Το γυάλινο μπουκάλι είναι πάνω στο τραπέζι.

Because Greek uses the definite article the with both noun phrases:

• Το γυάλινο μπουκάλι = the glass bottle
• στο τραπέζι = on the table, where στο is a contraction of σε + το

Both μπουκάλι and τραπέζι are neuter singular nouns, so their article is το.

γυάλινο means glass in the sense of made of glass.

So:

• γυαλί = glass
• γυάλινος / γυάλινη / γυάλινο = made of glass

In this sentence, γυάλινο matches μπουκάλι, which is a neuter singular noun.

Greek adjectives change form to agree with the noun in:

• gender
• number
• case

Here, μπουκάλι is:

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

So the adjective must also be neuter singular nominative:

• masculine: γυάλινος
• feminine: γυάλινη
• neuter: γυάλινο

That is why the sentence has το γυάλινο μπουκάλι.

Because that is the most common position for a descriptive adjective in Greek.

So:

• το γυάλινο μπουκάλι = the normal, straightforward way to say the glass bottle

Greek can sometimes place adjectives after the noun, but that often changes the tone, emphasis, or structure. For a basic descriptive phrase, putting the adjective before the noun is the standard pattern.

είναι means is.

It is the 3rd person singular form of the verb είμαι = to be.

So:

• Το γυάλινο μπουκάλι είναι... = The glass bottle is...

Literally, it is something like:

• πάνω = above / on top / up
• στο τραπέζι = on the table / to the table, depending on context

Together, πάνω στο τραπέζι means on the table or more literally on top of the table.

In this sentence, it describes location: the bottle is resting on the table.

Because σε + το normally contracts to στο.

So:

• σε το τραπέζι → στο τραπέζι

This is extremely common in Greek.

Other similar contractions are:

• σε + την → στη(ν)
• σε + τον → στον

By itself, σε + article + noun often has a broad meaning like in / at / on / to, depending on context.

Here, the word πάνω makes the meaning clearly on the table.

So:

• πάνω στο τραπέζι = on the table
• without πάνω, στο τραπέζι could mean different things depending on the sentence

Because grammatical gender in Greek is a property of the noun itself. It does not depend on whether the object is male or female in real life.

So:

• το μπουκάλι = the bottle
• το τραπέζι = the table

Both happen to be neuter nouns. This is something you usually learn together with the article:

• not just μπουκάλι, but το μπουκάλι
• not just τραπέζι, but το τραπέζι

Not completely. Greek word order is more flexible than English word order.

The neutral order here is:

• Το γυάλινο μπουκάλι είναι πάνω στο τραπέζι.

But Greek can move things around for emphasis. For example, Πάνω στο τραπέζι είναι το γυάλινο μπουκάλι could be possible in a context where you are emphasizing location.

Still, for learners, the sentence you have is the most natural basic order.

No, not in a normal present-tense sentence like this.

Greek usually keeps the verb είναι when saying:

• X is Y
• X is in/on/at Y

So you need:

• Το γυάλινο μπουκάλι είναι πάνω στο τραπέζι.

Leaving out είναι would sound wrong here.

The written accents show where the stress goes:

• γυάλινο → stress on γυά
• μπουκάλι → stress on κά
• είναι → stress on εί
• τραπέζι → stress on πέ

Very roughly for an English speaker:

• Το = to
• γυάλινο = YA-li-no
• μπουκάλι = boo-KA-li
• είναι = EE-ne
• πάνω = PA-no
• στο = sto
• τραπέζι = tra-PE-zi

These are only rough guides, but the stress placement is important in Greek.

There is a word for the there, but it is hidden inside στο.

• στο = σε + το
• and το is the

So πάνω στο τραπέζι already includes the.

Yes. επάνω is a fuller form of πάνω.

So both can be used:

• πάνω στο τραπέζι
• επάνω στο τραπέζι

In everyday speech, πάνω is very common and natural.

Not exactly in grammar, even though the meaning is the same.

In English:

• glass bottle uses glass like a noun modifying another noun

In Greek:

• γυάλινο is an adjective

So Greek expresses the idea with an adjective that agrees with the noun, not with a bare noun modifier.

In this sentence:

• το γυάλινο μπουκάλι is in the nominative, because it is the subject
• στο τραπέζι is in the accusative after σε

For many neuter nouns like these, the nominative and accusative forms look the same in the singular, which is why both nouns appear similar in form.

Yes. πάνω is a flexible word.

Depending on context, it can mean things like:

• up
• above
• on top
• on

In this sentence, because it is followed by στο τραπέζι, the meaning is clearly on the table.