Deictic Time 時間直示
Time expressions come in two types: those whose reference point is the time of utterance – a.k.a. “now” – and those whose reference point is not defined by the time of utterance.
To demonstrate, consider the phrases “now” and “November 16th.” When we use the word “now,” the period of time is understood as being the exact moment the speaker says it, and when we use the word “tomorrow,” its meaning is also deduced from when the speaker utters the word. However, when we say “November 16th,” it is unclear without context when that is, as it is not contingent on when the speaker utters the word. It could be November 16th, 2023 or that same date from any other year past or future.
Phrases relative to time of utterance – measured in relation to when “now” is to the speaker – such as “now,” “yesterday,” “tomorrow,” etc. are examples of what is known as “deictic time.”
Deictic expressions in Japanese are notorious for being adverbial nouns, which means their part of speech wavers between “noun” and “adverb” depending on the grammatical context. More often than not, the presence or lack thereof of the particle に will make the distinction clear.
Generally speaking, deictic expressions are not marked by に to denote time when used adverbially:
1a. 私は今、本を読んでいます。〇
1b. 私は今に、本を読んでいます。X
I am reading a book now.
2a. 明日、試験があります。〇
2b. 明日に試験があります。X
There is an exam tomorrow.
When the particle に, or any other case particle for that matter, is used after a time phrase, this indicates that it is being used as a noun, in which case it may still be deictic so long as the phrase is relative to when the speaker is talking. In these cases, に is never temporal in function.
3. 明日のために色々と準備をしてきました。
I’ve made all sorts of preparations for tomorrow.
4. 昨日に戻りたい。
I want to return to yesterday.
When a deictic time phrase is still being used adverbially with に, the presence of に ironically causes the phrase to lose its place on the “now” timeline, instead being context-based for proper interpretation.
5. 戦争は明日にも起こり得る。
War could occur even tomorrow.
Though 明日 does still mean “tomorrow,” with the addition of に, as imminent as the situation may feel, ironically, the war in question might just erupt next week. A degree of uncertainty compounded by the seriousness of the situation is what makes 明日に not fall on the “now” timeline, making it non-deictic.
Then, there is the pesky problem when even the word “now,” the most deictic of all time phrases, can be interpreted in a non-deictic fashion. Rather than no longer meaning “now/present time,” 今に translates to “before long,” which can be further emphasized as 今にも, which is closer to “at any moment now.”
6. 戦争が終わらない今だからこそ、平和の歌詞を求めるのだ。(Deictic)
It’s precisely because war just won’t end in the present that (we) seek lyrics of peace.
7. 昨夜は雨はやっと上がったが、今に降りそうな雲行きだ。(Non-Deictic)
Last night, the rain had finally let up, but the clouds looks like it might rain any time now.
8. 今にも生理きそう・・・(Non-Deictic)
I feel like my period will come at any moment now…
BASIC DEICTIC TIME EXPRESSIONS
Deictic time expressions can be organized by their level of formality. Those used in daily conversation tend to be of native origin, whereas formal ones tend to be of Sino-Japanese origin. Generally speaking, the ones below are the ones you as a beginner should learn.
| 時間帯 | 2 before Now | 1 before Now | Now | 1 from Now | 2 from Now |
| Day | 一昨日 | 昨日 | 今日 | 明日 | 明後日 |
| Morning | 一昨日の朝※ | 昨朝▽ | 今朝 | 明朝▽ | 明後日の朝※ |
| Evening | 一昨日の夕方※ | 昨晩 | 今晩 | 明晩▽ | 明後日の夕方※ |
| Night | 一昨日の夜※ | 昨夜 | 今夜 | 明夜▽ | 明後日の夜※ |
| Week | 先々週 | 先週 | 今週 | 来週 | 再来週 |
| Month | 先々月 | 先月 | 今月 | 来月 | 再来月 |
| Year | 一昨年 | 去年 | 今年 | 来年 | 再来年 |
Chart Notes:
1. Phrases marked with ▽ are typically replaced with their non-deictic counterparts in the spoken language.
2. Phrases marked with ※ may function deictically or non-deictically.
Reading Notes: Many of the words in this chart exhibit irregular KUN readings:
「今日」＝「きょう」,「今朝」＝「けさ」,「今年」＝「ことし」,「一昨日」＝「おととい」「一昨年」＝「おととし」,「明日」＝「あした・あす」,「明後日」＝「あさって」
9. きのうの夜、10時に寝た。
I went to sleep at 10 last night.
