Time, days and hours in Catalan

160 words on the topic

• el matí

  morning

  Its own word — unlike Spanish, where the morning hides inside mañana. Al matí — in the mornings: this is how any day's story begins
• el dia

  day

  Masculine despite the -a: el dia, bon dia. One of the main gender exceptions
• avui

  today

  Stress at the end: uh-BOO-ee. Avui en dia is "these days", not "today at noon"
• demà

  tomorrow

  From the Latin de mane, 'from morning': tomorrow is what arrives with the new morning. The morning itself is el matí, a word of its own
• ahir

  yesterday

  Stress at the end: uh-EER. Abans-d'ahir — the day before yesterday, literally 'before yesterday'
• la tarda

  afternoon

  Tarda stretches from lunch to dark: the second half of the day and the early evening. After dark, la nit begins
• la nit

  night

  It starts at dark, so a ten o'clock dinner is already a la nit. Hence bona nit too
• l'hora

  hour

  Both the hour as a measure and the time on the clock: quina hora és? And 'one o'clock' is already la una, feminine
• primer de tot

  first of all

  Literally "first of everything": the counting of thoughts begins. Second of all is already near — en segon lloc
• en segon lloc

  secondly

  Literally "in second place": thoughts line up by places, as on a podium. Next: en tercer lloc — if the arguments last
• abans de res

  above all

  Literally "before everything else": thing number one, unnumbered. The most important requests begin so
• a més

  besides

  Literally "in addition": més — more, from the basics. A més a més — the reinforced variant: and also, and again
• per cert

  by the way

  Literally "by the certain": el cert — the certain thing. A pivot word: say it — and change the topic
• en fi

  anyway (in short)

  Literally "at the end": the thought is out of breath — and en fi closes it. It can also mean "fine, never mind" — by intonation
• en resum

  in short

  Literally "in the summary": the long is folded into a couple of lines. The listener is tired? Say en resum
• amb altres paraules

  in other words

  Literally "with other words": the same thing, but clearer. If you were not understood — do not repeat, retell otherwise
• el més important

  most importantly

  Literally "the most important": important — a relative of import, what "carries in" weight. The most important goes last — there it is heard
• al capdavall

  in the end

  Literally "at the bottom of everything": el cap — the head, avall — down; the sum lies at the bottom. The quarrel is over? Al capdavall, tots dos tenieu raó
• encara que

  although

  Literally "even if" — a concession: rain or snow, whatever. After a real fact the ordinary tense follows — the grammar of the law unit
• en canvi

  on the other hand (but)

  Literally "in exchange": you give one thing — you get another. It always comes after the "but": the flat is small, en canvi, bright
• al contrari

  on the contrary

  Literally "toward the opposite": el contrari — the opposite. Al contrari! — a sharp hundred-and-eighty-degree turn of opinion
• malgrat

  despite

  After it — a noun: malgrat la pluja — despite the rain. With que it pulls a whole sentence — the grammar of the law unit
• tanmateix

  however

  A bookish word: "nevertheless" in one word. It goes at the start or in the middle, always with a comma
• per una banda

  on one hand

  Literally "by one side": the reasoning lies on two palms. It waits for its pair — per l'altra banda
• per l'altra banda

  on the other hand

  Literally "by the other side": the second palm of the reasoning. It has come — the arguments are balanced
• tot i això

  nevertheless

  Literally "all with this": the concession is admitted — and still. The colloquial tot i així — the same
• en lloc d'això

  instead

  Literally "in the place of this": el lloc — the place. One action takes the place of another
• igualment

  all the same

  Literally "in equal manner": igual — the same. Igualment, ho faré — I will do it all the same: stubbornness in one word
• al principi

  at first

  Literally "at the beginning": el principi — the beginning from unit one. Do not mix it up with primer de tot — that one counts arguments, this one events
• després

  afterwards

  Literally "after": you knew it in després de menjar — after eating. On its own — after everything
• després d'això

  after that

  The same després, with a finger on the event: això — what has already been. The order of events in a story rests on it
• finalment

  finally

  From el final — the end: finally here is 'in the finale'. Finalment! — the exhale after a long wait
• mentre

  while (during)

  One word instead of five: while, whilst. Two actions walk side by side, like two trains on neighboring tracks
• alhora

  at the same time

  Literally "at the one hour": a la hora. Doing everything alhora is a sure way to do nothing
• abans que

  before (conjunction)

