Learn Hardcore Greek: Αυτή τη βδομάδα δουλεύω λιγότερο και έχω λίγο χρόνο για ελληνικά. - This week I work less and I have a little time for Greek.

Αυτή τη βδομάδα is in the accusative case (feminine singular).
In Greek, expressions of time like this week, last year, every day are often put in the accusative without a preposition to mean “during this week”.

So:

Αυτή τη βδομάδα ≈ during this week / this week (time expression in the accusative)
Both αυτή and τη agree with βδομάδα: feminine, singular, accusative.

Why is it Αυτή τη βδομάδα and not Αυτή η βδομάδα?

Αυτή η βδομάδα would make “this week” the subject, as in “this week is …”.
But in your sentence, “this week” is not the subject; it’s a time expression telling you when you work less. Time expressions like this are put in the accusative, so we use Αυτή τη βδομάδα, not Αυτή η βδομάδα.

Αυτή η βδομάδα είναι δύσκολη. = This week is difficult. (subject, nominative)
Αυτή τη βδομάδα δουλεύω λιγότερο. = This week I work less. (time, accusative)

What’s the difference between βδομάδα and εβδομάδα?

They mean the same thing: “week”.

εβδομάδα is the more formal / standard form (you’ll see it in writing, dictionaries, news).
βδομάδα is the colloquial / everyday spoken form.

You can safely use εβδομάδα everywhere. βδομάδα makes your Greek sound more informal and conversational.

Why is it τη and not την in Αυτή τη βδομάδα?

The full form of the feminine article in the accusative is την.
In everyday speech and writing, the final -ν is often dropped before most consonants, so την becomes τη:

την εβδομάδα → τη βδομάδα
την πόρτα → τη πόρτα

Keeping the ν (την) is more common:

before vowels
before certain consonants (π, τ, κ, μπ, ντ, γκ, ξ, ψ)
But in practice you will see and hear both forms a lot; τη βδομάδα is completely normal.

Could it also be Αυτήν τη βδομάδα? Is that wrong?

It’s not wrong.
Αυτή in the accusative can appear as:

αυτή (without ν)
αυτήν (with ν)

Αυτήν τη βδομάδα is more careful or somewhat more formal.
In everyday speech, most people say Αυτή τη βδομάδα. Both are grammatically correct.

What tense is δουλεύω, and why does it mean “I am working” here?

Δουλεύω is in the present tense (simple present in Greek).
Modern Greek present tense covers both:

English “I work” (habitual, general)
English “I am working” (right now / around now)

The phrase Αυτή τη βδομάδα narrows the time and gives it a progressive feel, so we naturally translate:

Αυτή τη βδομάδα δουλεύω λιγότερο.
→ This week I’m working less.

Why is λιγότερο used and not λίγο after δουλεύω?

λίγο = a little, a bit (small amount, but not necessarily compared to something)
λιγότερο = less (a comparative, less than some reference point)

In δουλεύω λιγότερο, you are comparing to your usual or normal amount of work:
→ I work *less (than usual).*

If you said δουλεύω λίγο, it would mean I work a little / not much, without clearly comparing it to another period.

Is λιγότερο an adjective or an adverb here?

Here λιγότερο is an adverb, modifying the verb δουλεύω (I work).

Many Greek adverbs are formed from the neuter singular accusative of an adjective:

καλός (good) → καλά (well)
λίγος (little/few) → λίγο (a little)
λιγότερος (less) → λιγότερο (less, to a lesser degree)

So in δουλεύω λιγότερο, it answers “How do I work?” → less (to a lesser extent).

In έχω λίγο χρόνο, what exactly does λίγο mean? Is it “a little” or “little”?

In this sentence, λίγο means “a little / some”, a small but positive amount:

έχω λίγο χρόνο = I have a bit of time / I have some time.

If you wanted to stress scarcity/insufficiency, you might prefer:

δεν έχω πολύ χρόνο = I don’t have much time.
έχω ελάχιστο χρόνο = I have very little time.

So λίγο χρόνο by itself usually sounds mildly positive: you do have some time.

Can I say έχω λίγος χρόνος instead of έχω λίγο χρόνο?

No, έχω λίγος χρόνος is ungrammatical.

έχω takes its object in the accusative.
χρόνος is masculine, so the accusative is χρόνο, not χρόνος.
The adjective must agree in case with the noun.

Correct forms:

έχω λίγο χρόνο (accusative: object of the verb)
λίγος χρόνος έμεινε = A little time remained. (nominative: subject)

Why do we say για ελληνικά and not για την ελληνική γλώσσα?

Both are possible, but they’re used differently:

για ελληνικά = for Greek (the language), very natural and informal.
για την ελληνική γλώσσα = for the Greek language, more formal / explicit / heavy.

In everyday speech, people almost always use the short language form:

για ελληνικά, για αγγλικά, για ισπανικά, etc.

Why is ελληνικά in the plural?

Names of many languages in Greek are neuter plural nouns:

τα ελληνικά – Greek
τα αγγλικά – English
τα γαλλικά – French

Historically this comes from phrases like τα ελληνικά (λόγια / λόγια πράγματα) = Greek words / Greek things. Today, it’s just the standard way to refer to the language itself.

So λίγο χρόνο για ελληνικά = a little time for (studying/doing) Greek.

Why is there no article before ελληνικά here? Could I say για τα ελληνικά?

You can say both:

για ελληνικά – very common and natural, especially when you mean “for studying/doing Greek” as an activity.
για τα ελληνικά – also correct, but can sound a bit more specific or heavier, like referring to the Greek language as a subject.

In practice, when talking about time to study a language, Greeks usually drop the article:

έχω χρόνο για ελληνικά / αγγλικά / γαλλικά.

Is the word order fixed? Could I say Δουλεύω λιγότερο αυτή τη βδομάδα instead?

Yes, you can. Greek word order is relatively flexible.

Both are correct:

Αυτή τη βδομάδα δουλεύω λιγότερο…
Δουλεύω λιγότερο αυτή τη βδομάδα…

Putting Αυτή τη βδομάδα at the beginning slightly emphasizes the time frame (“As for this week…”), but both versions are natural.

Could I say Αυτή την εβδομάδα instead of Αυτή τη βδομάδα? Is there any difference?

Yes, you can say Αυτή την εβδομάδα. It’s fully correct and means exactly the same.

εβδομάδα: standard, neutral, used in writing and speech.
βδομάδα: everyday, slightly more colloquial, especially in speech.

So:

Αυτή την εβδομάδα δουλεύω λιγότερο…
Αυτή τη βδομάδα δουλεύω λιγότερο…

Both are perfectly fine; it’s mostly a style / register choice.