτήρι – po-TEE-ri (stress on -TEE-)
• είναι – EE-ne (stress on EE-)
• καθαρό – ka-tha-RO (stress on -RO)
• τώρα – TO-ra (stress on TO-)

So the whole sentence:

• Το ποτήρι είναι καθαρό τώρα.
  → to po-TEE-ri EE-ne ka-tha-RO TO-ra