  Abans de + noun, abans que + verb: the event is ahead. The border between preposition and conjunction is sharp
• després que

  after (conjunction)

  The pair of abans que: the event is already behind. This is how the story of a past day is built
• tan bon punt

  as soon as

  Literally "as soon as just": event B follows right after event A. Bookish; in speech more often quan
• des de llavors

  since then

  Literally "from then": llavors — then. One meeting — and des de llavors everything changed
• sempre

  always

  Short and reliable, like what it names. Sempre igual — always the same: said with a smile and with a sigh alike
• sovint

  often

  A local word: in Spanish it would be a menudo. It stands by the verb — and honestly confesses a habit
• rarament

  rarely

  The pair of sovint: rarely here is "in a rare manner". Rar — odd: a rare event is always slightly odd
• a vegades

  sometimes

  Literally "in times": la vegada — a time, you knew it in dues vegades al dia. Sometimes is "in some times"
• mai

  never

  It works in a pair with no: no… mai — never. At the head of the phrase the no can be dropped: Mai ho faria
• normalment

  usually

  A relative of the norm: usually here is "in norm". This is how one describes one's day until something abnormal happens
• molt de temps

  a long time

  Literally "much time": long here is "much-timed". Ask quan de temps? — and you will be answered the same way
• cada vegada

  every time

  Cada — every, from the basics; la vegada — a time. Cada vegada més — more and more: the formula of growth
• de tant en tant

  from time to time

  Literally "from so many to so many": time hops from point to point. Rarer than a vegades — but more often than mai
• encara ara

  to this day

  Literally "even now": the event is long — and has not ended. Do not mix it up with the farewell fins ara — see you soon
• de sobte

  suddenly

  Literally "abruptly": sobtat — sudden. In stories it alone turns the plot: I de sobte…
• amb antelació

  in advance

  Literally "with anticipation": avant — forward, in Latin. Tickets and visas are taken amb antelació — later they cost more
• a temps

  on time

  Literally "in time": the same two words as "in-time". Just a temps — just in time, not a second later
• urgentment

  urgently

  A relative of the emergency room — urgent: the red zone. In letters it is written in caps: URGENT
• de seguida

  right away

  Literally "in the wake" — right after the previous. De seguida! — right away!: the answer to any request
• gradualment

  gradually

  A relative of degrees: change here goes "by steps", as on a thermometer. Languages are learned gradualment — alas, without magic
• per casualitat

  by chance

  Literally "by chancehood": la casualitat — chance, a relative of el cas. Per casualitat — an excuse and a miracle in two words
• a propòsit

  on purpose

  Literally "by intention": el propòsit — the intention, like the New Year one. Do not mix it up with la propina — the tip: one letter divides
• a l'últim moment

  at the last moment

  Literally 'at the last moment': l'últim — the last from unit two. Everything most interesting happens exactly there
• tard o d'hora

  sooner or later

  Literally "late or early": Catalan puts the late first. A promise of time: it will happen — if not today, then tomorrow
• una vegada

  once upon a time

  Literally "one time": once here works in a fairy tale and in life alike. The opening of all grandpa's stories
• de petit

  as a child

  Literally "being small": in childhood here is "when I was little". For a woman — de petita: the ending remembers the gender
• en aquella època

  in those times

  Literally "in that epoch": times here are "epochs", even if it is about the nineties. En aquella època no hi havia mòbils — and it is true
• va ser fa molt

  it was long ago

  Literally "it was much [time] ago": time in Catalan is "made" — fa molt. The indefinite past puts the period
• la primera vegada

  the first time

  Literally "the first time": la vegada — a time, a repeat of an event. Vaig volar per primera vegada — an event remembered in details
• la intenció

  intention

  Feminine, an international word. La meva intenció és… — the polite opening of any plan
• el futur

  the future

  Masculine, an international word. El futur ho dirà — the future will tell: the universal answer to questions about plans
• el passat

  the past

  Masculine, the participle of the "passed". El passat no es canvia — the past cannot be rewritten: a proverb in four words
• els plans per aviat

  near-term plans

  Literally "plans for the soon": per aviat — for the near time. The weekend, the vacation, the move — all are plans per aviat
• d'aquí a un any

  in a year

  Literally "from here in a year": the term is measured "from today". D'aquí a un any tindré el títol — in a year I will have the diploma
• canviar d'idea

  to change one's mind

  Literally "to change the idea": changing one's mind here is "changing the thought". Vaig canviar d'idea a l'últim moment — I changed my mind at the last moment
• ajornar el viatge

  to postpone the trip

  Literally "to postpone the trip": ajornar — to move to another day (jorn — a day). Not a cancellation: the trip simply waits for a better day
• tot va segons el pla

  everything is on plan

  Literally "everything goes according to plan": segons — according to. Said with two intonations: content and heroic
• si surt

  if it works out

  Literally "if it comes out": working out here is "coming out", like a cake from the oven. A clause of any agreement: anem dissabte, si surt
• encara no ho he decidit

