Paradigm of ὁ, ἡ, τό
The article inflects for **gender** (m./f./n.), **number** (sg./pl.), and **case** (Nom./Gen./Dat./Acc.). There is no vocative. Note the characteristic **τ-** in most forms; the specifically **τ-less** nominative forms are **ὁ, ἡ, οἱ, αἱ**, while neuter nominatives **τό, τά** retain τ-. In accentuation, only **ὁ, ἡ, οἱ, αἱ** are the accentless proclitic article forms; the other article forms are accented.
**John 1:1** — …καὶ **ὁ** λόγος ἦν πρὸς **τὸν** θεόν…
*…and the Word was with God…*
Parsing: ὁ = nom. m. sg. (modifies λόγος); τὸν = acc. m. sg. (modifies θεόν, the object of πρὸς).
**John 3:16** — Οὕτως γὰρ ἠγάπησεν **ὁ** θεὸς τὸν κόσμον…
*For in this way God loved the world…*
Parsing: ὁ marks θεός as the subject; τὸν marks κόσμον as the object.
Historical Origin
The Greek article belongs historically to the inherited **pronominal/demonstrative system**. Its paradigm preserves different stem material conventionally represented by forms such as **ὁ-/ἁ-/το-**. The specifically τ-less forms are **ὁ, ἡ, οἱ, αἱ**, while **τό, τά** and the oblique forms contain τ. This historical background explains relationships within the paradigm, but Koine learners should learn the actual inflected forms directly. Rough breathing is a phonological/orthographic feature and should not be treated as a surviving semantic 'deictic force'.
Gender
The article agrees with its noun in gender: **ὁ λόγος** (m.), **ἡ ἀρχή** (f.), **τὸ ἔργον** (n.). Greek grammatical gender is largely arbitrary and must be learned with each noun. The article is the most reliable marker of a noun's gender in running text.
Number
The article inflects for singular and plural: **ὁ λόγος / οἱ λόγοι** ('the word / the words'). There is no dual, which had died out before the Koine period.
Case
The article marks nominative, genitive, dative, and accusative case and agrees with its noun in case. **Case is a morphological category, not a one-to-one syntactic-role label**: nominatives are often subjects and accusatives often objects, but each case has multiple syntactic uses. The article reliably flags the noun phrase's case; clause syntax establishes its particular function.
Agreement
When the article occurs with an **overt nominal head**, it agrees with that head in **gender, number, and case**: **ὁ ἀγαθὸς λόγος**, **τὸ ἔργον τὸ καλόν**. The article can also form **substantival** expressions with adjectives, participles, prepositional phrases, and other material, in which case no overt noun need be present. Article morphology remains GNC-inflecting in both uses.
Article as Structural Marker
Beyond 'making a noun definite', the article serves crucial **structural** functions (treated fully in Chapter 43): it marks **attributive vs. predicate position** of adjectives (**ὁ ἀγαθὸς λόγος** 'the good word' vs. **ἀγαθὸς ὁ λόγος** 'the word is good'), it **substantivizes** other parts of speech (**οἱ νεκροί** 'the dead'), and it signals **generic, anaphoric, and deictic** reference. Mastering article syntax is mastering much of Greek syntax.
Paradigms
The Definite Article: ὁ, ἡ, τό
The most important paradigm in Greek. The accentless proclitic article forms are ὁ, ἡ, οἱ, αἱ. Those same masculine/feminine nominatives are τ-less; neuter nominatives τό, τά retain τ-.
| Case | m. sg. | f. sg. | n. sg. | m. pl. | f. pl. | n. pl. |
| Nominative | ὁ nom. m. sg. the | ἡ nom. f. sg. | τό nom. n. sg. | οἱ nom. m. pl. | αἱ nom. f. pl. | τά nom. n. pl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genitive | τοῦ | τῆς | τοῦ | τῶν | τῶν | τῶν |
| Dative | τῷ | τῇ | τῷ | τοῖς | ταῖς | τοῖς |
| Accusative | τόν | τήν | τό | τούς | τάς | τά |
Chapter glossary
- ὁ ἡ τό — the (definite article)
ho hē to
article
Inflects for gender, number, and case. With an overt nominal head it participates in GNC agreement; it may also form substantival expressions without an overt noun. The specifically proclitic article forms are ὁ, ἡ, οἱ, αἱ.- — article
article
The definite article ὁ/ἡ/τό; marks definiteness, gender/number/case, and structural positions.- — proclitic
phonology
Accentless word leaning forward on a following host; article proclitics are ὁ, ἡ, οἱ, αἱ (not every inflected article form).- — attributive position
syntax
Position of an adjective between article and noun (ὁ ἀγαθὸς λόγος) or with repeated article.- — predicate position
syntax
Position of an adjective outside the article-noun unit (ἀγαθὸς ὁ λόγος), giving a predicate meaning.- — substantive
syntax
A word (often with the article) functioning as a noun: οἱ ἅγιοι 'the saints'.