10. きのう仕事を休みました。
I took a break from work yesterday.
11. 彼女は一昨年生まれました。
She was born the year before last.
12. 今朝はたいそう寒かったですね。
This morning was quite cold, wasn’t it?
13. 先週から風邪を引いています。
I’ve had a cold since last week.
14. 今夜はもう出かけるには遅すぎる。
It is already too late to go out tonight.
15. 明日の朝８時に起こしてください。
Please wake me up at 8 o’clock tomorrow morning.
16. 「今年の冬は寒くなるでしょうか」「天気予報を見ていないので寒いかどうか分かりません」
“Will this year’s winter be cold?” “I don’t know whether or not it’s going to be cold in the weather forecast.”
17. 先々週から抗原検査陽性でCOVID-19と診断する例が増えてきた。
Cases of diagnosing COVID-19 with a positive from antigen testing has increased from the week before last.
18. 祖母は去年亡くなりました。
My grandmother passed away last year.
19. 来月で何歳になりますか？
How old will you be as of next month?
20. 今も数千人が避難しているということです。
There even now thousands of people evacuated.
Particle Note: The particle も may emphasize deictic time phrases without changing its time frame.
21. それが、俺の今日の任務なのだ。
This is my duty for today!
Particle Note: The particle の is used to allow deictic time phrases, which are adverbial nouns by nature, to modify other nouns.
DISCERNING SYNONYMS
Time expressions in the spoken language are dominated by native vocabulary, albeit with some important exceptions such as 今週 (next week) and 来年 (next year), which are Sino-Japanese. Most deictic time slots, though, do have formal, written language variants which are of Sino-Japanese origin, which are used in tandem with general-use, spoken language variants. For the remainder of this lesson, we will be delving into this variation.
To simplify explanations, the following conventions will be employed:
1. Variants are listed in order by most to least frequent.
2. ▽ indicates a rare reading even for the written language.
3. All words not listed in the introductory chart are implied to be primarily used in the written language unless stated otherwise.
4. ひらがな is used instead of Kanji spellings in charts to avoid reading ambiguity, but this does not necessarily exclude those words from being written in Kanji.
今～・本～: This～
The prefixes 今（こん）～ and 本（ほん）～ both stand for “now” when paired with temporal nouns. Whereas 今～ only attaches to temporal nouns, 本～ can attach to an array of nouns. 本～ is always more formal, but it is ironically not used with all time phrases despite its ubiquity.
Chart Note: Certain cells are left empty due to the appropriate word(s) being expressed with non-deictic phrase(s).
| Native Word | 今～ | 本～ | |
| This Day (=Today) | きょう | こんにち こんじつ ▽ | 本日 |
| This Morning | けさ | こんちょう ▽ | |
| This Evening | 今宵 | 今晩 今夕▽ | |
| This Night (=Tonight) | 今夜 | ||
| This Week | 今週 | ||
| This Month | 今月 | 本月 | |
| This Year | ことし | こんねん | 本年 |
■Today
Formality and emphasis affect how “today” is expressed. The most used word is 今日（きょう）, which is often left in Hiragana. In second place, 本日 is incredibly common in both the spoken language and written language in formal contexts.
・今日（きょう）: This word is the contraction of こ (this) and 日 (day) but with ancient variants involved – け＋ふ ＞ きょう . The emphatic form 今日{の・という}日 as well as the non-deictic この日 =”this day” also exist.
