In Russian, circumstance is a member of a sentence, usually expressed by an adverb or (less commonly) a noun in an indirect case. It can also be expressed in single adverbial participles or in full corpuscular participles. New circumstances, which are more complex constructions, may include nouns and words dependent on them. There are five main groups into which circumstances are divided depending on what semantic function is performed in the sentence.
Circumstances of the time
As you might guess from the name of the category, these circumstances are used to indicate the time frame in which any action occurred, is happening or will happen in the future. They answer the following questions:
- When? (Today, tomorrow, soon, the next day).
- Since when? (A long time ago, from last fall, from September, in the morning).
- How long? (Until tomorrow, until Monday, until next winter, in the morning).
- How long? (Long, about an hour, some time).
Here are some examples of using the circumstances of this category in sentences.
| Sentence | Circumstance | What is expressed | Which question answers |
| I decided that we should leave tomorrow so as not to make our friends wait too long. | Tomorrow | Adverb | When? |
| The girls waited on the shore from morning to late evening, but did not see a single ship. | - In the morning
- Till late evening
| - Dependent Noun
- Dependent Noun
| - Since when?
- How long?
|
| After waiting a while, the man decided to return to the hotel. | Some time | Noun | How long? |
Place circumstances
Again, the name of the category quite accurately makes it clear what these circumstances are. Indeed, they are used to indicate the spatial framework within which an action occurs, and also to indicate the direction of movement. Here are some of the questions they answer:
- Where? (Here, there, in the distance, near, at home).
- Where to? (There, in that direction, in the other direction, left, right).
- Where from? (Left, right, from that side, from this side, from afar).
These circumstances, just like the previous category, can be included in the proposals. For example, as follows:
| Sentence | Circumstance | What is expressed | Which question answers |
| You don't belong here. | Here | Adverb | Where? |
| We did not find what we were looking for, and decided to try to go the other way. | On the other side | Dependent Noun | Where to? |
| It is commendable and flattering that he came from afar, having traveled all this way to meet me. | From afar | Adverb | Where from? |
Circumstances of the course of action
With the help of these circumstances, one can describe the manner in which this or that action is performed. They always answer exclusively two synonymous questions:
To better understand how the circumstances of the course of action work, you can take a look at the relevant examples:
| Sentence | Circumstance | What is expressed | Which question answers |
| She smiled cheerfully at me and quickly walked toward a cozy roadside cafe. | | | How? How? |
| He was reading a book lying on the couch. | Lying on the couch | Participial turnover |
| Laughing, the children ran out of the room. | Laughing | Solitary participle |
Circumstances of the measure and degree
These circumstances answer the following questions:
- How much
- To what extent?
- In what degree?
Fully matching their name, they are used to convey the measure or degree of something, whether it is an action or an attribute of an object.
| Sentence | Circumstance | What is expressed | Which question answers |
| Teenagers have chosen a very good place to have fun. | Highly | Adverb | How much To what extent? In what degree? |
| I will not devote anyone to the details of my plans, so that later I will have no problems. | Completely | Adverb |
| Each of us was absolutely sure that he was worthy to win the competition. | Absolutely | Adverb |
Circumstances Expressing Causation
It is impossible to unequivocally say what questions the circumstances of this group answer, since it, in turn, is divided into four subgroups:
- Causes.
- Goals.
- Conditions.
- Concessions.
| Sentence | Circumstance | Subgroup of circumstances | What is expressed | Which question answers |
| My friends, going to the sea, bought a huge air mattress for swimming. | For swimming | Circumstance of purpose | Noun | What for? For what? For what purpose? |
| Despite the warning of the storm, the ship went to sea. | Despite the warning about the storm | Circumstances of the assignment | Dependent noun | Despite what? Contrary to what? |
| Due to the heat, travelers had to halt. | Because of the heat | Circumstance of the cause | Noun | For what reason? Because of which? Due to what? |
| If desired, I could study better. | If desired | Circumstance conditions | Noun | Under what condition? |
Some experts even consider them all to be independent categories, but the significance of the circumstances of all four subgroups has some similarities and common features.