Learn Hardcore Greek: Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς ακυρώνω τη βόλτα στο πάρκο. - Because of a lot of work I’m cancelling the walk in the park.

Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς = because of a lot of work (noun phrase)
Compare:
- επειδή έχω πολλή δουλειά = because I have a lot of work (full clause)
- γιατί έχω πολλή δουλειά = because I have a lot of work (more colloquial)

So:

Use λόγω
- genitive noun phrase: Λόγω βροχής δεν πάμε (Because of rain we’re not going).
Use επειδή/γιατί
- full sentence: Δεν πάμε επειδή βρέχει (We’re not going because it’s raining).

In your sentence, we’re giving a reason expressed as a thing (a lot of work), so λόγω is natural.

Why is it πολλής δουλειάς and not πολλή δουλειά?

Because λόγω requires the genitive case, and πολλής δουλειάς is the genitive singular feminine form.

Base forms:
- πολύς, πολλή, πολύ = much / many (masc, fem, neuter nominative)
- δουλειά = work (feminine)

In the genitive singular feminine:

πολλή → πολλής
δουλειά → δουλειάς

So:

πολλή δουλειά (accusative/nominative) – e.g. Έχω πολλή δουλειά (I have a lot of work).
πολλής δουλειάς (genitive) – needed after λόγω:
Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς ακυρώνω… (Because of a lot of work, I cancel…).

Why is δουλειάς in that form and not just δουλειά?

Δουλειάς is the genitive singular of δουλειά.

Basic singular forms:

Nominative: η δουλειά
Accusative: τη(ν) δουλειά
Genitive: της δουλειάς

Because λόγω always takes the genitive, you must say δουλειάς, not δουλειά:

❌ Λόγω πολλή δουλειά
✅ Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς

Why is there no article before πολλής δουλειάς? Could I say λόγω της πολλής δουλειάς?

Yes, you can say λόγω της πολλής δουλειάς, but the meaning shifts slightly.

Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς
= because of a lot of work (general, non-specific; just “a lot of work” in my life right now)
Λόγω της πολλής δουλειάς
= because of the heavy workload (more specific; that particular big amount of work we both know about)

In everyday speech, the article is often omitted in this kind of general statement, so Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς is very natural.

Can I move Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς to the end of the sentence?

Yes. Word order in Greek is fairly flexible, and λόγω + genitive can appear in different positions:

Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς ακυρώνω τη βόλτα στο πάρκο.
Ακυρώνω τη βόλτα στο πάρκο λόγω πολλής δουλειάς.

Both are correct and mean the same thing.
Putting Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς at the beginning slightly emphasizes the reason first. At the end, it feels a bit more like an afterthought explanation.

Why is the subject “I” not written? Where is the “I” in Greek?

Greek is a “pro-drop” language: subject pronouns (εγώ, εσύ, αυτός…) are often omitted because the verb ending shows who the subject is.

The verb ακυρώνω ends in -ω, which is the 1st person singular ending: I cancel.

(Εγώ) ακυρώνω τη βόλτα… = I cancel the walk…

You only normally say εγώ if you want to emphasize it:

Εγώ ακυρώνω τη βόλτα, όχι εσύ.
I am cancelling the walk, not you.

Why is ακυρώνω in the present tense if I’m talking about a future plan?

In Greek, the present can be used for:

An action happening right now:
- Τώρα ακυρώνω τη βόλτα. (I’m cancelling the walk right now.)
A planned / arranged future action, similar to English “I’m cancelling” / “I’m going to cancel”:
- Ακυρώνω τη βόλτα στο πάρκο. (I’m cancelling the walk in the park.)

If you want to make it clearly future, you can say:

Θα ακυρώσω τη βόλτα στο πάρκο. = I will cancel the walk in the park.

Your sentence with the simple present is natural and can easily be understood as a decision being made now about a planned walk.

Why is it written τη βόλτα and not την βόλτα?

Both forms τη βόλτα and την βόλτα are seen; the difference is mainly orthographic (spelling) in modern Greek.

Την is the full accusative feminine article.
In modern spelling, when την is unstressed and the next word begins with a consonant, many people drop the final -ν:
- την βόλτα → τη βόλτα

So:

Την είδα. (I saw her. – often kept because it’s before a vowel)
Τη βόλτα την ακυρώνω. (final -ν is dropped in τη)

Your sentence follows the common modern rule by writing τη βόλτα.

Why do we use the article τη with βόλτα? Could we just say ακυρώνω βόλτα?

In Greek, countable nouns are usually not left bare in this way. You normally use an article (τη) or another determiner (e.g. μια, τη δική μας, etc.).

Ακυρώνω τη βόλτα στο πάρκο.
= I’m cancelling the walk in the park (a specific walk we had planned).

You could say ακυρώνω μια βόλτα (I cancel a walk), but no article at all (ακυρώνω βόλτα) sounds unnatural in this context.

So the article τη is there simply because we’re referring to a specific, known walk.

What exactly is στο in στο πάρκο?

Στο is a contraction of:

σε + το → στο

Σε is a preposition meaning in / at / to, and το is the neuter accusative article:

σε το πάρκο → στο πάρκο = in the park / to the park

Other similar contractions:

σε + την → στη(ν)
σε + τον → στον

Does στο πάρκο mean “in the park” or “to the park”?

It can mean either, depending on context, because σε covers both location and direction.

Πάω στο πάρκο. = I’m going to the park. (direction)
Είμαι στο πάρκο. = I am in/at the park. (location)

In τη βόλτα στο πάρκο, it describes the kind of walk:

τη βόλτα στο πάρκο = the walk in the park / the walk to the park
In English we’d usually phrase it as “the walk in the park”.

Can we omit στο πάρκο and just say ακυρώνω τη βόλτα?

Yes, grammatically you can say:

Λόγω πολλής δουλειάς ακυρώνω τη βόλτα.

This simply means “I’m cancelling the walk” without specifying which walk.
Adding στο πάρκο clarifies which planned walk you’re talking about:

τη βόλτα στο πάρκο = the walk in the park (that we had arranged)

How do you pronounce and stress Λόγω and δουλειάς?

Λόγω: stress on the first syllable.
- Pronounced roughly LO-gho:
  - Λό- like LO in LOcal
  - -γω with a soft gh sound (like a voiced ch in Spanish lago).
δουλειάς: stress on the second syllable.
- Syllables: δου-λει-άς → δουλΕιάς
- Roughly dhoo-lyás:
  - δου like thoo (voiced th
    - oo) but in practice closer to dhoo
  - λειάς like lyás (li + ás blended).