・今日（こんにち）: Best known for its use in こんにちは, this reading is instead more commonly found with the meaning of “these days/nowadays” (ex. 今日の世界 = the world nowadays).
・今日（こんじつ）: This reading has fallen out of use but is still listed in dictionaries.
・本日（ほんじつ）: This variant implies that the speaker is personally involved in the matter at hand, which is a nuance found with any word involving 本～. 本日 is heavily used in formal language, spoken and written language alike.
22. きょうの天気は晴れだ。
Today is clear weather.
23. ローマ帝国内には多くの都市が建設され、それらの都市の中には今日（こんにち）まで栄えているものも少なくありません。
Many cities were constructed in the Roman Empire, and among those cities, there is more than a small few that have prospered into the present day.
24. さて、本日の食材がこちら！
Now then, today’s ingredients is/are this/these!
■This Morning
“This morning” is, by and large, usually expressed with けさ, an ancient contraction (details below), which still remains predominant despite the recent rise of きょうの朝 in the spoken language.
・今朝（けさ）: This word is most likely the combination of an ancient variant of こ (this) combined with 朝 (morning). It is used in both the spoken and written language.
・きょうの朝: This is the modern restructuring of けさ and is becoming more common in colloquial speech.
・今朝（こんちょう）: For most speakers, this reading is only encountered in stiff texts. However, it is the normal reading for those in the healthcare industry in which conversations among staff highly favors ON readings in array of vocabulary. Be careful, as 本朝 (this dynasty) is not synonymous.
25. 今朝、地震予知警報音を聞いて目が覚めて驚きました。
I was surprised when I woke up and hear the earthquake alert go off this morning.
26. きょうの朝もひとつ売り切りました！
I gave it a try again this morning and sold it all!
27. 今朝（こんちょう）も点滴を施行しました。
I administered IV this morning as well.
■This Evening/Night
The semantic lines between the various words for “evening” are convoluted to say the least. Ideally, from earliest in the “evening” if “evening” were to be defined in English as 6:00 P.M. to a bedtime of 10:00 P.M., the Japanese equivalents would be ordered as: 夕（方）＞晩＞宵＞夜. 夕 marks the start of dawn, whereas 晩 marks the end of dawn. 宵 marks the start of night, but 夜 can still refer to any part of the night and even the evening in everyday conversation.
・今夜（こんや）: This word is preferred over all other options listed below.
・今晩（こんばん）: Analyzing 今晩 as being more formal than 今夜 is misleading. Though it is true that it is heavily used in the phrase 今晩は and that it may be used in 挨拶 exchanges in general, it is used in this way because of its traditionally allotted time. Nightlives simply were not a thing before the modern era. The favoring of 今夜 over 今晩 is a reflection of the change of times.
・今夕（こんせき）: If 今晩 and 今夜 exist, then so must 今夕. Unfortunately, it is rarely used, being largely restricted to literature. To make matters more confusing, it may even be read as こんゆう, which is itself a contraction of この夕.
・今宵（こよい）: 宵 specifically means “early night hours.” 今宵 is very poetic and frequently seen in literature and music.
・きょうの｛夕方・晩・夜｝: Technically, きょうの｛夕方・晩・夜｝ may either function as deictic or non-deictic expressions, the difference coming down to whether the particle に is used. By using きょうの as the modifier, focus is no longer on the time period being “today” in the present but the time of day, which is something that repeats regardless of when “now” is felt by you. Nonetheless, the deictic 今夜・今晩 are still far more prevalent than their non-deictic counterparts, with きょうの夕方 standing out as being unambiguously before it is actually dark.
28. 今夜何しようかな？映画でも見る？
What’re we gonna do tonight? Maybe watch a movie?
29. 今晩はやけに犬が吠えるなあ。
The dog is awfully barking tonight, huh.
30. 今宵、月はどこを照らすの？
Where will the moon shine on tonight?
