Definition & Meaning of "adverbial genitive"

What is an "adverbial genitive"?

An adverbial genitive is a grammatical construction where a noun in the genitive case modifies another noun, functioning similarly to an adverb. This structure often indicates a relationship of time, place, manner, or purpose. For example, in the phrase "a day's work," the genitive noun "day's" describes the work in terms of duration, showing that the work is done within one day. Another example is "the school's location," where "school's" indicates the place related to the location. Adverbial genitives are useful for providing additional information about nouns and clarifying relationships in a concise manner. Understanding this construction helps in recognizing how nouns can convey nuanced meanings in sentences.