Time adverbials locate, bound, or relate an event, while the verb ending presents its tense or mood. The two sources of information normally cooperate: hieraŭ mi laboris, nun mi laboras, morgaŭ mi laboros. But time words do not mechanically “control” tense. Words such as hodiaŭ, tiam, jam, and baldaŭ can combine with different endings when the intended temporal viewpoint changes.
Only real -as, -is, -os directly contrast present, past, and future. Tenseless -us, -u, and infinitive -i can occur with time expressions, but the adverbial does not turn them into tense forms. All six endings are invariant across subjects, and adding a time phrase does not change a verb's valency or the case of its objects and complements.
Deictic time: counting from the moment of speech
Words such as nun, hodiaŭ, hieraŭ, and morgaŭ are deictic: their reference depends on when the speaker speaks.
| Expression | Default relation | Typical tense |
|---|---|---|
| nun — now | at the speaking time | -as |
| ĵus — just now | immediately before now | -is |
| hieraŭ — yesterday | day before today | -is |
| hodiaŭ — today | current day | -is, -as, or -os |
| morgaŭ — tomorrow | day after today | -os |
Nun mi atendas klienton, do mi ne povas longe paroli.
I'm waiting for a client now, so I can't talk for long.
La kuriero ĵus alvenis kun via pakaĵo.
The courier has just arrived with your package.
Hieraŭ ni finis la unuan fazon de la projekto.
Yesterday we finished the first phase of the project.
Morgaŭ ni komencos la duan fazon.
Tomorrow we will begin the second phase.
These pairings are the neutral norm. An incompatible tense needs a special viewpoint, quotation, or stylistic explanation; hieraŭ ni komencos is not an ordinary way to describe tomorrow from today's viewpoint.
Why hodiaŭ permits three tenses
One calendar day contains past, present, and future portions. Choose the ending according to the event, not according to the word hodiaŭ alone.
Hodiaŭ matene mi ricevis la kontrakton.
This morning I received the contract.
Hodiaŭ mi laboras hejme.
Today I am working from home.
Hodiaŭ vespere ni diskutos la proponon.
This evening we will discuss the proposal.
The minimal contrast is entirely temporal: -is points to the completed earlier part of today, -as treats today as the current period, and -os points to its later part.
Clock expressions work the same way.
La kunveno komenciĝis je la naŭa, daŭras ankoraŭ nun kaj finiĝos je la dek-unua.
The meeting began at nine, is still continuing now, and will end at eleven.
One sentence can therefore contain all three real tenses around a single event.
Contextual time: tiam, poste, antaŭe, and baldaŭ
Unlike hieraŭ and morgaŭ, contextual time words often take their anchor from the surrounding story. Tiam means “at that time,” which may be past, present, or future.
Tiam mi ne sciis, kion respondi.
At that time I did not know what to answer.
Post du semajnoj ni estos en Kioto; tiam ni havos pli da tempo.
In two weeks we will be in Kyoto; then we will have more time.
Poste means “afterward/later” relative to an established point; antaŭe means “before that/previously.” Their tense follows the event being described.
Ni unue kontrolis la ciferojn kaj poste sendis la raporton.
We first checked the figures and afterward sent the report.
Morgaŭ mi vizitos la muzeon kaj poste renkontos kelkajn amikojn.
Tomorrow I will visit the museum and afterward meet some friends.
Baldaŭ means “after a short interval” and is also relative to a viewpoint. It commonly combines with future -os, but a past narrative can locate a short interval within the past.
Ne zorgu. La kuracisto baldaŭ venos.
Don't worry. The doctor will come soon.
Ni atendis antaŭ la kliniko, kaj baldaŭ la kuracisto venis.
We waited outside the clinic, and soon the doctor came.
No contradiction exists: “soon” is measured from two different anchors.
Jam, ankoraŭ, and ne plu do not select a tense
These words describe phase or continuation rather than calendar location. They combine with any real tense.
Mi jam manĝis, sed ŝi ankoraŭ kuiras.
I have already eaten, but she is still cooking.
Kiam ni alvenis, la vendejo jam estis fermita.
When we arrived, the shop was already closed.
Je la fino de la monato mi jam estos paginta la tutan sumon.
By the end of the month I will already have paid the full amount.
Post la translokiĝo ni ne plu loĝos tiel malproksime.
After the move we will no longer live so far away.
Jam presents a threshold as reached, ankoraŭ presents a situation as continuing, and ne plu presents it as ended. Tense locates the relevant threshold or phase. The compound estos paginta in the third example is useful because completion before a future deadline is specifically foregrounded; simple pagos would often suffice if that precision were unimportant.