31 きょうの夕方も都内は広い範囲で大気の状態が不安定になる見込みです。
The atmosphere is expected to be unstable to a large extent in the Tokyo Metro area this evening as well.
32. きょうの夜はきれいな満月が見られるといいですね。
It’ll be nice if we get to a pretty full moon at night today.
Sentence Note: In Ex. 32, previous times were not so successful.
■This Month/Year
The words for “this month” and “this year” are constructed identically. Words with 今～ are less formal than those with 本～, but those with 本～ are seldom heard in the spoken language.
・今月（こんげつ）: This is the preferred means of saying “this month” in both spoken and written language.
・この月（つき）: Though non-deictic in practical use, この月 is still the native version of 今月. It can, in fact, be used deictically, with the surrounding context is usually poetic and/or archaic.
・本月（ほんげつ）: This word is most common in official reporting in both business and government settings.
・今年（ことし）: This is the primary word for “this year.”
・今年（こんねん）: This word is used largely in impersonal, third-person, formal writing in which it is still further limited to set expressions such as 今年度 (this fiscal year).
・本年（ほんねん）: This word is very common in formal contexts in both spoken and written language. It implies that the those listening in as well as the speaker are involved in the matter at hand, and it is more formal than 今年.
33. 本年度の英語検定は難化するだろう。
This fiscal year’s English proficiency test is likely going to become more difficult.
34. 今年度の受注額は昨年の３倍だ。
This fiscal year’s order volume is three times that of last year’s.
35. 今月の料金がいつもよりもすごく高いのですが。
This month’s charge is a lot higher than usual…
36. 本月の会議は、一般選挙後、初めての会議である。
This month’s assembly is the first assembly after the general election.
37. ことしもよろしくお願いいたします！
Wishing you all the best this year as well (and hope you think the same)!
Reading Note: Though 今年（こんねん）and 本年 are both more formal than 今年（ことし）, neither is used in the spoken language.
来～・明～・明日の : “1… from now”
The Kanji 来 and 明 are fairly synonymous when creating deictic time expressions, but they are not used with the same time periods. Whereas 来(らい）～ cannot be used for time periods which happen within a day, 明（みょう）～ is predominantly used with these time periods.
| Native | 来～ | 明～ | |
| Tomorrow | あした あす | みょうにち | |
| Tomorrow Morning | あしたの朝 あすの朝 | 明朝▽ | |
| Tomorrow Evening | あしたの夕方 あすの夕方 | 明晩▽ | |
| Tomorrow Night | あしたの夜 あすの夜 | 明夜▽ | |
| Next Week | 来週 | ||
| Next Month | 来月 | ||
| Next Year | 来年 | 明年▽ |
■Tomorrow
・明日（あした）: Originally, あした was an alternative word for 朝 and may still even be used as the antonym of 夕べ (evening) on occasion in poetic language. Its modern meaning of “tomorrow” came from how it gradually became common to prefer this word to refer to the “next morning” after a day in which something important had occurred. It must be noted, however, that in formal language, its use is drastically lower compared to あす and みょうにち.
・明日（あす）: あす is also believed to ultimately share etymology with 朝 and あした. In Modern Japanese, it has a less colloquial tone than あした, but it is still heavily used nonetheless in both speech and writing. It may even mean “the near
・明日（みょうにち）: 明（みょう）is indicative of formal, written language for all the words it creates. With “tomorrow” being no different, to switch back to being informal, use あした. It must be noted, though, that みょうにち is used heavily in business in both the spoken and written language. A reason for this may be because it is pronounced without devoicing any voices, thus, completely unambiguous.
38. あすは各地で青空が広がるでしょう。
Tomorrow, blue skies will spread out all over.
39. 明日まで忙しい。（あした・あす ＯＫ）
I will be busy until tomorrow.
40. 明日までに終わらせてほしい。（あした・あすＯＫ）
I want you to finish this by tomorrow.
41. きょうは人の身、あすは我が身。(NOT literally “tomorrow” persay)
What happens to one today may happen to another tomorrow.
