Time adverbs locate an event relative to the moment of speaking or to another moment in the conversation. Catalan ara, avui, ahir, demà, aviat, tard, ja, encara, mai, and sempre do more than answer “when?”: words such as ja and encara also reveal what the speaker expected to happen. English translations are useful clues, but there is no safe one-to-one mapping for “already,” “yet,” “still,” and “ever.”
Choosing the basic time word
The first group points directly to a time. Their position is flexible: they can frame the sentence at the beginning or occur after the verb and its close complements.
| Meaning | Neutral choice | What it usually suggests |
|---|---|---|
| now | ara | the present moment or present stage |
| today | avui | the calendar day containing speech time |
| yesterday | ahir | the preceding calendar day |
| tomorrow | demà | the following calendar day |
| soon | aviat | a short wait from the relevant moment |
| late | tard | after the expected or convenient time |
Ara no puc parlar; et truco quan surti de la reunió.
I can't talk now; I'll call you when I leave the meeting.
Ahir vam sopar tard perquè el tren va arribar amb una hora de retard.
Yesterday we ate dinner late because the train arrived an hour behind schedule.
Demà treballo des de casa, així que podem dinar junts.
Tomorrow I'm working from home, so we can have lunch together.
The last example uses the present treballo with future time. Catalan commonly uses the present for a planned future when demà or the context makes the time clear; the future treballaré is also possible. Conversely, avui does not force present tense: Avui he parlat amb l'Anna looks back on an event earlier today.
In Valencian, hui is the regular regional equivalent of avui, and prompte is widely used for aviat. Both belong to standard Valencian (regional: Valencian); they are not mistakes to “correct” into Central Catalan.
Ja and encara: expectations about change
Ja presents a boundary as reached: something has happened by now, starts now, or is sufficient now. Encara presents a state as continuing or a boundary as not reached. Their English equivalents change with polarity.
| Catalan pattern | Core idea | Usual English |
|---|---|---|
| ja + affirmative | the expected change has occurred | already / now |
| ja no | an earlier state has ended | no longer / not anymore |
| encara + affirmative | the earlier state continues | still |
| encara no | the expected change has not occurred | not yet |
La Marta ja ha enviat el contracte; el trobaràs al correu.
Marta has already sent the contract; you'll find it in your email.
La Marta encara revisa el contracte; dona-li deu minuts més.
Marta is still reviewing the contract; give her ten more minutes.
La Marta encara no ha enviat el contracte.
Marta hasn't sent the contract yet.
La Marta ja no treballa amb nosaltres, però ens assessora de tant en tant.
Marta no longer works with us, but she advises us from time to time.
These minimal contrasts are about scope and expectation, not just clock time. Encara dorm says the sleeping continues. Ja dorm says the anticipated transition into sleep has taken place. With clitics, the time adverb normally stays outside the clitic–verb unit: Ja l'he avisat and Encara no m'ho han confirmat.
Quan arribis, si encara no han obert l'oficina, deixa el paquet a recepció.
When you arrive, if they still haven't opened the office, leave the parcel at reception. — The time expression sits inside an embedded conditional clause.
Mai and sempre
Sempre means “always” when it quantifies over occasions: Sempre tanca a les sis. With a bounded past, it can summarize a lasting pattern: Sempre va confiar en tu “She always trusted you.”
Mai is a polarity-sensitive word. In a negative statement it means “never.” The neutral postverbal pattern has preverbal no: No hi vaig mai. In careful standard style, fronted mai is normally reinforced by no: Mai no hi vaig. In questions and conditions, however, mai can have positive “ever” meaning and needs no no.
No deixem mai les bicicletes al carrer durant la nit.
We never leave the bicycles in the street overnight.
Mai no havia vist el riu tan ple com aquell matí.
I had never seen the river as full as it was that morning. — Careful standard style.
Has tastat mai l'arròs al forn?
