Learn Hardcore Greek: Μετά τη διάλεξη η βιβλιοθήκη ησυχάζει και μπορώ να διαβάσω καλύτερα. - After the lecture the library becomes quiet and I can read better.

The full feminine accusative singular article is την, but in modern Greek the final -ν is often dropped in writing when the next word starts with most consonants.

So:

την διάλεξη → more conservative / careful spelling
τη διάλεξη → very common modern spelling

Both are grammatically correct and pronounced almost the same. The ν is usually:

kept before vowels and some consonants (π, τ, κ, μπ, ντ, γκ, ξ, ψ)
often dropped before other consonants (like δ in διάλεξη)

This “optional ν” is called the ν εγκλιτικό / ν ευφωνικό (movable nu).

Why do we use the definite article (τη διάλεξη) when English would often just say “after lecture”?

Greek uses the definite article much more frequently than English. Here τη διάλεξη is understood as:

after the lecture (a specific, known lecture – e.g. the class everyone just attended)

Even if in English you might loosely say “after lecture” or “after class”, in Greek you usually keep the article because:

you are referring to a particular event, not to lectures in general
time expressions like μετά τη δουλειά, μετά το μάθημα, μετά το φαγητό almost always take the article

So μετά τη διάλεξη is the normal, idiomatic way to say after the lecture.

Why is it Μετά τη διάλεξη and not Μετά από τη διάλεξη? What’s the difference?

Both are possible:

Μετά τη διάλεξη
Μετά από τη διάλεξη

Μετά can work:

directly with the accusative → μετά τη διάλεξη
with από + accusative → μετά από τη διάλεξη

In everyday speech and writing, people often drop από when the meaning is clear. Using από can make the time relationship slightly more explicit or emphatic, but here the difference is very small.

So you can safely treat them as near-synonyms; μετά τη διάλεξη is shorter and very natural.

In the phrase Μετά τη διάλεξη η βιβλιοθήκη ησυχάζει, what is the subject of the verb? Is word order flexible?

The subject is η βιβλιοθήκη.

The structure is:

Μετά τη διάλεξη – time phrase (When?)
η βιβλιοθήκη – subject (Who/What?)
ησυχάζει – verb (does what?)

Greek word order is relatively flexible. You could also say:

Η βιβλιοθήκη ησυχάζει μετά τη διάλεξη.

Both are correct. Putting Μετά τη διάλεξη first highlights the time frame:

After the lecture, the library quiets down…

So the order is chosen mainly for emphasis and flow, not grammar.

What exactly does ησυχάζει mean here? Is it “is quiet” or “becomes quiet”?

The verb ησυχάζω literally means to become quiet / to calm down / to quieten down.

In the present tense ησυχάζει can express:

a general, repeated situation:
Μετά τη διάλεξη η βιβλιοθήκη ησυχάζει.
→ After the lecture, the library (typically) quietens down.
the idea of a change of state: it wasn’t quiet before, but around that time it becomes quiet.

If you wanted to just state a static situation, you’d normally use είναι + adjective:

Η βιβλιοθήκη είναι ήσυχη. – The library is quiet.

So here ησυχάζει suggests that after the lecture there is a noticeable shift to quietness.

Why is it μπορώ να διαβάσω and not μπορώ να διαβάζω?

Both forms are grammatically possible but they express slightly different nuances:

μπορώ να διαβάσω (aorist subjunctive)
– focuses on doing/finishing some reading as an event or goal:
“I can (now) get some reading done / I’m able to read (successfully).”
μπορώ να διαβάζω (present subjunctive)
– focuses on the ongoing activity:
“I can be reading / I’m able to spend time reading (as an activity).”

In your sentence, the idea is that once the library quiets down, it becomes easier to really read effectively. That’s why the aorist διαβάσω is more natural: it implies effective, productive reading, not just the activity itself.

Why do we need να before διαβάσω? What is its role?

Να is the particle that introduces the subjunctive in modern Greek.

Patterns like:

μπορώ να + subjunctive
θέλω να + subjunctive
πρέπει να + subjunctive

are extremely common.

Here:

μπορώ – I can / I am able
να διαβάσω – (to) read (subjunctive)

So μπορώ να διαβάσω literally means I am able that I read, i.e. I can read.

You almost always need να after μπορώ when you’re talking about being able to do something.

Why is there no εγώ before μπορώ? How do we know it’s “I can”?

Greek is a pro‑drop language: subject pronouns (εγώ, εσύ, αυτός/αυτή/αυτό, etc.) are often omitted because the verb ending shows the person.

μπορώ → 1st person singular → “I can”
μπορείς → 2nd person singular → “you can”
μπορεί → 3rd person singular → “he/she/it can”

So μπορώ να διαβάσω naturally means I can read, even without εγώ.

You would add εγώ only for emphasis or contrast:

Εγώ μπορώ να διαβάσω, αλλά εσύ όχι.
I can read, but you can’t.

What is the difference between καλά, καλύτερα, and πιο καλά? Why is καλύτερα used here?

καλά – well
καλύτερα – better (comparative adverb of καλά)
πιο καλά – literally “more well”; in practice it also means “better”

So:

διαβάζω καλά – I read well.
διαβάζω καλύτερα – I read better.
διαβάζω πιο καλά – I read better (more colloquial / periphrastic).

In your sentence:

μπορώ να διαβάσω καλύτερα = I can read better (than before / than in other conditions).

Καλύτερα is the standard, compact comparative form and sounds very natural here.

Could we say η βιβλιοθήκη είναι ήσυχη instead of η βιβλιοθήκη ησυχάζει? Would that change the meaning?

Yes, you could say:

Μετά τη διάλεξη η βιβλιοθήκη είναι ήσυχη.

But the meaning shifts slightly:

η βιβλιοθήκη ησυχάζει
→ emphasizes the process/change: it quiets down after the lecture.
η βιβλιοθήκη είναι ήσυχη
→ describes the state: after the lecture, the library is (in a quiet state).

The original sentence suggests that because things calm down after the lecture, it becomes easier to read. The verb ησυχάζει nicely connects the time (μετά τη διάλεξη) with that change in atmosphere.

Does η βιβλιοθήκη here mean “library (place)” or “bookcase / bookshelf”? How do we know?

Η βιβλιοθήκη can mean both:

library (public or university library, or a room with books)
bookcase / bookshelf (a piece of furniture for books)

In this sentence, context tells us it is a library as a place:

It has a lecture connected in time with it.
It can quiet down and be a place where you read.

So here η βιβλιοθήκη = the library (building/room), not a piece of furniture.