  I have not decided yet

  Literally "I have not decided it yet": the perfect here is honest — the decision is not taken even now. Encara — still: the word of all procrastinators
• el destí

  fate

  Masculine, a Latin relative — "given in advance". El destí ens va portar aquí — said of moves and meetings
• començar una vida nova

  to start a new life

  Literally "to begin a new life": it happens without moving too — from Monday. The classic: començar una vida nova en una ciutat nova
• tot ha canviat

  everything has changed

  Literally "everything has changed": the perfect here is right — it changed and stayed so. Said after children are born and renovations done
• per a millor

  for the better

  Literally "for the better": per a — for, in favor of. Ha canviat per a millor — it changed for the better: the phrase of hope
• per a pitjor

  for the worse

  Literally "for the worse": the same construction as per a millor, only downward. They prepare you so: prepara't per a pitjor
• constantment

  constantly

  A relative of the constant — the unchanging: constantly here is "without change". The neighbors with the drill live with it
• temporalment

  temporarily

  From temporal — temporary: the suffix -ment makes the adverb. Vivim temporalment… — this is how all moves begin
• el moment adequat

  a suitable time

  Literally "a suitable moment": adequat — proper. The standing phrase: ara no és el moment adequat — which usually means "never"
• fixar una hora

  to set a time

  Literally "to fix the hour": fixar — to fix, to fasten. An agreement without this word exists only in the mind
• canviar la cita

  to reschedule the appointment

  Literally "to change the appointment": la cita — both the date and the doctor's visit. Rescheduling is a "change": ha canviat la cita al metge
• cancel·lar la cita

  to cancel the appointment

  An international word with the mid-dot. Cancel·la la cita al web — two minutes and no shame
• a la tarda

  in the afternoon

  Literally "in the after-noon": the day is split into matí and tarda, the border is lunch. Tinc hora a la tarda — my appointment is after lunch
• cap al vespre

  toward evening

  Literally "toward the evening": cap a — in the direction of. A soft landmark: arribo cap al vespre is both six and nine
• a qualsevol hora

  any time

  Literally "in any hour": qualsevol — whichever you take. Said generously: truca'm a qualsevol hora — and regretted at two in the morning
• no abans de les cinc

  not before five

  Literally "not before five": abans de — before. The key word of the workaholic: no abans de les cinc, i si pot ser, demà
• recorda-m'ho

  remind me

  Literally "remind me of it": recordar — both to remember and to remind. Two clitics stick to the verb: recorda-m'ho
• arribaré a l'hora

  I will be on time

  Literally "I will arrive at the hour": on time here is "at the hour". The contract phrase: awaited at airports and at registries
• arribar a temps

  to make it in time

  Literally "to arrive in time": success here is arrival. Vam arribar a temps — we made it: said with relief
• en punt

  sharp (on the dot)

  Literally "on the point": exactly at the hour, not a minute off. The meeting starts at ten sharp
• llavors

  then (in that case)

  The same llavors as "since then": here it is the "then" of logic. If it rains, then we will lunch indoors
• fins que

  until

  Literally "until that": the endpoint of an action. We will not leave until the concert ends
• el més aviat possible

  as soon as possible

  Literally "as early as possible": the sooner the better, compressed. Call as soon as possible: the places fly away
• el segle

  the century

  A Latin relative: a hundred-year span. This church is of the twelfth century: look at the stones
• l'època

  epoch

  A Greek word — a "holding" of time: an epoch holds its age. It was an epoch of great changes: the town grew
• la dècada

  decade

  From the Greek deca — ten: a decade is a "ten" of years. In a decade the quarter changed beyond recognition
• el període

  period (span)