Have you ever tried baked rice? — Mai has positive 'ever' meaning in a question.
Si mai necessites res, truca'm, encara que sigui tard.
If you ever need anything, call me, even if it's late.
English “ever” is not always mai: an emphatic superlative often uses que he vist mai, but English “ever since” requires a different time phrase. Learn the construction, not an isolated dictionary equivalent. See negative words for the full polarity system.
Position and punctuation
Short time adverbs can appear initially, medially, or finally. Initial position establishes the time frame; final position often supplies the answer to “when?” Reordering need not change truth conditions, but it changes what sounds topical or focused.
Avui la biblioteca tanca a les set.
Today the library closes at seven. — Avui frames the whole statement.
La biblioteca tanca a les set avui, no demà.
The library closes at seven today, not tomorrow. — Final avui is contrastive.
Do not insert a comma merely because the sentence begins with a short time adverb: Demà vindrà l'electricista is normally written without one. A comma is natural when the expression is detached, contrasted, or followed by a pause. The connector ara bé “however” is a separate fixed expression and does take a comma: Ara bé, el termini no canvia.
Prepositions also matter. Say fins demà “until tomorrow” and d'aquí a tres dies “three days from now.” Do not preserve Spanish combinations such as hasta demà or build an English-style stranded preposition. Catalan time phrases have their own government, treated on the time prepositions page.
A natural dialogue
—Ja has acabat l'informe? —Encara no; ahir vaig sortir tard i avui no he tingut ni un minut.
—Have you finished the report yet? —Not yet; yesterday I left late and today I haven't had a minute.
—Quan me'l podràs passar? —Demà al matí, segur. Si l'acabo aviat, te l'envio aquesta nit.
—When will you be able to send it to me? —Tomorrow morning, definitely. If I finish it soon, I'll send it tonight.
The first ja asks whether the expected endpoint has been reached; English naturally translates it as “yet,” not “already.” This is why word-for-word replacement fails.
Short correction task
Correct the time words and polarity: Encara he acabat (intended: “I haven't finished yet”); No hi vaig ja (intended: “I no longer go there”); Vaig mai al teatre (intended: “I never go”).
Encara no he acabat; em falten dues pàgines.
I haven't finished yet; I have two pages left.
Ja no hi vaig perquè ara em queda massa lluny.
I no longer go there because it's too far away now.
No vaig mai al teatre entre setmana.
I never go to the theatre on weekdays.
Common Mistakes
❌ Ja ha no arribat el tècnic.
Incorrect — no cannot be inserted after the auxiliary, and ja no would mean 'no longer,' not 'not yet.'
✅ Encara no ha arribat el tècnic; l'estem esperant.
The technician hasn't arrived yet; we're waiting for him.
❌ Encara visc aquí fins al juny passat.
Incorrect time logic — encara marks a state continuing now, but fins al juny passat ends it in the past.
✅ Encara visc aquí i m'hi quedaré fins al juny vinent.
I still live here and I'll stay until next June.
❌ Hi vaig mai els diumenges.
Incorrect negative statement — postverbal mai requires no before the verb.
✅ No hi vaig mai els diumenges.
I never go there on Sundays.
❌ Hasta demà no tindré cap resposta.
Incorrect Spanish transfer — Catalan uses fins, not hasta.
✅ Fins demà no tindré cap resposta.
I won't have an answer until tomorrow.
Key Takeaways
- Ara, avui, ahir, and demà locate an event; context and tense still express how it unfolds.
- Ja marks a reached boundary; encara marks continuation. Therefore ja no means “no longer,” while encara no means “not yet.”
- In negative statements use no ... mai or, in careful fronted style, mai no .... In questions and conditions, mai can mean “ever.”
- Position organizes information: initial adverbs frame the sentence, while final ones are often contrastive or focused.
- Regional hui and prompte are standard Valencian alternatives to Central Catalan avui and aviat.
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