42. では、明日（みょうにち）またお電話いたします。
Alright then, I will call again tomorrow.
■Tomorrow {Morning/Evening/Night}
・明日の【朝・夕方・晩・夜｝: As we saw with きょうの modifying vague time periods such as these, when such words are separable from a deictic construction, they may technical function deictically (indicated by the dropping of に combined with a sentence-initial placement) or non-deictically (indicated by the presence of に}. These dual-purposed phrases are more prevalent in both speaking and writing than their deictic counterparts which utilize 明～.
・明日の晩: This combination is notably far less common due to speakers favoring 夕方 and 夜. Some feel that 晩 is more formal in isolated contexts such as this, but strictly speaking, it is not entirely synonymous with either.
・明朝: This word has two possible readings: みょうちょう and みょうあさ. The latter reading is more likely to be encountered in formal-sounding speech. Do not confuse either with the reading みんちょう, which refers to a computer font.
・明夜・明晩: Both words may still be encountered in concise, written language.
43. いよいよ明日の夜に放送です！(Non-Deictic)
Tomorrow night is when we finally broadcast!
44. 明日の夜は仕事ですか？(Deictic)
Do you work tomorrow night?
45. 明朝（みょうあさ）６時に集合です！
We are meeting up tomorrow morning at 6!
46. 明日の夜になると関東の沖に低気圧が発生します。
Entering into tomorrow night, a low-pressure system will develop off the coast of Kanto.
■Next Year
・来年: The typical way to say “next year” in both the spoken and written language.
・明年（みょうねん）: This variant is seen in very formal written language, but even in writing, it is often replaced by 来年.
47. 明年も変わらぬご高配を賜りますようお願い申し上げます。
I ask for your continued support [lit. “good office] in the coming year as well.
TWO…FROM NOW
・明後（みょうご）～: This prefix is most commonly seen with either 日 or 年, but this does not exclude it from being used with other time expressions. However, for those marked with ▽, dual deictic/non-deictic variants which utilize あさっての～ are most prevalent in both the written and spoken language.
・再来（さらい）～: This prefix can be used with any time period that uses 来～ to express the second following occurrence of said time period from now. Words made with this are used heavily in the spoken language.
| Native Word | 再来～ | 明後～ | |
| 2 Days from Now | あさって | みょうごにち | |
| 2 Mornings from Now | あさっての朝 | 明後朝▽ | |
| 2 Evenings from Now | あさっての夕方 | 明後晩▽ | |
| 2 Nights from Now | あさっての夜 | 明後夜▽ | |
| 2 Weeks from Now | 再来週 | 明後週▽ | |
| 2 Months from Now | 再来月 | 明後月▽ | |
| 2 Years from Now | 再来年 | 明後年 |
48. あさっての方向を向く。（Idiom; CANNOT use みょうごにち)
Literal Interpretation: To go in the direction of the day after tomorrow (instead of tomorrow).
To go in the wrong direction.
49. 昨晩お知らせした通り、明晩と明後晩の夜中料理は引っ越しがらみの所用のためお休みです。
As I had informed you last evening, I am taking time off from late-night cooking tomorrow evening as well as the evening after tomorrow due to matters related to moving.
50. 当方の都合なのですが、明朝から明後朝まで発送出来ません。
Though due to our circumstances, we won’t be able to ship from tomorrow morning until the morning after tomorrow.
51. 明後日（みょうごにち）のご都合はいかがでしょうか。
How is your availability the day after tomorrow?
3-4+ DAYS FROM NOW
Deictic expressions exist for “3 days from now” and “4 days from now” respectively.
| Native | Sino-Japanese | Kanji | |
| 3 Days From Now | しあさって | みょうみょうごにち | 明々後日 |
| 4 Days From Now | やのあさって | みょうみょうみょうごにち | 明々々後日 |
52. 名古屋３日間ありがとうございました！また明々後日お会いしましょう！
Thank you for the three days in Nagoya! I will see you again three days from now!
