Learn Hardcore Greek: Πηγαίνω κάθε απόγευμα στον πεζόδρομο, εκτός αν βρέχει ή έχει πολλή ζέστη. - I go to the pedestrian street every afternoon, unless it’s raining or it is very hot.

In Greek, the present tense is used not only for actions happening right now, but also for habitual actions, just like English I go to the gym every day.

So Πηγαίνω κάθε απόγευμα... naturally means:

“I go every afternoon…” (a regular habit, not just today).

There is no need for a special “habitual” form; the normal present covers it.

What is the difference between πηγαίνω and πάω?

Both can mean “I go”.

πηγαίνω – slightly more neutral or “full” form
πάω – very common, a bit shorter and more colloquial in everyday speech

In your sentence, you could also say:

Πάω κάθε απόγευμα στον πεζόδρομο...

Both are correct. In real life, πάω is extremely frequent in speech; πηγαίνω may feel a bit more formal or careful, but it’s also everyday Greek and fully natural.

Why is there no word for “I” (no εγώ) in the sentence?

Greek is a “pro‑drop” language: the subject pronoun is usually left out because the verb ending already shows the person.

Πηγαίνω can only mean “I go” (not “you go”, “he goes”, etc.), so εγώ is not necessary.

You add εγώ only for emphasis or contrast, for example:

Εγώ πηγαίνω κάθε απόγευμα, αλλά αυτός δεν πάει ποτέ.
I go every afternoon, but he never goes.

What does κάθε mean, and why does κάθε απόγευμα have no article?

κάθε means “every / each”.

With κάθε, you usually do not use a definite article:

κάθε απόγευμα = every afternoon
(not *κάθε το απόγευμα)

Other examples:

κάθε μέρα – every day
κάθε Σάββατο – every Saturday

So Πηγαίνω κάθε απόγευμα... = I go every afternoon…

Does απόγευμα mean “afternoon” or “evening”? Where is the boundary?

Το απόγευμα usually covers late afternoon to early evening, roughly:

after μεσημέρι (midday / early afternoon),
before βράδυ (night/evening proper).

Approximate sense:

πρωί – morning
μεσημέρι – around noon / lunchtime
απόγευμα – mid/late afternoon, early evening
βράδυ – evening / night

There is some overlap; Greeks might call around 5–7 p.m. απόγευμα, whereas later it becomes βράδυ. Context matters.

Why is it στον πεζόδρομο and not στο πεζόδρομο?

Because πεζόδρομος is a masculine noun.

The preposition σε (“in / at / to”) combines with the definite article:

σε + τον → στον (masculine singular)
σε + το → στο (neuter singular)
σε + την → στη(ν) (feminine singular)

Since πεζόδρομος is masculine:

σε + τον πεζόδρομο → στον πεζόδρομο

Examples:

στον δρόμο – on the road (masc.)
στο σπίτι – at home (neut.)
στην πλατεία – in the square (fem.)

What exactly is a πεζόδρομος?

Ο πεζόδρομος is a pedestrian street / pedestrian zone:

a street where cars are not allowed, and only people on foot (and sometimes bicycles) can go.
Often a shopping street, promenade, or central walking area in a town.

So στον πεζόδρομο is like “to the pedestrian street / pedestrian zone / promenade.”

What does εκτός αν mean, and how is it used?

εκτός αν means “unless / except if”.

Your clause:

..., εκτός αν βρέχει ή έχει πολλή ζέστη.
= ..., unless it’s raining or it’s very hot.

Compare:

εκτός αν
- clause → except if / unless
  - Δεν το κάνω, εκτός αν με πληρώσεις.
    I won’t do it, unless you pay me.

Don’t confuse it with:

εκτός από
- noun/pronoun = except (for)
  - Εκτός από τον Γιάννη, όλοι ήρθαν.
    Everyone came except Giannis.

You can also hear εκτός κι αν (with κι = και), which is very common and has the same meaning:

..., εκτός κι αν βρέχει.

Why is there a comma before εκτός αν?

In Greek, when a main clause is followed by a subordinate clause introduced by words like εκτός αν, όταν, επειδή, you usually put a comma between them:

Πηγαίνω κάθε απόγευμα στον πεζόδρομο, εκτός αν βρέχει.

If you reverse the order, you normally omit the comma:

Εκτός αν βρέχει δεν πηγαίνω στον πεζόδρομο.

So the comma here separates:

main clause: Πηγαίνω κάθε απόγευμα στον πεζόδρομο
exception clause: εκτός αν βρέχει ή έχει πολλή ζέστη

Why does βρέχει have no subject? Is it literally “it rains”?

Yes, βρέχει corresponds to English “it rains / it is raining”, but in Greek there is no pronoun “it”.

βρέχει – literally “rains” (3rd person singular), used impersonally, with no stated subject.

Other impersonal weather verbs:

χιονίζει – it’s snowing
αστράφτει – there’s lightning
βροντάει – it’s thundering

You can modify them:

Βρέχει πολύ. – It rains a lot / It’s raining hard.
Χιονίζει λίγο. – It’s snowing a little.

How does έχει πολλή ζέστη work? Why use έχει (“has”)?

Literally, έχει πολλή ζέστη is “it has much heat”, but idiomatically it means “it is very hot (weather)”.

Greek often uses έχει (“has / there is”) or κάνει (“it makes / it is”) for weather:

Έχει ήλιο. – It’s sunny.
Έχει συννεφιά. – It’s cloudy.
Κάνει κρύο. – It’s cold.
Κάνει ζέστη. – It’s hot.

So:

έχει πολλή ζέστη ≈ κάνει πολλή ζέστη
= it’s very hot.

Using είναι ζέστη for weather is not natural in Greek.

Why is it πολλή ζέστη and not πολύ ζέστη?

ζέστη is a feminine noun, so when you say “a lot of heat”, you use the adjective form of “much/many” that agrees with it:

masculine: πολύς
feminine: πολλή
neuter: πολύ

So:

πολλή ζέστη – a lot of heat (correct with a noun)
πολύς κόσμος – a lot of people
πολύ νερό – a lot of water

The form πολύ (without extra λ and without gender ending) is mainly an adverb, used before adjectives, adverbs, or verbs:

πολύ ζεστός καιρός – very hot weather
τρέχει πολύ – he runs a lot
είναι πολύ καλός – he is very good

In careful standard Greek, πολλή ζέστη is the correct form with the noun ζέστη, though in casual speech you may sometimes hear πολύ ζέστη.

What does ή do here? Could I add another αν?

ή means “or”.

The phrase:

εκτός αν βρέχει ή έχει πολλή ζέστη means:
unless it’s raining *or it’s very hot
(if *either of these is true, you don’t go).

You can optionally repeat αν:

εκτός αν βρέχει ή αν έχει πολλή ζέστη

Both versions are correct. Repeating αν can sound a bit more deliberate or clearer in some contexts, but often it’s simply omitted after ή.

Can I change the word order, for example Κάθε απόγευμα πηγαίνω...?

Yes. Greek word order is quite flexible, and time expressions often appear at the beginning for emphasis or clarity.

All of these are grammatical, with slightly different emphasis:

Πηγαίνω κάθε απόγευμα στον πεζόδρομο...
(neutral: focus on the action “I go every afternoon”)
Κάθε απόγευμα πηγαίνω στον πεζόδρομο...
(emphasis slightly more on “every afternoon”)
Στον πεζόδρομο πηγαίνω κάθε απόγευμα...
(emphasis on “to the pedestrian street” as the place)

The original order is the most typical, but the others are perfectly natural depending on what you want to highlight.