Learn Hardcore Greek: Μετά το φαγητό μαζεύω τα πιάτα από το τραπέζι. - After the meal I clear the plates from the table.

parts of the day: το πρωί (in the morning), το βράδυ (in the evening)
routine activities: τη δουλειά (work), το σχολείο (school)
meals: το φαγητό, το πρωινό, το μεσημεριανό

Leaving out the article (μετά φαγητό) sounds wrong in modern standard Greek.

What exactly does μετά mean here, and does it always take the accusative?

In this sentence, μετά means after in a temporal sense: μετά το φαγητό = after the meal.

In Modern Greek, when μετά means after, it is followed by the accusative:
- μετά το φαγητό (after the meal)
- μετά τη δουλειά (after work)

Historically, μετά with the genitive could mean with (formal/archaic: μετά του καθηγητού = with the professor), but in everyday modern language people use με instead for with, and μετά is used with the accusative to mean after.

Why is it φαγητό and not a more specific word like γεύμα or δείπνο?

φαγητό is the most common, everyday word for:

food in general
a meal (what you sit down to eat)

Other words:

γεύμα = meal (more formal, often used in writing or formal contexts)
δείπνο = dinner, supper (can sound more formal; in everyday speech many people still just say φαγητό)

So μετά το φαγητό is the natural, colloquial way to say after the meal / after eating.

What does μαζεύω literally mean? Is it specifically “to clear the table”?

Literally, μαζεύω means to gather, to collect, to pick up. Depending on context, it can mean:

μαζεύω τα πιάτα – I gather/collect the plates → I clear the plates
μαζεύω τα ρούχα – I gather the clothes
μαζεύω λεφτά – I save / collect money
μαζεύω το δωμάτιο – I tidy up the room

In this sentence, μαζεύω τα πιάτα από το τραπέζι is the standard way to say I clear the dishes from the table in Greek. So clearing the table is just one common use of the more general verb μαζεύω.

Why is there no εγώ? How do we know it means “I clear the plates”?

The subject pronoun εγώ (I) is usually omitted in Greek, because the verb ending already shows the person:

μαζεύω ends in -ω, which marks 1st person singular: I gather / I clear.
If it were μαζεύεις (ending -εις), it would mean you gather.

So:

μαζεύω τα πιάτα = I clear the plates
εγώ μαζεύω τα πιάτα also exists, but εγώ is only used for emphasis, like I clear the plates (not someone else).

In neutral sentences, Greek typically drops εγώ.

Why is μαζεύω in the present tense? Does it mean “I clear (right now)” or “I usually clear”?

The Greek present tense can express both:

An action happening right now:
- Τώρα μαζεύω τα πιάτα. – I am clearing the plates now.
A habitual or repeated action:
- Μετά το φαγητό μαζεύω τα πιάτα. – After the meal, I (always / usually) clear the plates.

There is no separate “present continuous” form like English. Context (here: μετά το φαγητό, a routine situation) makes it clear that this is about a habit.

What cases are used in το φαγητό, τα πιάτα, and το τραπέζι?

All three are in the accusative case, and all are neuter:

το φαγητό – accusative singular (same form as nominative for neuter)
τα πιάτα – accusative plural (same as nominative plural for neuter)
το τραπέζι – accusative singular (again, same as nominative)

Functions:

μαζεύω τα πιάτα
→ τα πιάτα is the direct object of the verb μαζεύω.
από το τραπέζι
→ το τραπέζι is the object of the preposition από, which (in modern usage) normally takes the accusative.
μετά το φαγητό
→ το φαγητό is the object of μετά, which (in its temporal meaning after) takes the accusative.

Why is από used here? Is it “from the table” or “off the table”?

από is a very common preposition and here it means from in the sense of away from a surface or place:

μαζεύω τα πιάτα από το τραπέζι = I clear the plates from / off the table.

In English you might prefer off the table, but Greek uses από for this idea. Some common patterns:

παίρνω το βιβλίο από το τραπέζι – I take the book from/off the table
φεύγω από το σπίτι – I leave from the house
έρχομαι από την Ελλάδα – I come from Greece

Could I say μαζεύω πιάτα without τα? Why do we have τα πιάτα with a definite article?

You can say μαζεύω πιάτα, but it changes the nuance:

μαζεύω πιάτα – I clear plates (some plates, in general, non‑specific)
μαζεύω τα πιάτα – I clear the plates (the specific plates that were just used in the meal)

In the sentence Μετά το φαγητό μαζεύω τα πιάτα από το τραπέζι, we are talking about the plates from that meal, so they are definite, and Greek shows that with τα.

Greek tends to use the definite article more than English, especially when both speaker and listener know which items are meant from context.

Why is it το τραπέζι and not στο τραπέζι?

The preposition here is από (from), not σε (in / at / on).

από το τραπέζι = from/off the table
στο τραπέζι = on the table (from σε
- το → στο)

The sentence focuses on removing the plates, so Greek uses από + accusative to show movement away from the table.

Is the word order fixed? Could I say Μαζεύω τα πιάτα από το τραπέζι μετά το φαγητό instead?

Greek word order is fairly flexible, so you can move the time phrase around. All of these are grammatically correct:

Μετά το φαγητό μαζεύω τα πιάτα από το τραπέζι.
Μαζεύω τα πιάτα από το τραπέζι μετά το φαγητό.
Τα πιάτα τα μαζεύω από το τραπέζι μετά το φαγητό. (more emphasis on τα πιάτα)

Putting Μετά το φαγητό at the beginning is very natural, because it sets the time frame first: After the meal, I clear the plates from the table.

How do you pronounce μαζεύω and where is the stress?

μαζεύω is pronounced approximately:

ma-ZE-vo (IPA: [maˈze.vo])

The stress mark ´ in Greek (μαζεύω) shows where the word is stressed: on the second syllable -ζεύ-. The same stress stays in all present-tense forms:

μαζεύω – I clear
μαζεύεις – you clear
μαζεύει – he/she/it clears