LingoflyPrepositions and the fused article: στο, στη, στον
Every preposition here takes the same shape of the noun — the one a direct object takes. There is nothing to choose. For example: “Πάω (páo) στο (sto) αεροδρόμιο (aerodrómio) με (me) το (to) τρένο” (tréno) — I'm going to the airport by train. A rule from the Greek course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Every preposition here takes the same shape of the noun — the one a direct object takes. There is nothing to choose.
The main preposition is σε (se), and it fuses with the word for "the" into one word. σε (se) + το (to) gives στο (sto), σε (se) + την (tin) gives στην (stin), σε (se) + τον (ton) gives στον (ston). A separate "σε (se) το (to) (se to)" does not exist.
σε (se) covers "in", "on" and "to" at once. Είμαι (íme) στην (stin) Αθήνα (Athína) (íme stin Athína) — I am in Athens. Πάω (páo) στην (stin) Αθήνα (Athína) (páo stin Athína) — I am going to Athens. The verb shows whether you stand there or head there.
The final -ν of την (tin) and στην (stin) is not always kept. It stays before a vowel and before κ (kápa), π, τ (taf), μπ, ντ, γκ, ψ, ξ, τσ, τζ. Otherwise it drops: στην (stin) Αθήνα (Athína) (stin Athína), but στη (sti) θάλασσα (thálasa) (sti thálasa).
Table
| σε (se) + | gives | example |
|---|---|---|
| τον (ton) | στον (ston) | στον (ston) έλεγχο (élenkho) — at the check |
| την (tin) | στην (stin) | στην (stin) αποβάθρα (apováthra) — on the platform |
| το (to) | στο (sto) | στο (sto) τρένο (tréno) — on the train |
| τους (tus) | στους (stus) | στους (stus) φίλους (fílus) — to friends |
| τα (ta) | στα (sta) | στα (sta) σύνορα (sínora) — at the border |
By example
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Prepositions and the fused article: how does it work in Greek?
Every preposition here takes the same shape of the noun — the one a direct object takes. There is nothing to choose.
What does it look like in a Greek example sentence?
“Πάω (páo) στο (sto) αεροδρόμιο (aerodrómio) με (me) το (to) τρένο” (tréno) (páo sto aerodrómio me to tréno) — I'm going to the airport by train. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.