Slovene Adverbs in General

Adverbs, known as prislov, are words that are used to modify an adjective, a verb and even another adverb. Those words are not declined like a noun would be, therefore they do no change form.

Although, in some cases, depending on the situation, different adverbs might be used. By asking some basic but specific questions, it can help identify which adverb to use.

Time (Cašovni Prislov)

For adverbs of time, the question word used is kdaj, which means “when”.

• danes (today) / včeraj (yesterday) / jutri (tomorrow)
• zjutraj (in the morning), (zvečer (in the evening) / ponoči (at night)
• dopoldan (forenoon) / popoldan (afternoon)
• zgodaj (early) / pozno (late)
• takoj (immediately) / zdaj (now) / potem (later on)
• vedno (always) / nikoli (never)
• pozimi (Winter) / spomladi (Spring) / poleti (Summer) / jeseni (Autumn)

For example,

1. Zgodaj ste. → You are early.
2. Pridem takoj. →  I’m coming immediately.

Amount (Merni Prislov)

For adverbs for amount, the question word asked is koliko , which means “how much, how many”.

• veliko (a lot) / malo (a little)
• več (more) / manj (less)
• preveč (too much) / premalo (too little, not enough)
• dovolj (enough)
• toliko (this much)
• nekaj (some)

When using “quantify” a noun, the second sklon is being used. — Here’s how to express quantities in Slovene.

For example,

1. Dovolj imam! → I have enough!
2. Sem kupila veliko kruha². → I bought a lot of bread.

Place (Krajevni Prislov)

For adverbs of place, two questions words can be used kam and kje, both means “where”.

Kam is used for a destination, like kam greste (where are you going). Kje is used for a location, like kje ste (where are you). Depending on which question is  adverb used might be different.

KAM?	KJE?	Translation
sem	tukaj	here
tja	tam	there
drugam	drugje	elsewhere
domov	doma	home
ven	zunaj	out, outside
noter	notri	inside
naprej	spredaj	ahead
nazaj	zadaj	back
gor	zgoraj	up
dol	spodaj	down

And some adverbs remain the same.

• daleč (far) / blizu (close)
• okoli (around)
• vmes (in between)

For example,

1. Grem ven. → I go out.
2. Zunaj sem. → I am outside.
3. Sem šla daleč. → I went far.

Manner (Načinovni Prislov)

For adverbs of manner, the question word used is kako, which means “how” and it is probably one of the most used adverb. . It is used to describe how an verb is done.

Do not confuse with adjective, which is used to describe how a noun is. Therefore, an adjective is declined, but an adverb is not. — Here’s about Slovene adjectives in general.

• lepo (nicely) / grdo (uglily)
• hitro (quickly) / počasno (slowly)
• dobro (goodly) / slabo (badly)
• zanimivo (interestingly) / dolgočasno (boringly)
• močno (strongly) / šibko (weakly)
• glasno (loudly) / tiho (quietly)

For example,

1. Lepo govorite slovensko. → You speak Slovene nicely.
2. Hitro je šel v službo → He went quickly to work.

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Just as in English, the position of the adverb in a sentence is not fixed, it always depends on the context. If you have any questions or adverbs that you would like to add to the list, let me know!

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Discover more Slovene “lessons” that might interest you: Slovene Numbers & Numerals, Slovene Nouns & Pronouns, Slovene Verbs, Slovene Adjectives, Slovene Syntax, Slovenian Idioms, Slovene Adverbs.

Let’s learn,
Anna.