Learn Hardcore Greek: Το στεγνωτήριο στεγνώνει γρήγορα τις πετσέτες, όμως τα πουκάμισα τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω. - The dryer quickly dries the towels, but I dry the shirts better outside.

η πετσέτα → τις πετσέτες
- feminine, plural, accusative
- τις is the feminine plural accusative article.
το πουκάμισο → τα πουκάμισα
- neuter, plural, accusative
- τα is the neuter plural nominative/accusative article.

So:

τις πετσέτες = the towels (feminine plural object)
τα πουκάμισα = the shirts (neuter plural object)

Greek articles must agree with the gender, number, and case of the noun.

Why is τα repeated in τα πουκάμισα τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω? What is the second τα doing there?

In τα πουκάμισα τα στεγνώνω, the two τα are not the same thing:

The first τα (in τα πουκάμισα) is the definite article: the shirts.
The second τα (before στεγνώνω) is a clitic object pronoun: them.

So the structure is basically:

Τα πουκάμισα, τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω.
= As for the shirts, I dry them better outside.

This pattern is very common in Greek: when you move the object to the front for emphasis or contrast, you usually repeat it with a pronoun before the verb. This is called clitic doubling.

Is the second τα (pronoun) necessary? Can I just say Τα πουκάμισα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω or Στεγνώνω τα πουκάμισα καλύτερα έξω?

There are two different issues here:

Neutral word order, no fronting:
- Στεγνώνω τα πουκάμισα καλύτερα έξω.
  This is completely natural and correct. No pronoun is needed because the object is in its normal position after the verb.
Fronted object for emphasis/contrast:
- Τα πουκάμισα τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω. (with pronoun)
  = very natural, the usual way to front the object.
- Τα πουκάμισα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω. (without pronoun)
  = possible in some contexts, but sounds marked or incomplete to many native speakers; the pronoun is strongly preferred.

So:

If you front the object (Τα πουκάμισα...), you almost always also use the clitic pronoun (τα) before the verb.
If you keep a more neutral order, you can just say:
Στεγνώνω τα πουκάμισα καλύτερα έξω.

Where is the subject “I” in the second clause? Why don’t we see εγώ?

Greek is a pro-drop language: subject pronouns are usually omitted because the verb ending shows the subject.

στεγνώνω = I dry (1st person singular)
The subject “I” is already contained in the verb form.

So:

...τα πουκάμισα τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω.
literally: ...the shirts, them I-dry better outside.

You can say Εγώ τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω, but εγώ is then emphatic:
I dry them better outside (implying: not someone else / not the dryer, etc.).

Why is γρήγορα used here, and not γρήγορος? And what about καλύτερα?

γρήγορα and καλύτερα are adverbs, not adjectives:

γρήγορος, -η, -ο = adjective: fast, quick
Used with nouns:
- γρήγορο στεγνωτήριο = a fast dryer.
γρήγορα = adverb: quickly, fast
Used with verbs:
- στεγνώνει γρήγορα = it dries quickly.

Similarly with καλύτερα:

καλύτερος, -η, -ο = adjective: better (as an adjective)
- καλύτερο στεγνωτήριο = a better dryer.
καλύτερα = adverb: better (in the sense of in a better way)
- τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω = I dry them better outside.

So in this sentence we modify actions (drying), not nouns, so we need adverbs:
γρήγορα, καλύτερα.

Could the adverbs γρήγορα and έξω go in other positions? Is the word order flexible?

Yes, Greek word order is quite flexible, especially with adverbs, but some positions sound more natural.

Original:

Το στεγνωτήριο στεγνώνει γρήγορα τις πετσέτες...
– very natural.

Possible variants:

Το στεγνωτήριο γρήγορα στεγνώνει τις πετσέτες.
Γρήγορα το στεγνωτήριο στεγνώνει τις πετσέτες.

They are grammatically fine, but the most neutral is usually:

Το στεγνωτήριο στεγνώνει γρήγορα τις πετσέτες.

For the second clause:

...τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω. (neutral, very natural)
...τα στεγνώνω έξω καλύτερα. (also possible)
...έξω τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα. (puts emphasis on “outside”)

Greek tends to put adverbs of place like έξω near the end, but moving them can add different focus or emphasis.

What is the difference between όμως and αλλά? Could I say αλλά instead of όμως here?

Both όμως and αλλά can mean “but”, but they behave slightly differently:

αλλά is a conjunction, normally placed at the beginning of the second clause:
- Το στεγνωτήριο στεγνώνει γρήγορα τις πετσέτες, αλλά τα πουκάμισα τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω.
όμως behaves more like an adverbial (however, though). It can move a bit:
- ..., όμως τα πουκάμισα τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω.
- ..., τα πουκάμισα όμως τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω.

In this sentence, you can replace όμως with αλλά without changing the basic meaning:

... τις πετσέτες, αλλά τα πουκάμισα τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω.

όμως often sounds a bit more conversational or slightly more detached (however), while αλλά is the straightforward but.

Why is καλύτερα used instead of πιο καλά? Are they the same?

καλύτερα and πιο καλά are very close in meaning here:

καλά = well
πιο καλά = more well / better (analytic comparative)
καλύτερα = better (synthetic comparative adverb from καλός)

In practice:

Τα στεγνώνω καλύτερα έξω.
Τα στεγνώνω πιο καλά έξω.

Both are acceptable and understandable. καλύτερα is a bit shorter and more idiomatic; it’s typically preferred in standard speech and writing.

Why do we use the definite article (τις πετσέτες, τα πουκάμισα) even though in English we might just say “towels” or “shirts” without “the”?

Greek uses the definite article more often than English does. In many generic or habitual statements, Greek prefers the article where English might omit it.

Greek: Το στεγνωτήριο στεγνώνει γρήγορα τις πετσέτες.
English: The dryer dries towels quickly. (no “the” needed in English)

Here, τις πετσέτες and τα πουκάμισα can refer to:

the specific towels/shirts you normally wash, or
towels/shirts in general in this typical situation.

Greek speakers often include the article in these kinds of habitual statements; it sounds natural and complete. Leaving it out (στεγνώνει γρήγορα πετσέτες) is possible but can sound more like a bare description of “towels” as a category (more technical or less natural in everyday speech).

So, as a learner, it’s usually safer to include the article with plural nouns unless you have a specific reason not to.