Το μικρό αγόρι δαγκώνει το ψωμί, ενώ η αδερφή του μασάει αργά γιατί το φαγητό είναι ζεστό.

They are the definite articles in Greek, like the in English.

They also show the gender, number, and case of the noun:

• το μικρό αγόρι
  • το = neuter singular nominative/accusative
  • αγόρι is a neuter noun
• η αδερφή
  • η = feminine singular nominative
  • αδερφή is a feminine noun

So Greek articles do more grammatical work than English the.

Because Greek adjectives must agree with the noun they describe.

Here, αγόρι is:

• neuter
• singular
• nominative (it is the subject)

So μικρός changes to μικρό to match αγόρι.

A few basic forms of μικρός are:

• μικρός = masculine
• μικρή = feminine
• μικρό = neuter

Since it is το αγόρι, we need το μικρό αγόρι.

Because in Greek, grammatical gender and real-life sex do not always match.

Αγόρι means boy, but grammatically it is a neuter noun. This is normal in Greek. Another common example is:

• το κορίτσι = the girl

So even though the meaning is male or female, the noun’s grammar can still be neuter.

It is the same article form, but here it is used for a different reason.

In το ψωμί, το marks ψωμί as:

• neuter
• singular
• accusative here, because it is the direct object of δαγκώνει

Greek uses the same form το for both:

• neuter nominative singular
• neuter accusative singular

So in this sentence:

• το μικρό αγόρι = subject
• το ψωμί = object

The form is the same, but the function is different.

Δαγκώνει is the 3rd person singular present tense of δαγκώνω = to bite.

It means:

• he/she/it bites
• or is biting, depending on context

The ending -ει here shows third person singular.

So:

• (εγώ) δαγκώνω = I bite
• (εσύ) δαγκώνεις = you bite
• (αυτός/αυτή/αυτό) δαγκώνει = he/she/it bites

Since the subject is το μικρό αγόρι, we use δαγκώνει.

Ενώ usually means while, whereas, or as depending on context.

In this sentence it connects two actions happening in contrast or at the same time:

• the boy is biting the bread
• his sister is chewing slowly

So here ενώ is best understood as while.

It is a very common linking word in Greek for joining two clauses.

Here του means his.

Literally, Greek often expresses possession with a form that originally functions like of him:

• η αδερφή του = his sister
• literally: the sister of him

This is very common in Greek. Similar forms are:

• μου = my / of me
• σου = your / of you
• του = his / its / of him
• της = her / of her
• μας = our
• σας = your (plural/polite)
• τους = their

So η αδερφή του is the normal way to say his sister.

Yes. Both μασάει and μασά are used.

They are two common present-tense forms of the verb μασάω / μασώ = to chew.

So you may see:

• μασάει
• μασά

Both can mean he/she is chewing.

The longer form -άει is very common in everyday Greek, especially in speech and informal writing.

Αργά is an adverb, meaning slowly.

It describes how she is chewing:

• μασάει αργά = she chews slowly / is chewing slowly

This is different from the adjective αργός / αργή / αργό = slow.

Compare:

• είναι αργή = she is slow → adjective
• μασάει αργά = she chews slowly → adverb

It can mean why or because, depending on the sentence.

Here it means because.

So:

• Γιατί μασάει αργά; = Why is she chewing slowly?
• Μασάει αργά γιατί το φαγητό είναι ζεστό. = She is chewing slowly because the food is hot.

This is very common in Greek: the same word can introduce a question or give a reason.

Because ζεστό must agree with φαγητό.

Φαγητό is:

• neuter
• singular

So the adjective must also be neuter singular:

• ζεστός = masculine
• ζεστή = feminine
• ζεστό = neuter

That is why we say:

• το φαγητό είναι ζεστό = the food is hot

Because Greek normally uses the definite article more regularly than English.

In this sentence, each noun phrase is clearly marked with its own article:

• το μικρό αγόρι
• το ψωμί
• η αδερφή του
• το φαγητό

This helps show:

• the noun’s gender
• the noun’s number
• sometimes its case
• where one noun phrase begins

It may feel repetitive to an English speaker, but in Greek it sounds natural and standard.

Greek word order is more flexible than English, because case endings and articles help show grammatical roles.

The sentence as written is the most neutral and natural:

• Το μικρό αγόρι δαγκώνει το ψωμί, ενώ η αδερφή του μασάει αργά γιατί το φαγητό είναι ζεστό.

But parts of it could be moved for emphasis. For example, Greek often changes word order to highlight something specific.

Even so, for learners, the given order is a very good standard pattern:

• subject + verb + object
• then another clause introduced by ενώ
• then a reason clause introduced by γιατί

So yes, Greek can move things around, but this version is the easiest and most neutral.

The accent marks show which syllable is stressed. That is very important in Greek pronunciation.

Key words here are stressed like this:

• Το mi-KRÓ a-GÓ-ri
• da-GKÓ-ni
• to pso-MÍ
• e-NÓ
• i a-der-FÍ tu
• ma-SÁ-i
• ar-GÁ
• gia-TÍ
• to fa-ghi-TÓ
• Í-ne
• ze-STÓ

A few useful notes:

• γγ / γκ / γχ combinations can sound different from what an English speaker expects.
• In δαγκώνει, the γκ is pronounced like a hard g sound.
• ει usually sounds like ee.
• αι usually sounds like e.

So μασάει is roughly ma-SA-ee, though in natural speech it often flows together smoothly.

It can be either, because the Greek present tense often covers both meanings.

So the sentence may mean:

• a scene happening right now
• or a more general description of what they do in this situation

Greek does not have to mark the difference as strictly as English does between:

• he bites / she chews
• he is biting / she is chewing

The exact meaning usually comes from context.