Η ακτίνα είναι χαλαρή.

The spoke is loose.

Breakdown of Η ακτίνα είναι χαλαρή.

• είμαι: to be
• χαλαρός: loose
• η ακτίνα: spoke

Questions & Answers about Η ακτίνα είναι χαλαρή.

What is Η at the beginning of the sentence?

Η is the definite article, meaning the.
Here it is the feminine singular nominative form, because ακτίνα is a feminine singular noun and it is the subject of the sentence.

A quick article set is:

• ο = masculine the
• η = feminine the
• το = neuter the

So Η ακτίνα = the ακτίνα.

How do I know that ακτίνα is feminine?

You can tell from the words agreeing with it:

• η is feminine singular
• χαλαρή is also feminine singular

Greek adjectives and articles must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case. So even if you did not already know the gender of ακτίνα, the sentence shows it.

Also, many nouns ending in -α are feminine, and ακτίνα is one of them.

Why is it χαλαρή and not χαλαρός or χαλαρό?

Because Greek adjectives change form to match the noun they describe.

The basic forms are:

• χαλαρός = masculine
• χαλαρή = feminine
• χαλαρό = neuter

Since ακτίνα is feminine singular, the adjective must also be feminine singular:

• Η ακτίνα είναι χαλαρή.

If the noun were neuter, you would use χαλαρό. If it were masculine, you would use χαλαρός.