View source for Adverbial genitive

{{Short description|Grammatical component}}
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{{wiktionary}}

In [[grammar]], an '''adverbial genitive''' is a [[noun]] declined in the [[genitive case]] that functions as an [[adverb]].

==English==
In [[Old English|Old]] and [[Middle English]], the genitive case was [[Productivity (linguistics)|productive]], and adverbial genitives were commonplace. While [[Modern English]] does not fully retain the genitive case, it has left various relics, including a number of adverbial genitives. Some of them are now analyzed as ordinary adverbs, including the following:

* ''always''<ref>{{OEtymD|always|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> (from ''all way'')
* ''afterwards'',<ref>{{OEtymD|afterwards|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> ''towards'',<ref>{{OEtymD|toward|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> and so on (from their counterparts in ''-ward'', which historically were adjectives)
* ''once'',<ref>{{OEtymD|once|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> ''twice'',<ref>{{OEtymD|twice|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> and ''thrice''<ref>{{OEtymD|thrice|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> (from the roots of ''one'', ''two'', and ''three'')
* ''whence'',<ref>{{OEtymD|whence|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> ''thence'',<ref>{{OEtymD|thence|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> and ''hence''<ref>{{OEtymD|hence|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> (from ''when'', ''then'' and obsolete ''hen'' ("from now")<ref>{{Cite OED|† hen|2964703862}}</ref>)

Some words were formed from the adverbial genitive along with an additional [[Epenthesis#Excrescence|parasitic]] ''-t'':
* ''amidst''<ref>{{OEtymD|amidst|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> (from ''amid'')
* ''amongst''<ref>{{OEtymD|amongst|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> (from ''among'')
* ''midst''<ref>{{OEtymD|midst|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> (from ''mid'')
* ''whilst''<ref>{{OEtymD|whilst|accessdate=2010-03-15}}</ref> (from ''while'')

The adverbial genitive also survives in a number of stock phrases; for example, in "I work days and sleep nights", the words ''days'' and ''nights'' are analyzed as plural nouns but are in fact derived historically from the genitive or instrumental cases of ''day'' and ''night''. (That they function as adverbs rather than as direct objects is clear from the rephrasing "I work during the day and sleep at night.") The modern British expression "Of an afternoon I go for a walk" has a similar origin, but uses the [[periphrasis]] "of + ''noun''" to replace the original genitive. This periphrastic form has variously been marked as used "particularly in isolated and mountainous regions of the southern United States"<ref>"Our living language" comment to the entry '''of''', page 1219, ''The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language'', fourth edition, Boston and New York:Houghton Mifflin, 2000 {{ISBN|0-395-82517-2}}</ref> and as having "a distinctly literary feel".<ref>Entry '''of'''.3, page 680, ''Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage'', Springfield, Massachusetts: Merriam-Webster, 1994 {{ISBN|0-87779-132-5}}</ref>

==German==
[[German language|German]] uses the genitive as a productive case, in addition to adverbial genitive expressions.

The adverbial suffix ''-erweise'' added to adjectives is derived from the feminine singular genitive adjective ending ''-er'' agreeing with the noun ''Weise'' 'manner'. For example, the adverb ''glücklicherweise'' 'fortunately' can be analyzed as ''glücklicher Weise'' 'fortunate way [genitive]', i.e. 'in a fortunate way' or more explicitly ‘in a manner of good fortune’ (which also hints at the possessive role of the case).

The conjunction ''falls'' ('if') is the genitive of ''Fall'' 'case'. Likewise for ''keinesfalls''/''keineswegs'' ('by no means of'), ''andernfalls'' ('otherwise' i.e. ‘another way of’).

The preposition ''angesichts'' ('in view of') is the genitive of ''Angesicht'' ('face').

The time expressions ''morgens'', ''mittags'', ''abends'', ''nachts'', ''eines Tages'' (one day) and ''eines Nachts'' (one night; analogized with ''eines Tages'', though ''Nacht'' is feminine) use the adverbial genitive.{{fact|date=November 2021}}

==See also==

*[[English grammar]]
*[[Genitive case]]
*[[History of the English language]]
*[[wikt:Category:English terms suffixed with -s (adverbial)|Wiktionary list of adverbial genitives]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{lexical categories|state=collapsed}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adverbial Genitive}}
[[Category:Genitive construction]]
[[Category:Parts of speech]]
[[Category:Adverbs]]
[[Category:English grammar]]
[[Category:German grammar]]