  A Greek word — a "going around": a period is a circuit of time. We are going through a calm but long period
• l'instant

  instant

  A Latin relative: the instant that "stands within". Everything changed in one instant: the phone rang
• prolongat

  prolonged

  From prolongar — to lengthen: prolonged is "lengthened". They had a prolonged silence, and then they laughed
• un dia d'aquests

  one of these days

  Literally "one day of these": soon, without a date. One of these days we will meet at the market and talk
• avui en dia

  nowadays

  Literally "today in the day": in our times. Nowadays everything is paid by phone, even bread
• de tota la vida

  for as long as anyone remembers

  Literally "of the whole life": the way it has always been. Here bread has been baked this way for as long as anyone remembers
• en qüestió de minuts

  in a matter of minutes

  Literally "in question of minutes": only minutes at stake. The fog lifted in a matter of minutes
• actual

  present-day

  A Latin relative: the current one, of now. The present-day mayor lives on the same street as his grandfather
• mil·lenari

  thousand-year-old

  Literally "of a thousand years": millennial. On the summit there is a thousand-year-old settlement of dry stone
• els temps passats

  the old days

  Literally "the past times": the bygone. Grandma speaks of the old days with a smile
• esporàdicament

  sporadically

  A Greek word — scattered, like sowing: now and then. I come to the town sporadically, two or three times a year
• diàriament

  daily

  From diari — daily: every day. The mail carrier comes daily, except Sunday
• regularment

  regularly

  From regla — the rule: regularly is "by rule". He trains regularly four days a week
• per primera vegada

  for the first time

  Literally "for the first time": the debut. He swims in the pool for the first time and is not afraid
• de nou

  anew

  Literally "of new": again, freshly. Paint the door anew — the first coat did not take
• cada cop més

  more and more often

  Literally "every time more": the growing frequency. More and more neighbors bike to work
• entre setmana

  on weekdays

  Literally "between the weeks": midweek, not on the weekend. On weekdays the café opens at seven, on weekends at nine
• una vegada sí i una altra no

  every other time

  Literally "one time yes and another no": alternating. He pays the tax every other time, and nobody says anything
• un cop l'any

  once a year

  Literally "one time the year": the annual gathering. The whole family gathers once a year, at Christmas
• cada dos per tres

  every so often

  Literally "every two by three": constantly popping up. Every so often the lift stops between floors
• mentrestant

  meanwhile

  Literally "between while": in the intervening time. Dinner bakes in the oven; meanwhile we set the table
• paral·lelament

  in parallel

  Literally "parallelly": side by side in time. In parallel with the construction the bar keeps working
• fins aleshores

  until then

  Literally "until that then": up to that point. He lived with his parents until then, and then left for Girona
• posteriorment

  subsequently

  From post — after: subsequently is "after-ly". They signed the agreement and subsequently published it
• el dia abans

  the day before

  Literally "the day before": the eve. The day before the holiday we cook together
• més endavant

  later on

  Literally "more ahead": further in time. For now we leave it so, and later on we will see
• aquesta vegada

  this time

  Literally "this time": the occasion at hand. This time the train came on time, a miracle
• en el moment oportú

  in due time

  Literally "at the opportune moment": the right moment. They arrived in due time, before the rain
• amb efectes retroactius

  retroactively

  Literally "with backward-acting effects": backdated. The salary raise will be applied retroactively, from January
• sense cap demora

  without delay

  Literally "without any delay": not a minute. Call the ambulance without delay, not a minute
• l'any

  year

  Masculine, with the apostrophe: l'any. The plural is anys: age is counted with it — té vint anys
• les vint-i-quatre hores

  a full day

  Literally 'twenty-four hours': the full day counted honestly. El dia is both day and full day: the context decides
• la centúria

  century

  Feminine, with 'hundred' inside: la centúria — a hundred years as one unit. El segle is the century too, you knew it: a neighbor word
• el minut

  minute

  Masculine: mi-NUT. Un minut, si us plau — one moment, please: asked the same way as everywhere
• el segon

  second (time)

  The same word as 'second', you know it: un segon — a second, dos segons — two seconds. The speaker tells the senses apart
• la mitja hora

  half an hour

  Literally 'the half hour'. In time counts it takes the article: el viatge dura una mitja hora
• el migdia

  noon

  Masculine, literally 'the middle of the day': mig-dia. Al migdia — at noon: the sun at its height and food on the table
• la mitjanit

  midnight

  Feminine, literally 'the middle of the night': mitja-nit. A mitjanit — at midnight: the city goes quiet
• ara

  now

  One short word: ara. The future often hides in the present: ara vinc — I'm coming now
• el termini

