How do you spell the word "on time"? The answer to this question can be found in the materials of this article. Also, your attention will be presented to those rules of the Russian language, under which the aforementioned expression falls.
general information
How do you spell “on time”?This question interests many people. After all, the Russian language is so rich and diverse that not everyone is able to remember all the necessary rules that allow you to make literate and beautiful texts.
It should be noted that such an expression canused in completely different ways (depending on the context). At the same time, it is necessary to remember that the named word is used in the text either together or separately. It is never written with a hyphen.
What is the difference?
Why, in general, the question arises howis the word “on time” spelled correctly? The fact is that this expression can be used in the text not only in the form above (together), but also in the following - “during” (separately). It is impossible to ignore the fact that, despite the great similarity, these words belong to different parts of speech, and also have different meanings. It is these nuances that determine how to spell "on time".
Examples
To make sure that the presented words can be written both together and separately, we give some illustrative examples:
- "I could not come on time, because it was too late to go to bed."
- “During the conference, booklets were distributed to invited guests.”
As you can see, one or another spelling of the presented word depends on the context.
Adverb
In order to understand how to spell "on time" inIn either case, it is necessary to determine which part of speech this word is. In the first example, this expression answers the question “how?”. Therefore, it is an adverb that has the meaning of “just in time”. And, as is well known, such a part of speech, formed on behalf of a noun and possessing a spatial or temporal attribute, is written together with a connecting prefix. In this regard, in this case it is required to write “on time”.
Noun
To find out how to spell "on time" in the secondexample and to justify your choice, you should also ask the question: “During what? - During the conference. This shows that this expression is not an adverb, but a noun with a preposition. Thus, if in this or that sentence it is specified at what particular time a certain event occurs, then the word we are checking should be written only separately. After all, the noun and preposition cannot be used together.
Where stress falls?
If you find it difficult to remember the rules that explain how to spell correctly "on time", you can resort to other methods. To this end, it is recommended to turn your attention to stress. For example:
- "Girls can not come on the first date in time."
- "If necessary, during the lesson you can take time off."
As you can see from the example, in the first case the stress inthe word "on time" falls on the first syllable, and it is written together as it is an adverb. In the second expression, the second syllable is in the shock position, and it is written separately, as it represents the noun and the preposition “in”.
It should be noted that this is a great way to find out the correct spelling of this word. But in this case, it is recommended to pronounce it out loud and with intonation.
Let's sum up the results
Now you know in which cases the word “on time” should be written together, and in which cases - separately. For a better understanding, summarize what we described in this article:
1.An adverb with a connecting prefix is always written together, especially if it is synonymous with such words: “just”, “just in time” and “by the way”. It should also be noted that in such an expression the stress almost always falls on the first syllable. For example: “I came on time to work”, “I shouted“ stop ”in time,“ I visited the museum on time ”, etc.
2Prepositions and nouns are always written separately, especially if they clarify the specific time at which an event occurred, and they can also be easily replaced with the following turns: “when”, “while”, etc. It should also be noted that the second syllable stands in such a shock phrase (that is, the first in the noun). Here are some illustrative examples: “while working on the machine”, “during the lesson”, “during the conference”, “during the decree”, “during the holidays”, etc.
Exercises to consolidate the material
Expand the brackets and determine the correct spelling of the word "on time". Justify your answer:
- “Why should (during) the performance in the hall be completely silent?”
- "For the first time in an entire week, dad returned from work (at) time."
- "(At) time referring to a specialist, he saved his life."
- "No matter how much I want, I cannot come (at) time."
- "(At the time of the concert there was a small incident."
- "(At) time he comes when it is convenient for him."
- "(At) the wedding time the bride did not have time to throw a bouquet (at) time."
