Learn Hardcore Greek: Μετά το μάθημα παίρνουμε μια βεβαίωση συμμετοχής από τη γραμματεία. - After the class we get a certificate of participation from the office.

The version without «από» is a bit shorter and slightly more neutral. Μετά από can sound a little more explicit or emphatic, but in everyday speech they’re almost interchangeable in this time meaning.

Why is it «το μάθημα» and not something like «η μάθημα»?

In Greek, every noun has a grammatical gender that you just have to learn with the word.

το μάθημα = the lesson / the class
το is the neuter definite article (singular).
μάθημα is a neuter noun, so it always takes το in the singular (το μάθημα, του μαθήματος, στο μάθημα, etc.).

It’s not feminine, so η μάθημα would be incorrect.

What case is «το μάθημα» in, and why?

«το μάθημα» here is in the accusative case.

Reason: Most prepositions in Modern Greek take the accusative, and «μετά» is one of them.
So:

nominative: το μάθημα (as subject) — e.g. Το μάθημα αρχίζει.
accusative: το μάθημα after a preposition — Μετά το μάθημα, στο μάθημα, για το μάθημα, κτλ.

What does «παίρνουμε» literally mean, and what form is it?

«παίρνουμε» is:

the 1st person plural, present tense, active voice of the verb παίρνω.
basic meaning: we take / we get / we receive.

Full present conjugation of παίρνω:

εγώ παίρνω – I take / get
εσύ παίρνεις – you take / get (singular)
αυτός/αυτή/αυτό παίρνει – he/she/it takes / gets
εμείς παίρνουμε – we take / get
εσείς παίρνετε – you take / get (plural / polite)
αυτοί/αυτές/αυτά παίρνουν(ε) – they take / get

Why is «παίρνουμε» (present) used if in English I’d say “we get / we will get” after the lesson?

Greek often uses the present tense for:

regular, repeated actions (habitual)
scheduled or expected future actions

So «Μετά το μάθημα παίρνουμε…» can mean:

After the lesson (every time), we get a certificate… (habitually), or
After the lesson, we get a certificate… (it’s understood as what normally happens, possibly in the future).

If you wanted to emphasise a specific future time, you could use:

Θα πάρουμε μια βεβαίωση… – We will get a certificate… (once / at some future point).

Why is it «μια βεβαίωση» and not «τη βεβαίωση»?

μια βεβαίωση = an / a certificate (indefinite)
τη βεβαίωση = the certificate (definite, a specific one already known in context)

In this sentence the speaker is talking about the type of thing you receive in general, not one particular, already identified document. So the indefinite article «μια» is natural: we get a certificate of attendance (one such document).

What’s the difference between «μια» and «μία»?

Both «μια» and «μία» are written and both are pronounced [mia].

Typical distinction (in more careful writing):

μια = indefinite article (a/an):
- μια βεβαίωση, μια καρέκλα, μια μέρα.
μία = the numeral “one” (emphasising the number):
- μία βεβαίωση μόνο – only one certificate.

In everyday texts, many Greeks write μια in both roles. In your sentence, it clearly functions as the indefinite article.

What exactly does «βεβαίωση συμμετοχής» mean, and how is it structured grammatically?

«βεβαίωση συμμετοχής» literally means “attestation / confirmation of participation”, usually translated as “certificate of attendance/participation”.

Structure:

βεβαίωση – a feminine noun, “certificate, attestation, written confirmation”.
συμμετοχής – genitive singular of συμμετοχή (“participation”).

So this is a very common Greek pattern:

[noun] + [noun in genitive]
βεβαίωση συμμετοχής = certificate of participation
βιβλίο ιστορίας = book of history
ποτήρι νερού = glass of water

Why is «συμμετοχής» in the genitive case?

The genitive in Greek is often used:

to show possession / relation / “of” between two nouns.

Here, «συμμετοχής» tells us what kind of certificate it is — a certificate of participation.

nominative: η συμμετοχή – participation
genitive: της συμμετοχής – of participation
in the phrase: βεβαίωση συμμετοχής – certificate of participation

So βουβαίωση + genitive = “certificate of X”.

What is «η γραμματεία»? Is it a person (secretary) or an office?

«η γραμματεία» is usually:

the administration / secretariat / office (as a department or service), not a single person.
It refers to the office where administrative / clerical work is done – e.g. school office, university admin office, a department’s secretariat.

For a person (a secretary), Greek more often uses:

ο/η γραμματέας – the secretary (male or female).

In your sentence, «από τη γραμματεία» means “from the (administrative) office / secretariat”.

Why is it «από τη γραμματεία» and not «από της γραμματείας»? Shouldn’t “from” use the genitive?

In Modern Greek, almost all prepositions—including «από»—are followed by the accusative case, not the genitive.

So:

nominative: η γραμματεία
accusative: τη γραμματεία
phrase: από τη γραμματεία – from the office

Older stages of Greek used genitive with some prepositions, but in today’s standard language, you should normally use accusative after από, σε, για, με, χωρίς, etc.

Why is it «τη γραμματεία» and not «την γραμματεία»?

The full feminine accusative article is «την», but:

Before most consonants (like γ), everyday spelling often drops the final -ν:
- την → τη
- τον → το

Official rule (simplified): keep the final -ν of τον/την before:

a vowel,
and the consonants κ, π, τ, ξ, ψ, μπ, ντ, γκ.

Elsewhere, it’s usually dropped in modern writing.

Since «γραμματεία» starts with γ (not γκ), you normally see «τη γραμματεία» in contemporary texts, pronounced [ti ɣramaˈtia].
Writing «την γραμματεία» is not wrong, but looks more old‑fashioned or overly careful.

Can the word order in this sentence be changed?

Yes. Greek word order is fairly flexible. Some natural alternatives (all correct, with slightly different emphasis) are:

Μετά το μάθημα, παίρνουμε μια βεβαίωση συμμετοχής από τη γραμματεία.
(Comma optional; fronted time phrase.)
Παίρνουμε μια βεβαίωση συμμετοχής από τη γραμματεία μετά το μάθημα.
(Time phrase at the end.)
Από τη γραμματεία παίρνουμε, μετά το μάθημα, μια βεβαίωση συμμετοχής.
(Emphasis on from the office.)

The basic elements and their forms don’t change; only the order changes to highlight different parts of the sentence.