Δίπλα στη σαπουνοθήκη άφησα τη λοσιόν και την ενυδατική κρέμα.

Δίπλα means next to / beside. In this sentence it is followed by a noun phrase, so it works like next to the soap dish.

A useful pattern is:

• δίπλα σε + accusative
• δίπλα από + accusative

So δίπλα στη σαπουνοθήκη is a very natural way to say next to the soap dish.

Because στη is just the contracted form of σε τη.

Very common contractions are:

• σε + τη = στη
• σε + την = στην
• σε + το = στο
• σε + τον = στον

So στη σαπουνοθήκη literally comes from σε τη σαπουνοθήκη.

It is in the accusative singular, because σε normally takes the accusative in Modern Greek.

So the structure is:

• σε + accusative
• here: στη σαπουνοθήκη

A detail that often confuses learners: the noun σαπουνοθήκη looks the same in nominative and accusative singular. What changes visibly is mainly the article:

• nominative: η σαπουνοθήκη
• accusative: τη σαπουνοθήκη

Άφησα is the aorist, 1st person singular, from αφήνω.

So it means:

• I left
• I put down
• I left behind

In this sentence it refers to a completed past action: the speaker placed or left those items there.

Compare:

• αφήνω = I leave / I am leaving
• άφησα = I left

Because Greek often leaves the subject pronoun out when the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

Here, άφησα already means I left, so εγώ is unnecessary unless you want emphasis or contrast.

For example:

• Άφησα τη λοσιόν... = I left the lotion...
• Εγώ άφησα τη λοσιόν... = I left the lotion... / I was the one who left it...

This is very normal in Greek.

This is about the final -ν in the article.

The feminine accusative article is historically την, but in standard modern spelling the final -ν is often dropped before many consonants.

So:

• τη λοσιόν because λοσιόν starts with λ
• την ενυδατική κρέμα because ενυδατική starts with a vowel, ε

That is why you see:

• τη λοσιόν
• την ενυδατική κρέμα

In actual speech, some speakers keep the -ν more often, but the spelling here is standard.

Because Greek normally repeats the definite article with each definite noun phrase in a coordination like this.

So:

• τη λοσιόν και την ενυδατική κρέμα

is the natural way to say the lotion and the moisturizing cream.

Repeating the article makes it clear that both items are definite and both belong equally to the object of άφησα.

Λοσιόν is a borrowed word, and in Modern Greek it is usually treated as an indeclinable feminine noun.

That means the noun form itself does not change:

• η λοσιόν
• τη λοσιόν

The article shows the case, while λοσιόν stays the same.

This is common with some borrowed nouns in Greek.

Ενυδατική is an adjective, and κρέμα is the noun.

The adjective agrees with the noun in:

• gender: feminine
• number: singular
• case: accusative

So:

• την ενυδατική κρέμα

means the moisturizing cream.

Literally, ενυδατική means something like hydrating / moisturizing, and it modifies κρέμα.

Yes. Greek word order is more flexible than English word order.

This sentence begins with Δίπλα στη σαπουνοθήκη to foreground the location first. It sounds like the speaker is setting the scene before telling you what they left there.

You could also say:

• Άφησα τη λοσιόν και την ενυδατική κρέμα δίπλα στη σαπουνοθήκη.

That is also natural, but it puts the action first and the location later.

So the original order is not random; it gives a slightly different emphasis.

It is a compound noun:

• σαπούνι = soap
• θήκη = holder / case / container

So σαπουνοθήκη is literally something like soap-holder, which is why it means soap dish or soap holder.

Greek makes a lot of compound words like this, so it is very useful to notice the parts.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

• Δίπλα = THEE-pla
• στη = stee
• σαπουνοθήκη = sa-poo-no-THEE-kee
• άφησα = AH-fee-sa
• τη λοσιόν = tee lo-see-ON
• την ενυδατική κρέμα = teen e-nee-tha-tee-KEE KRE-ma

A couple of useful sound notes:

• δ in Modern Greek sounds like th in this
• θ sounds like th in thin
• the written accent mark shows the stressed syllable

So the stressed syllables are:

• ΔΙπλα
• σαπουνοΘΗκη
• Αφησα
• λοσιΟΝ
• ενυδατιΚΗ
• ΚΡΕμα