The dedicated page on jam, ankoraŭ, and ne plu treats their scope and pragmatic nuances.
Duration reveals whether a state is open or closed
A duration phrase with present -as normally describes a situation that began earlier and continues now. With past -is, the same duration is normally closed.
Mi laboras ĉi tie jam ses jarojn.
I have worked here for six years and still do.
Mi laboris tie ses jarojn.
I worked there for six years and no longer do.
English often uses a present perfect in the first sentence. Esperanto uses simple -as because the state is current. The adverb jam highlights elapsed time but is not obligatory.
Future -os can likewise combine with a planned duration.
Ŝi restos en Osako tri monatojn.
She will stay in Osaka for three months.
The accusative duration does not itself identify past, present, or future. It measures whichever event the verb establishes.
Absolute dates and relative offsets
An absolute date identifies a calendar point; a relative offset measures from an anchor.
La ekspozicio malfermiĝis la dek-duan de Majo.
The exhibition opened on the twelfth of May.
La ekspozicio fermiĝos post tri semajnoj.
The exhibition will close in three weeks.
The phrase post tri semajnoj generally counts forward from the current contextual point. Tri semajnojn poste means “three weeks later” from a previously mentioned event.
La ekspozicio malfermiĝis la dek-duan de Majo kaj fermiĝis tri semajnojn poste.
The exhibition opened on the twelfth of May and closed three weeks later.
Similarly, antaŭ du tagoj normally means “two days ago” from now, while du tagojn antaŭe means “two days earlier” relative to a contextual point. The words and case pattern identify the anchor; the verb still carries tense.
Changing viewpoint in reported speech
When reporting old words, a deictic expression may need replacement even though Esperanto preserves the original verb ending.
Merkrede ŝi diris: ‘Mi finos la laboron morgaŭ.’
On Wednesday she said: ‘I will finish the work tomorrow.’
Merkrede ŝi diris, ke ŝi finos la laboron la sekvan tagon.
On Wednesday she said that she would finish the work the following day.
Future -os remains relative to her speech; morgaŭ changes because the current reporter's tomorrow may be a different date. See relative time without sequence-of-tense backshift for the full rule.
Common Mistakes
Letting hodiaŭ force present tense
❌ Hodiaŭ matene mi renkontas la novan direktoron.
Incorrect in a neutral afternoon report — the morning meeting is already past.
✅ Hodiaŭ matene mi renkontis la novan direktoron.
This morning I met the new director.
Copying English perfect auxiliaries with jam
❌ Mi havas jam sendis la mesaĝon.
Incorrect — jam does not require an auxiliary construction.
✅ Mi jam sendis la mesaĝon.
I have already sent the message.
Using past for a duration that still continues
❌ Mi atendis ĉi tie jam du horojn.
Incorrect if the speaker is still waiting — -is normally closes the waiting period.
✅ Mi atendas ĉi tie jam du horojn.
I have been waiting here for two hours.
Leaving a relative offset unmarked
❌ Li alvenis lunde kaj foriris tri tagoj poste.
Incorrect — the measure before poste takes accusative -n.
✅ Li alvenis lunde kaj foriris tri tagojn poste.
He arrived on Monday and left three days later.
Retaining morgaŭ after the reporting day has changed
❌ Pasintan vendredon li diris, ke li venos morgaŭ.
Misleading if he meant the Saturday after last Friday.
✅ Pasintan vendredon li diris, ke li venos la sekvan tagon.
Last Friday he said that he would come the following day.
Key Takeaways
- Time adverbials refine temporal reference; verb endings still express tense or mood.
- Hodiaŭ can combine with -is, -as, or -os according to which part of today is meant.
- Tiam, poste, antaŭe, and baldaŭ take their anchor from context.
- Jam, ankoraŭ, and ne plu describe phases and can occur in any tense.
- Present plus duration usually remains open; past plus duration normally presents a closed period.
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Start learning Esperanto →Related Topics
- Time AdverbsB1 — Place events in time with Esperanto primitive particles and productive -e forms, including precise contrasts such as ĵus, tuj, and lunde.
- Jam, Ankoraŭ, and Ne PluB2 — Use jam for a reached change, ankoraŭ for continuing prior reality, and ne plu for a state that has ended.
- The Present in -ASA1 — Use -as for actual situations in progress, current states, habits, and generally valid statements.
- The Past in -ISA2 — Use -is for actual actions and states before the relevant present, regardless of whether they were completed, ongoing, habitual, or earlier than another past event.
- The Future in -OSA2 — Use -os for actions and states expected after the relevant present, including in time and condition clauses where English uses a present form.
- Time DurationA1 — Express how long an event lasts by marking a time measure with -n or by using an explicit duration phrase.