Breakdown of Το ντουέτο αρχίζει με το κουπλέ και τελειώνει με το ρεφρέν.
και
and
με
with
τελειώνω
to finish
αρχίζω
to begin
Questions & Answers about Το ντουέτο αρχίζει με το κουπλέ και τελειώνει με το ρεφρέν.
Why is το used twice in this sentence?
Το is the definite article meaning the for neuter singular nouns.
In this sentence, you have three neuter singular nouns:
- το ντουέτο = the duet
- το κουπλέ = the verse
- το ρεφρέν = the refrain / chorus
Greek usually repeats the article where English might also use the, so:
- με το κουπλέ = with the verse
- με το ρεφρέν = with the refrain
So the article is not optional here just because it already appeared once earlier in the sentence.
Why are ντουέτο, κουπλέ, and ρεφρέν all neuter?
They are treated as neuter nouns in Greek. This is very common with:
- loanwords
- nouns ending in -ο
- some foreign musical and technical terms
So:
- το ντουέτο
- το κουπλέ
- το ρεφρέν
Even though κουπλέ and ρεφρέν do not have the typical Greek-looking endings, Greek still assigns them a grammatical gender, and here that gender is neuter.