tidsadverb

Tidsadverb, or time adverb, is a linguistic term used in Swedish grammar to describe an adverb that specifies the time of an action or event. Tidsadverbs indicate when something happens, when it occurred in relation to another event, or how often it happens, and they can be single words or short expressions.

Common examples of tidsadverb include nu (now), idag (today), igår (yesterday), imorgon (tomorrow), snart (soon), senare (later), tidigt (early), aldrig (never) and alltid (always. While always is often discussed in the context of frequency, it functions within time-related meaning as well. Tidsadverbs can be used to establish tense or aspect and to frame the temporal context of a clause or sentence.

In usage, tidsadverbs modify the verb or the entire clause and are typically placed in flexible positions within a sentence. In Swedish, they can appear after the subject, before the main verb, or at the beginning of a sentence for emphasis. They may also appear at the end of a sentence when the surrounding structure makes that placement natural. Some tidsadverbs are invariant in form and do not change with person or number.

Relation to other time expressions is also noted. Tidsadverb is contrasted with tidsuttryck, or time expressions, which include phrases like i morgon (tomorrow) or på måndag (on Monday) that function as temporal phrases rather than single-word adverbs. Both types help specify time, but tidsadverbs typically function as the more compact, adverbial element within a clause.