Δεν εννοώ αυτό· εννοώ ότι χρειάζομαι λίγο χρόνο ακόμα.

It is repeated for contrast:

Δεν εννοώ αυτό· εννοώ ότι...

This is a very natural Greek pattern, just like English I don’t mean this; I mean that... The repetition makes the correction clear and emphatic.

Also, εννοώ is the 1st person singular present of εννοώ, meaning I mean.

Δεν is the standard word for not before a verb in the indicative.

So:

• εννοώ = I mean
• δεν εννοώ = I do not mean / I don’t mean

In Modern Greek, δεν normally comes directly before the verb or before the whole verb phrase.

Αυτό is the neuter form of this/that. In this sentence, it does not refer to a masculine or feminine noun. Instead, it refers to an idea, statement, or situation.

That is very common in Greek. When referring to what was said, this point, or that thing, Greek often uses the neuter:

• αυτό = this / that

So Δεν εννοώ αυτό means I don’t mean that or I don’t mean this, depending on context.

Ότι here means that and introduces a subordinate clause:

εννοώ ότι χρειάζομαι λίγο χρόνο ακόμα
= I mean that I need a little more time

A very common learner question is the difference between ότι and ό,τι:

• ότι = that
• ό,τι = whatever / anything that

Here it is definitely ότι because it introduces what the speaker means.

Yes, in many cases πως can also introduce a clause meaning that:

• εννοώ ότι χρειάζομαι λίγο χρόνο ακόμα
• εννοώ πως χρειάζομαι λίγο χρόνο ακόμα

Both are possible in everyday Greek.

However, ότι is often taught as the clearer, more formal, and less ambiguous option, especially for learners, because πως also has other uses.

That is because Greek has many verbs that use middle/passive-style endings but have an active meaning.

Χρειάζομαι means I need, even though its form looks like a passive verb to an English speaker.

So you should learn it as a normal vocabulary item:

• χρειάζομαι = I need
• χρειάζεσαι = you need
• χρειάζεται = he/she/it needs

It does not mean I am needed here.

Because χρόνο is the direct object of χρειάζομαι, so it appears in the accusative case.

• nominative: λίγος χρόνος = a little time as the subject
• accusative: λίγο χρόνο = a little time as the object

In this sentence, the speaker needs the time, so time is the object:

χρειάζομαι λίγο χρόνο
= I need a little time

Also, λίγο here means a little in the sense of some amount of.

Here ακόμα means still / yet / more, depending on how you translate it naturally into English.

In this sentence:

λίγο χρόνο ακόμα
literally: a little time still/yet
natural English: a little more time

So ακόμα adds the idea that the person needs additional time, not just time in general.

Also, ακόμα and ακόμη are both correct; ακόμα is very common in everyday speech.

That mark is the Greek ano teleia, often written as ·. It works somewhat like a semicolon or a strong pause in English.

So:

Δεν εννοώ αυτό· εννοώ ότι...

means there is a pause stronger than a comma, separating two closely connected thoughts.

A useful warning for learners: in Greek, the symbol ; is usually the question mark, not the English semicolon.

The sentence uses a very natural, neutral word order:

Δεν εννοώ αυτό· εννοώ ότι χρειάζομαι λίγο χρόνο ακόμα.

Greek word order is more flexible than English, but changes often affect emphasis.

For example, you could move words around in some contexts, but the original order sounds straightforward and normal. It presents the correction clearly:

1. I don’t mean that
2. I mean that I need a little more time

So while Greek allows flexibility, this version is probably the best one for a learner to treat as the standard pattern.