Το «α» είναι φωνήεν.

The letter “a” is a vowel.

Breakdown of Το «α» είναι φωνήεν.

• είμαι: to be
• το α: the letter A
• το φωνήεν: the vowel

Questions & Answers about Το «α» είναι φωνήεν.

Why is το used before α?

Το is the neuter singular definite article: the.

In Greek, when you refer to a letter as an object or symbol, it is commonly treated as neuter, so you say:

• το α
• το β
• το ω

So Το «α» means the letter a.

Why is the letter α in « »?

The « » marks are Greek-style quotation marks, often called guillemets.

Here they show that α is being mentioned as a character/symbol, not used as part of a normal word. It is like English:

• "a" is a vowel.

Greek often writes this as:

• Το «α» είναι φωνήεν.

You may also sometimes see other quotation styles in modern printed or digital Greek, but « » is very standard.

What does είναι mean, and what form is it?