  deadline

  Masculine, Latin 'boundary': the term, the time limit. Dins del termini — within the deadline: a word of offices and contracts
• el següent

  next

  Latin 'following after', with a diaeresis: suh-GWEN. La setmana següent — next week
• passat

  past

  'Last' and 'past' in one word: passat. L'any passat — last year: the busiest phrase of the lot
• un altre cop

  again

  Literally 'another time'. El cop — a time, an occurrence: you know the count from per primera vegada
• aviat

  soon

  One word for 'soon' and 'before long': aviat. Fins aviat — see you soon: the farewell uses it too
• fa temps

  long ago

  Literally 'time makes': fa temps. Fa temps que visc aquí — I have lived here a long time: time does its work
• fa poc

  recently

  Literally 'it makes little': not long has passed. The partner of fa temps — long ago
• tard

  late

  Short and honest: tart. Massa tard — too late: you take it with massa, you know it
• d'hora

  early

  Literally 'of the hour', with the apostrophe: DOruh. The partner of tard — late: d'hora o tard — sooner or later
• de pressa

  quickly

  Literally 'with haste'. The partner of a poc a poc — slowly: you know it
• fàcilment

  easily

  From fàcil, easy: fa-seel-MEN. The -ment adverb glues onto the adjective, one ending for all
• amb dificultat

  with great effort

  Literally 'with difficulty'. Respirar amb dificultat — to breathe with effort. The judgment itself is said otherwise: és difícil
• tot just

  only just

  Literally 'merely': the time has not cooled yet. Tot just arribat — only just arrived
• al matí

  in the morning

  You know el matí, the morning: in the morning is al matí. Cada matí — every morning: the article stays
• de dia

  by day

  Literally 'of the day'. It pairs with de nit, at night: day and night in one glue
• al vespre

  in the evening

  Al VES-pruh — the stretch between the afternoon and the night. Al vespre: a walk, a series
• de nit

  at night

  Literally 'of the night'. You know la nit — this is its adverb
• cada dia

  every day

  Literally what it says: KAduh DEEu. You know cada — this is its favorite partner
• tot el dia

  all day

  Literally 'all the day'. Tot is 'all' — catch it at work
• el moment

  moment

  Masculine and international: mu-MEN. En aquest moment — at this moment: a bookish turn
• el rellotge

  clock

  Masculine: rruh-YO-juh — a plain ll here, no mid-dot. El rellotge marca les tres — the clock shows three
• el calendari

  calendar

  Masculine and international: kuh-len-DA-ree. El calendari de la feina — the work calendar
• quina hora és

  what time is it?

  Literally 'which hour is it'. The answer starts with És: És la una — it's one o'clock

How it sounds in a sentence

A word list is a blank. Conversation is made of sentences, and these are the ones the words fit into most often.

• Al matí bec un cafè

  In the morning I drink coffee
• Ha estat un dia molt llarg

  The day turned out very long
• Avui treballo a casa

  Today I work from home
• Demà no treballo

  Tomorrow I am not working
• Ahir va ploure tota la tarda

  Yesterday it rained all day
• A la tarda ja no fa tanta calor

  By late afternoon it is not so hot anymore

What is worth knowing about these words

el matí — morning. Its own word — unlike Spanish, where the morning hides inside mañana. Al matí — in the mornings: this is how any day's story begins

el dia — day. Masculine despite the -a: el dia, bon dia. One of the main gender exceptions

avui — today. Stress at the end: uh-BOO-ee. Avui en dia is "these days", not "today at noon"

demà — tomorrow. From the Latin de mane, 'from morning': tomorrow is what arrives with the new morning. The morning itself is el matí, a word of its own

Test yourself

Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than recognizing a familiar word — and therefore more useful.

How to learn the set instead of just reading it

Today, tomorrow, in the morning, at six. You cannot arrange to meet without these — let alone understand the answer.

A list is read in a minute and forgotten in a day. What works: hide the translation, try to recall, get it wrong — and come back to the same words tomorrow.

• Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many times
  Adesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
• This holds not only in experiments but in ordinary classrooms, with real students.checked many times
  Mawson & Kang, 2025, Behavioral Sciences 15(6):771 · 22 studies, d = 0.54 (confidence interval 0.31–0.77). The authors warn that individual studies disagree widely.

Next

• All topics of the Catalan language3960 words by topic and letter
• Greetings and goodbyes8 words
• Numbers and counting56 words
• Food and drink241 words
• At a café and a restaurant18 words
• Shopping and money85 words