53. 明々々後日の金曜日までに終わらせたい。
I’d like to finish it by Friday, which is four days from now.
Although these are the Standard Japanese expressions, there is heavy dialectal variation, some of which are just as mainstream.
・Standard Japanese: きょう＞あした＞あさって＞しあさって＞やのあさって
・West Japanese Dialects: きょう＞あした＞あさって＞しあさって＞ごあさって
・East Japanese Dialects: きょう＞あした＞あさって＞やのあさって（やなさって）＞しあさって
・Mie Prefecture: きょう＞あした＞あさって＞ささって（さあさって）＞しあさって＞ごあさって
Hokkaido Prefecture: きょう＞あした＞（あした）あさって＞しあさって＞ししあさって＞しししあさって
しあさって and やのあさって are flipped in Eastern Japanese dialects in contrast to Standard Japanese and Western Japanese dialects, but this is because やのあさって had already existed in this region with the meaning of “the day after tomorrow.” It was only until the use of あさって began to spread that やのあさって took on the meaning of “4 days later” so that both words could be incorporated into Standard Japanese.
In some regions, ささって（さあさって）is used, which is thought to derive from 再（さ）＋明後日（あさって）. In these regions, し and ご are understood as indicating “4” and “5” days later respectively. Etymologically, the same can be said for Western Japanese dialects, with the difference being that they stand for “fourth day” and “fifth day” with today counting as Day 1.
Hokkaido Dialect is peculiar in that し most certainly derives from 再, and repeating it is used as the best way to create the following expressions.
先～・昨～・きのうの: “1… Before Now”
昨～ is the primary prefix for creating deictic time phrases for the immediately previous time point specified from the present, but there are also words created with 先～ and even 去～. Formality is not uniform across possible combinations.
| Native | 先～ | 去～ | 昨～ | |
| Yesterday | きのう | 昨日 | ||
| Last Morning | きのうの朝 | 昨朝 | ||
| Last Evening | きのうの夕方 | 昨晩 | ||
| Last Night | きのうの夜 夕べ | 昨夜 | ||
| Last Week | 先週 | 昨週 | ||
| Last Month | 先月 | 去月▽ | 昨月 | |
| Last Year | こぞ▽ | 去年 | 昨年 |
・昨 may also be paired with the Kanji for the seasons to produce: 昨春, 昨夏, 昨秋, and 昨冬. In the spoken language, these would all be 去年の～ – 去年の秋 (last fall).
・前～ for “prior” is not listed as words formed with it are primarily non-deictic.
■Yesterday
・昨日（きのう）: The native word for “yesterday” is also the primary word in both the spoken and written language. Interestingly, up until modern times, きのう meant “the recent past” more so than it did “yesterday.” However, the same can be said about the English word ”yesterday.”
・昨日（さくじつ）: Restricted to formal language, either spoken or written language. Its use in business is notably high.
54. 昨日（さくじつ）は貴重なお時間をいただき、誠にありがとうございました。
I am deeply thankful for the precious time of yours that you spared me yesterday.
55. きのうの今日なのにもう言うことが違う。
It hasn’t even been a day and your story is already different.
Phrase Note: 昨日の今日 refers to big incidents that have occurred not even a day ago.
■Yesterday {Morning/Evening/Night}
・きのうの【朝・夕方・晩・夜｝: These “deictic + non-deictic” combinations may function deictically (when に is absent) or non-deictically (when に is present). These dual-purposed phrases are more prevalent in both speaking and writing than their deictic counterparts which utilize 昨～.
・昨朝（さくちょう）: This is restricted to the written language.
・昨晩（さくばん）: Though not restricted to formal, written language, it is not as common as 昨夜.
・昨夜（さくや）: This is the primary means of saying “last evening/night” in the spoken and written language, but it must be noted that the literal difference between 晩 and 夜 may still apply.
・夕べ: 夕べ may specifically mean “last evening,” especially when describing events. It is commonly seen used with this meaning in literature, in which case it may be seen spelled as 昨夜.
