Η ρίζα είναι υγιής.

A good learner-friendly pronunciation is:

• Η → ee
• ρίζα → REE-za
• είναι → EE-ne
• υγιής → ee-yee-EES

So the whole sentence is roughly:

ee REE-za EE-ne ee-yee-EES

A few useful sound notes:

• ρ is a Greek r, usually tapped or lightly rolled.
• ζ sounds like z.
• In υγιής, the γ before ι/η is a soft sound, close to y in yes.

Yes. Η here is the feminine singular definite article, meaning the.

Its lowercase form is η, but because it starts the sentence, it is capitalized: Η.

Important: it is not pronounced like English h. In Modern Greek, Η/η is pronounced ee.

Also, this is different from ή with an accent, which means or.

Because ρίζα is a feminine singular noun.

Greek articles change depending on gender, number, and case. The basic nominative singular articles are:

• ο for masculine
• η for feminine
• το for neuter

Since ρίζα is feminine singular, it takes η in the nominative: η ρίζα.

ρίζα is:

• a noun
• feminine
• singular
• nominative here, because it is the subject of the sentence

Its dictionary form is η ρίζα.

You may also see forms like:

• της ρίζας = of the root
• τη ρίζα = the root (object)
• ρίζες = roots

είναι is the verb is here. It comes from είμαι, meaning to be.

Some common forms are:

• είμαι = I am
• είσαι = you are
• είναι = he/she/it is
• είναι = they are

So είναι is used for both third person singular and third person plural.

In this sentence, it means is because the subject η ρίζα is singular.

Because Greek adjectives must agree with the noun they describe in gender, number, and case.

Here, υγιής describes ρίζα, so it must match it.

A helpful detail: this adjective has the same nominative singular form for masculine and feminine:

• ο άνθρωπος είναι υγιής = the man is healthy
• η ρίζα είναι υγιής = the root is healthy

But the neuter form is different:

• το φυτό είναι υγιές = the plant is healthy

So even though ρίζα is feminine, υγιής is still correct.

Yes.

In a sentence with είναι like this, the subject is in the nominative, and the predicate adjective also appears in the nominative to agree with the subject.

So:

• η ρίζα = nominative subject
• υγιής = nominative adjective agreeing with ρίζα

This is normal Greek grammar.

Yes, but that is not the same structure.

• Η ρίζα είναι υγιής = The root is healthy.
• Η υγιής ρίζα = the healthy root

So when the adjective comes directly before the noun, it becomes part of a noun phrase, not a complete sentence by itself.

If you want a full statement, you need the verb:

• Η ρίζα είναι υγιής.

Yes. Greek word order is more flexible than English.

The neutral, standard order is:

• Η ρίζα είναι υγιής.

But you could also hear:

• Υγιής είναι η ρίζα.

That version gives more emphasis or contrast to υγιής.

For a learner, the original order is the safest and most natural one to use first.

The accent marks show which syllable is stressed.

• ρίζα → stress on ρί
• είναι → stress on εί
• υγιής → stress on ής

So the stress pattern is:

• REE-za
• EE-ne
• ee-yee-EES

Greek spelling uses written stress very regularly, so accents are important for reading and pronunciation.

Normally, yes.

If you are talking about a specific root, Greek usually wants the article:

• Η ρίζα είναι υγιής.

Without the article:

• Ρίζα είναι υγιής

this would sound unnatural in ordinary speech, except in very special contexts such as notes, labels, headlines, or highly telegraphic style.

Greek uses the definite article more often than English does, so learners should get used to including it.

Not always.

Although in this sentence it can mean a literal root, ρίζα can also be used in other contexts, for example:

• the root of a word in linguistics
• a root in mathematics
• an origin or source in more abstract language

So the grammar of the sentence stays the same, even if the exact kind of root changes with context.