Adverbs of Time

Adverbs of time designate time when action was performed or duration of action. They answer the questions Когда? (When?), С каких пор? (Since when?), Как долго? (For how long?), Сколько времени? (How long?), Как часто? (How often?).

When answering the question Когда? the words утром (in the morning), вечером (in the evening), днём (afternoon), ночью (at night) are often used for time of the day. These adverbs are formed from nouns designating certain time of the day or night.

If you want to indicate exact time, use the preposition B + a numeral + the noun час (hour) + the genitive of a noun for time of the day. Here are some examples:

в 7 часов утра - at 7 a.m.
в 3 часа дня - at 3 p.m.
в 8 часов вечера - at 8 p.m.
в 2 часа ночи - at 2 p.m.

Learn how to tell time in Russian in less than 10 minutes.

Note that утра is used for the period of time from 4 a.m. to noon, дня - from noon to 6 p.m., вечера - from 6 p.m. to midnight, ночи - from midnight to 4 a.m.

Adjective	Time interval
утром	4 a.m. to noon
днём	noon to 6 p.m.
вечером	6 p.m. to midnight
ночью	midnight to 4 a.m.

In order to indicate time of an action that repeats regularly, use the prefix еже + an adverb of time, as in:

ежеминутно - minutely (every minute)
ежечасно - hourly (every hour)
ежедневно - daily
ежемесячно - monthly
ежегодно - annually

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count in Russian.

You can also form indefinite adverbs of time with the help of the particles -то and -нибудь. These adverbs do not designate exact time, as in:

Когда-то она жила в Москве.
(She once lived in Moscow.)

Когда-нибудь ваша мечта осуществится.
(Some day your dream will come true.)

The negative particles ни and не help form the adverbs никогда (never) and некогда (once). Compare them with the adverbs of place никуда and некуда.

The particle ни is used in personal sentences, while the particle не is used in impersonal sentences. For example:

Я никогда не был в Риме.
(I have never been to Rome.)
Adverbs with ни are used in personal sentences.

Мне некогда участвовать в соревнованиях.
(I have no time to engage in a contest.)
Note that the verb участвовать is in the infinitive, because the sentence is impersonal.

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