Learn Hardcore Greek: Έχεις δικαίωμα να σταματήσεις όταν δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις. - You have the right to stop when you don't want to continue.

Έχεις δικαίωμα = You have the right / you are entitled
It’s used for legal, moral, or personal rights:
- Έχω δικαίωμα ψήφου. = I have the right to vote.
- Έχεις δικαίωμα στην ιδιωτικότητα. = You have a right to privacy.

It does not mean “you are right (correct).” For “you are right,” Greek usually uses:

Έχεις δίκιο. = You are right.

Why does the sentence use Έχεις δικαίωμα να… instead of Μπορείς να… (“you can…”)?

Both are possible, but they don’t mean exactly the same:

Έχεις δικαίωμα να σταματήσεις…
= You have the right to stop… (focus on your right, permission, entitlement)
Μπορείς να σταματήσεις…
= You can stop… / You are able to stop… (focus on possibility or ability)

So έχεις δικαίωμα is stronger and more formal; it emphasizes that no one should force you to continue. Μπορείς is more neutral and everyday.

What is the role of να in να σταματήσεις and να συνεχίσεις? Is it like “to” in English?

Να here introduces the subjunctive mood, not the infinitive (Greek no longer has an infinitive form like English “to stop”).

να σταματήσεις = (that you) stop
να συνεχίσεις = (that you) continue

In English we often translate it with “to”, but grammatically it’s closer to something like “that you stop / that you continue.”

Common patterns with να:

After verbs that express desire, intention, permission, etc.:
- Θέλω να φύγω. = I want to leave.
- Μπορείς να πας. = You can go.
After expressions like έχεις δικαίωμα να…, πρέπει να…, etc.

Why is it να σταματήσεις and not να σταματάς? What’s the difference?

This is about aspect: aorist vs present subjunctive.

να σταματήσεις (aorist subjunctive)
Focus on a single, complete action: “to stop (once / at that moment).”
να σταματάς (present subjunctive)
Focus on a repeated or ongoing action: “to be stopping (habitually / repeatedly).”

Here we are talking about one act of stopping when you don’t want to continue, so να σταματήσεις is natural.

Compare:

Έχεις δικαίωμα να σταματήσεις όποτε θέλεις.
You have the right to stop whenever you want (each time, one stop).
Δεν είναι καλό να σταματάς συνέχεια.
It’s not good to be stopping all the time (habit).

Is να σταματήσεις a future tense? It feels like “you will stop.”

No, it’s not a future tense; it’s subjunctive (aorist).

Greek future is normally formed with θα:

Θα σταματήσεις = You will stop.

Να σταματήσεις usually depends on another verb or expression (here, έχεις δικαίωμα) and expresses something like:

possibility / permission / intention / desire, etc.

So:

Θα σταματήσεις. = You will stop. (future statement)
Έχεις δικαίωμα να σταματήσεις. = You have the right to stop. (subjunctive after an expression of right)

Why is it όταν δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις and not όταν δεν συνεχίζεις?

The phrase όταν δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις literally is “when you don’t want to continue.”
The focus is on your will / desire (θέλεις), not on the simple fact of not continuing.

όταν δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις = when you don’t want to go on (you lack the will)
όταν δεν συνεχίζεις = when you don’t continue (more factual, less about your feelings)

The original sentence talks about your right to stop when you don’t want to keep going, so using θέλω is important to express that.

Why is it θέλεις να συνεχίσεις and not θέλεις να συνεχίζεις?

Again, this is the aspect difference:

να συνεχίσεις (aorist subjunctive): continuing as a single, complete course of action (e.g. to go on with something until it’s done).
να συνεχίζεις (present subjunctive): an ongoing, repeated activity (to be continually continuing).

Δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις suggests you don’t want to go on with this particular continuation (e.g. this activity, this process).

If you said:

Δεν θέλεις να συνεχίζεις έτσι.
= You don’t want to go on like this (emphasis on the ongoing manner, “like this”).

Can I say δε θέλεις instead of δεν θέλεις?

Yes. In modern writing you will see both:

δεν θέλεις (more formal / standard spelling)
δε θέλεις (more informal or stylistic; very common in speech and song lyrics)

Pronunciation is almost the same; the ν in δεν often drops before consonants in speech. Both are correct in everyday use.

Can I move όταν δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις to the beginning of the sentence?

Yes. Both word orders are natural:

Έχεις δικαίωμα να σταματήσεις όταν δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις.
Όταν δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις, έχεις δικαίωμα να σταματήσεις.

The meaning is the same; the second version puts more emphasis on the condition (“when you don’t want to continue”). Greek word order is quite flexible, especially with adverbial clauses like όταν….

How would the sentence change if I’m speaking to more than one person or being polite?

You change the verb to the 2nd person plural:

Έχετε δικαίωμα να σταματήσετε όταν δεν θέλετε να συνεχίσετε.

Changes:

Έχεις → Έχετε (you have, singular → plural / polite)
να σταματήσεις → να σταματήσετε
δεν θέλεις → δεν θέλετε
να συνεχίσεις → να συνεχίσετε

This can mean:

You (plural) have the right…
You (sir/ma’am) have the right… (formal “you”).

What gender and case is δικαίωμα here, and why doesn’t it change form?

Δικαίωμα is a neuter noun:

Singular: το δικαίωμα
Plural: τα δικαιώματα

In the sentence:

Έχεις δικαίωμα…
δικαίωμα is the direct object of έχεις, so it’s in the accusative singular.
For many neuter nouns, nominative and accusative singular are identical, so you don’t see a form change.

Example with a possessive:

Έχεις το δικαίωμά σου να σταματήσεις.
Here δικαίωμά gets the accent on the last syllable because of σου.

How do you pronounce δικαίωμα and σταματήσεις?

Rough phonetic approximations:

δικαίωμα → [di-KÉ-o-ma]
- δι = “dee”
- καί here sounds like “ké” (like “ke” in ketchup, but stressed)
- ω = “o” as in “or,” but short
- Stress on the second syllable: δι-ΚΑΙ-ω-μα
σταματήσεις → [sta-ma-TÍ-sis]
- στα = “sta” (as in “start” without the “rt”)
- μα = “ma”
- τή = “tee” (stressed)
- σεις sounds like “sis”
- Stress on -τή-: στα-μα-ΤΗ-σεις

Stress marks (´) in Greek show exactly where you should put the emphasis.

Could I replace όταν with αν or άμα here?

You can, but there are small differences in tone:

όταν δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις
= when you don’t want to continue (neutral, standard)
αν δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις
= if you don’t want to continue (more conditional, like “if”)
άμα δεν θέλεις να συνεχίσεις
= if/when you don’t want to continue (colloquial, informal)

All would be understood; όταν is the most neutral and fits well in a sentence about a right you have in general.