Elements of time play a big role in a sentence. When learning a language, especially one like Portuguese, which has many verb variations and tenses, knowing adverbs allows your point to come across even if your sentence is not 100% grammatically correct. 

If you don’t know the past tense of a verb, but you add the word ontem (yesterday), every native speaker will understand what you were trying to express. Although you should strive to form grammatically correct sentences, as a beginner and intermediate level, making sure you are understood is a great place to start. 

The essentials: 

Agora – now

Sempre – always

Nunca – never

Hoje – today

Ontem – yesterday

Amanhã – tomorrow

Generally, adverbs in European Portuguese go either at the very beginning or at the very end of a sentence. 

Agora, estou a comer. Ligo logo.
Now I’m eating. I’ll call you later. 

However, some adverbs are exceptions. 

Teacher tip 1: Sempre usually goes immediately after the verb. 

Levanto-me sempre antes das oito. 
I always wake up before 8. 

Teacher tip 2: Nunca acts as a negative word in the Portuguese sentence, it comes to replace não. Therefore, it comes befores the verb. 

Nunca fui a Espanha. 
I have never been to Spain. 

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Timeline: 

Antes – before

Depois – after

Cedo – early

Tarde – late

Logo – soon, later

Já – already

Já não: not anymore

Novamente – again

Ainda – still/yet

Ainda não: not yet

Breve – soon

Já comi, não tenho fome, obrigada.
I’ve already eaten, I’m not hungry, thank you.

Já não toco piano. Tocava muito quando era pequeno.
I no longer play the piano. I used to play a lot when I was little. 

Frequency: 

Às vezes – sometimes

Diariamente – daily

Mensalmente – monthly

Anualmente – yearly

Frequentemente – frequently

Raramente – rarely

Constantemente – constantly

Rapidamente – quickly

Lentamente – slowly

Imediatamente – immediately

Finalmente – finally

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