Recently, previously, later
These adverbs usually close the clause, but can also follow the verb and its subject.
| adverb | meaning | you know |
|---|---|---|
| مؤخرا(mu'akharan) | recently, lately | أخيرا finally |
| سابقا | previously, formerly | من قبل before (now) |
| فيما بعد(fîmâ ba'du) | later, afterwards | لاحقا later |
مُؤَخَّراً and أَخِيراً share a root and their length. أخيرا is mostly at last, after a wait (in news it can also mean recently); مؤخرا is only recently.
| The city has changed a lot recently. | تغيرت المدينة كثيرا مؤخرا.taghayyaratil madînatu kathîran mu'akhkharan. |
سابقا says what something used to be, so it often sits beside كان; من قبل is before (now): كما قلت من قبل; after a negative or in a question it is ever before. فيما بعد means the same as لاحقا.
| This building was formerly a school. | كان هذا المبنى مدرسة سابقا.kâna hâdhâ al-mabnâ madrasatan sâbiqan |
| That student later became a famous doctor. | أصبح ذلك الطالب فيما بعد طبيبا مشهورا.asbaha dhâlika t-tâlibu fîmâ ba'du tabîban mash-hûran |
Nowadays, and once
في الوقت الحاضر(fil waqtil hâdir) (in the present time) is nowadays, at present: a period, where الآن is this moment. It sets the present against the past:
| The city was formerly a small village, but nowadays it is big. | كانت المدينة قرية صغيرة سابقا، أما في الوقت الحاضر فهي كبيرة.kânati almadînatu qaryatan saghîratan sâbiqan, ammâ fî alwaqti alhâdiri fahiya kabîratun. |
ذات مرة(dhâta marratin) is once, on one occasion in the past. Like ذات يوم one day, it often opens a story.
| Once, I forgot my keys on the train. | ذات مرة، نسيت مفاتيحي في القطار.dhâta marratin, nasîtu mafâtîhî fil qitâr. |
Ever since, early in, on the eve of
منذ takes a noun (منذ سنة) or a past verb directly (منذ سافر). Before a verb you will also often see منذ أن(mundhu an), ever since, with the same meaning.
| I haven't seen him since he went away. | لم أره منذ أن سافر.lam arahu mundhu an sâfara. |
في أوائل(fî awâ'ili) (in the first parts of) is looser than في بداية: in the first days of a month, the first years of a decade. عشية('ashiyyata) is on the eve of a holiday, an exam or an election.
| School starts in early September. | تبدأ الدراسة في أوائل سبتمبر.tabda'u ad-dirâsatu fî awâ'ili sibtambir. |
| The markets are crowded on the eve of the holiday. | تكون الأسواق مزدحمة عشية العيد.takûnu al-aswâqu muzdahimatan 'ashiyyata al-'îd |