56. 昨夜もっと早く寝るべきだったなあ。
I should’ve gone to bed much earlier last night.
57. 昨晩は寒かったから、出かけませんでした。
It was cold last evening, so I didn’t go out.
58. ゆうべのドラマは素晴らしかった。
The drama last night was wonderful.
■Last Week/Last Month
・先週: This is the typical way of saying “last week” in both the spoken and written language.
・昨週: Highly formal and only seen in the written language.
・先月: This is the typical way of saying “last month” in both the spoken and written language.
・去月: A rare literary variant.
・昨月: Highly formal and only seen in the written language. In actual practice, however, it is usually replaced with the dual deictic/non-deictic 前月. The primary reason for this may be because 昨月 may also mean “moon from the previous night.”
59. 最多の新規症例数の報告は昨週の金曜日であった。
The report with the most number of new cases was from Friday last week.
60. 先週神奈川に来たばかりです。
I’ve just arrived to Kanagawa last week.
61. 僕は5人暮らしをしているのですが先月の電気代はなんと6万円でした！
I live with five people, but our electricity bill last month was a shocking 60,000 yen!
■Last Year
・去年（きょねん）: Though a Sino-Japanese word, this is the normal way to express “last year” in the spoken language.
・去年（こぞ）: This is the native word for “last year,” but it is no longer in use aside from poetry.
・昨年（さくねん）: This word is preferred in formal language, either spoken or written, though it is more prevalent in the written language.
62. 昨年中は大変お世話になりました。本年もどうぞ宜しくお願い申し上げます。
Thank you for everything last year. I look forward to your support for this year as well.
63. 去年、ロンドンに住んでいました。
I lived in London last year.
2…Before Now
おととい & おととし: おととい is the native word for “the day before yesterday,” while similarly, おととし is the native word for “the year before last.”
一昨（いっさく）: This is the Sino-Japanese means of creating “2…before now” expressions, but for “weeks” and “months” it is replaced with 先々.
先々（せんせん）: This is only used for “weeks” and “months.”
| Native Word | 一昨～ | 先々～ | |
| The Day Before Yesterday | おととい | 一昨日 | |
| Morning Before Last | おとといの朝 | 一昨朝 | |
| Evening Before Last | おとといの夕方 | 一昨晩 | |
| Night Before Last | おとといの夜 | 一昨夜 | |
| Week Before Last | 先々週 | ||
| Month Before Last | 先々月 | ||
| The Year Before Last | おととし | 一昨年 |
・一昨々～ for Sino-Japanese vocabulary and さきおとと～ for native vocabulary may be applied to “days” and “years” for “three… before now”: “three days before now” = 一昨々日（さきおととい ・いっさくさくじつ ▽） and “three years before now” = 一昨々年（さきおととし・いっさくさくねん▽）- respectively.
64. 一昨日の味噌汁は飲める？
Can I have miso soup from the day before yesterday?
65. おととしも去年も中止されていました。
It had been called off last year and the year before last.
66. 一昨昨日はご馳走になりましてありがとうございました。
I am thankful for how you treated me to food [three days from yesterday = four days ago].
Broader Deictic Time Expressions
Not all deictic time expressions have to fall so pristinely on the linear progression of time surrounding “now.” People can be broad and vague by how they define time but still do so in reference to “now.” For instance, “these days” or “recently” can only be understood in the context of “now.”
67. このごろアメリカへ旅行する人が多い。
A lot of people are traveling to America nowadays.
68. 最近まで知らなかった。
I didn’t know until recently.
Similarly, 先日 (the other day) and 先年 (years in the past) are also deictic in nature, but they differ from other expressions which utilize the prefix 先～ by not referring exactly to one day prior.
69. 先日お会いしましたね。
I met you the other day.
70. 先年起きた、アメリカでの国会議事堂襲撃事件を思い出しました。
I remembered about the assault on America’s Congress that occurred a few years back.