4. Adverbs

General Points

The adverb respectively, unlike соответственно, goes at the end of the phrase.

Своевременно is very frequently used in Russian. The problem here is that the English word timely looks like an adverb because it ends in "-ly", but it can only be used as an adjective.

• Adjective: своевременная оплата: timely/prompt payment

Adverb: своевременно платить за услуги: to pay for services in a timely manner, in good time, promptly or on time (not "to timely pay")

Other examples of adjectives that look like adverbs are friendly, lovely, cowardly and lonely. Likely is only an adjective in British English, but acts as both adjective and adverb in American English (Am.: He'll likely do that. Brit.: He'll probably do that, or He is likely to do that.) You don't have to worry about daily, weekly and monthly - they are both adjectives and adverbs.

The word quite is highly ambiguous. "Quite good" means fairly good, but not very, yet "quite right" means 100% correct. For this reason, I prefer these alternatives:

• вполне: entirely, completely

• достаточно: fairly (or perhaps rather)

Sometimes translators even add "quite" themselves: I have seen, for example, давно translated "for quite a long time" (= "for a while, but not that long, really"), distorting the meaning considerably.

English does not have a one-word adverb like обязательно. It cannot be translated "necessarily" or "obligatorily" (these words do exist, but are rarely used).

♦ [Russian??]: The opinion must be included in the contract (not "is to be obligatorily included").

Именно can be translated namely only if it is followed by a noun or list of nouns. [EXAMPLE!!]

If именно is followed by an entire construction, its function is to emphasize a particular word. In English we might do this by using a phrase like it is... or this is (these are)...:

• Именно по этой причине...: It is for this reason that... (Or, less formally, That is why...)

• Именно сегодня история дает шанс...: It is today that history offers a chance to... (not "Namely today...")

• ... в сельских районах, т.к. именно здесь проживает основная масса бедных: ... in rural areas, since this is where most poor people live.

Or by adding a word like precisely:

♦ Именно выпускники профессиональных школ и колледжей формируют средний класс общества.: Graduates of vocational schools and colleges are precisely the people (or the very people) who make up society's middle class.

Or the emphasis can be conveyed by word order:

♦ Если именно сегодня казахи не объединятся... Unless the Kazakhs join together now...

When translating только bear in mind that it has at least two meanings:

♦ Только в Карагандинской области есть 150 памятников...: In the Karaganda region alone there are 150 monuments.

"Only in the Karaganda oblast..." would mean that nowhere else in the world had 150 monuments. (How is this distinction made in Russian???)

Also see the note on subject/verb insertion after only in the Word Order chapter.

Here are some phrases that often cause difficulty.

в последние годы: in recent years (not "last", and no article!)

в последние два года: over/in the last two years

за последние 2-3 года: over the last two or three years

первые недели: the first few weeks; the early weeks (not "the first weeks")

в ближайшее будущее: in the near future (not "nearest"!); shortly

задача на ближайшие годы: the objective for the next few years

один раз в полугодие: once every six months (rather than "half a year") декад: ten days (not "decade" = ten years)

В настоящее время, сейчас, сегодня: currently, now, presently (placed after the verb), at present, at the present time (very formal), at the moment (informal) (placed at the end or beginning of the sentence). I would avoid "nowadays" altogether - it's too colloquial.

До сих пор: still, to this day, but not "until now" or "up to now".

• [Russian??]: Vestiges of... have survived to this day/still survive (not "Until now remnants are preserved")

• Песня "Мы шахтеры", написанная в тридцатые годы, живет в среде шахтеров и по сей день.: The song "We are miners", written in the 1930s, is still popular with miners today (not "is popular with miners up to now").

• До сих пор эта система тяжело отражается на жизни людей.: This system (still) weighs heavily on the people even today/to this day.

• В этом небольшом городе он живет и работает и по сей день.: Не still lives and works in this small town (not "In this small city he lives and works until now").

In the examples above, "until now" cannot be used because the situation is still the same. Until now is used to show that the situation has changed:

♦ До настоящего времени регистрация в органах занятости носила формальный характер, так как целью был только учет безработных. Теперь для того, чтобы получить адресную помощь, нужна официальная регистрация гражданина в органах труда и занятости в качестве безработного.: Until now, registering with the employment agencies was purely a formality, since the sole purpose was to keep count of the unemployed. Now, people have to officially register as unemployed with the labour and employment agencies in order to receive benefits.

See also the entry for до in the section on Prepositions.

So far, to date = до сих пор

♦ На сегодняшний день Берел - единственный на территории Казахстана памятник с сохранившимися находками из органики.: So far/To date/At present, Berel is the only site on the territory of Kazakhstan that has yielded well-preserved organic remains (not "by now").

What does by now mean?

♦ He should have come back by now.

Уже is not always the same as "already". "Already" should not be used in phrases where time is measured, such as:

• уже более пяти лет: for more than five years

• Я играю в гольф уже больше 25 лет.: I've been playing golf for over 25 years.

• Мелькрупкомбинат давно уже снискал себе заслуженную славу.: The milling complex has long been famous, and rightly so.

• уже в X веке: as early as the 10th century

Еще...

♦ еще в XIX веке: as long ago (as far back) as the 19th century

The phrase not... until is useful to translate только as a condition for a subsequent event:

• He will not be back until Thursday.

• Только с 1947 группой было изучено 4 тысяч наскальных рисунков: It was not until 1947 that the group studied the 4,000 rock paintings.

В течение can be translated within, for or during; you need to decide which it refers to:

(1) within: when an action must be completed by a certain date:

• He agreed to carry out the tax inspection within 3 days [i.e. finish it]

• investment within 5 years [e.g. one of the conditions for a tender]

• подлежащий выплате в течение 20 календарных дней: payable within 20 calendar days

(2) for: when a state of affairs will continue throughout a certain period of time:

• this power of attorney is valid for two months [i.e. at every moment during the period]

• to make payments for the duration of this Agreement

(3) during: when the period in question is in the past:

• during the two months we were apart, he phoned me every day... and when followed by a noun rather than a measurement of time:

• [Find Russian example??]: he said nothing during the hearing.

Note: Within one month of (not "from").