Στο καφέ το Wi‑Fi είναι δωρεάν, αλλά συνήθως είναι αργό.

At the café the Wi‑Fi is free, but it’s usually slow.

Breakdown of Στο καφέ το Wi‑Fi είναι δωρεάν, αλλά συνήθως είναι αργό.

• είμαι: to be
• αλλά: but
• σε: at
• συνήθως: usually
• δωρεάν: free
• αργός: slow
• το καφέ: the café
• το Wi‑Fi: the Wi‑Fi

Questions & Answers about Στο καφέ το Wi‑Fi είναι δωρεάν, αλλά συνήθως είναι αργό.

Why does στο καφέ start with στο? What is it made of?

Στο is a very common contraction of σε + το:

• σε = in/at/to (a preposition)
• το = the (neuter singular article)

So στο καφέ literally means at/in the café.

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Why is it το καφέ and not ο καφές?

Greek has two related words:

• ο καφές = coffee (the drink), masculine
• το καφέ = café / coffee shop (the place), neuter and usually indeclinable

Here it’s clearly the place, so it’s (στο) καφέ.

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Why is there an article before Wi‑Fi: το Wi‑Fi?

Greek normally uses an article with nouns, even with many loanwords and tech terms. Wi‑Fi is treated like a neuter noun, so it commonly appears as το Wi‑Fi.
It’s basically the Wi‑Fi (service/network) of the place.

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How do you pronounce Wi‑Fi in Greek?

Most speakers say it like English, but adapted to Greek pronunciation: γουάι-φάι (wai-fai).
In Greek text you may even see it written as γουάι-φάι.

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What does είναι mean, and why is it used twice?

είναι = is/are (3rd person singular and plural of είμαι, to be).
It’s repeated because Greek doesn’t usually omit the verb to be in the second clause here:

• το Wi‑Fi είναι δωρεάν
• (το Wi‑Fi) συνήθως είναι αργό

You can sometimes drop the second είναι in casual speech, but repeating it is the safe, standard option.

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What part of speech is δωρεάν? Why doesn’t it change form?

δωρεάν means free (of charge) and is typically used as an adverb meaning for free / free of charge.
It’s indeclinable, so it doesn’t change for gender/number/case (unlike adjectives such as δωρεάνος/δωρεάν/δωρεάν which are rare in everyday Greek).

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Why is αργό neuter? What is it agreeing with?

αργό is the neuter singular form of the adjective αργός / αργή / αργό (slow).
It agrees with το Wi‑Fi, which is treated as neuter singular, so the adjective must also be neuter singular: αργό.

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Does αργό here mean “slow” in the sense of people being slow, or internet speed?

Here αργό clearly means slow in speed/performance—i.e., the internet connection is slow.
Greek uses the same adjective αργός/αργή/αργό for both kinds, and context tells you which.

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What does συνήθως mean and where can it go in the sentence?

συνήθως = usually. It’s an adverb and is quite flexible:

• …αλλά συνήθως είναι αργό. (very natural)
• …αλλά είναι συνήθως αργό. (also natural)
• Συνήθως, … (also possible with a comma, especially at the start)

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Why is there a comma before αλλά?

The comma is standard because αλλά (but) connects two independent clauses:

• το Wi‑Fi είναι δωρεάν
• (το Wi‑Fi) συνήθως είναι αργό

So the comma helps separate the two parts, similar to English.

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Is the word order fixed? Could I say Το Wi‑Fi στο καφέ είναι δωρεάν?

Yes, Greek word order is flexible. You can say:

• Στο καφέ το Wi‑Fi είναι δωρεάν… (sets the scene first: at the café…)
• Το Wi‑Fi στο καφέ είναι δωρεάν… (focuses on the Wi‑Fi first)

Both are correct; the choice is mostly about emphasis.

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Could I replace αλλά with another word like “however”?

Yes. Common alternatives include:

• αλλά = but (most common and neutral)
• όμως = however (often slightly more formal/contrastive) Example: Στο καφέ το Wi‑Fi είναι δωρεάν, όμως συνήθως είναι αργό.