Example (147) gives some examples in which the adverbially used noun phrase refers to a certain time interval. Note that the noun phrases are all obligatorily modified by a quantifier-like element like heelwhole, halfhalf and godgansewhole blessed; omitting these modifiers generally results in marginalization or unacceptability.

Example (148) provides some examples in which the adverbially used noun phrase refers to a specific time interval. These noun phrases typically contain a modifier that clarifies the position of the referent of the noun phrase on the time axis.

Unlike adverbial noun phrases that refer to a time interval, noun phrases that refer to a specific point in time can omit the modifier if there is another way to express their function, e.g. by using a demonstrative pronoun instead of a definite article.

Using a demonstrative can also save unacceptable examples such as (147a) without the modifier, but at the expense of their durative reading: in an example such as Jan bleef die morgen thuisJan stayed at home that morning, the adverbial phrase refers to a specific point on the time axis, not to a time interval.

Since the adverbial phrase has the form of a regular noun phrase, it can easily be confused with a direct object. In example (150a), the noun phrase can only be used as an adverbial phrase because it does not satisfy the selection restrictions of the main verb: de hele dag does not refer to a danceable entity. Nevertheless, at first glance this example is very similar to example (150b), in which the noun phrase de hele dag does function as the direct object of the main verb verprutsento botch/spoil.

However, there are several differences between these examples, all related to the fact that de hele avond functions as an adjunct in (150a), but as an object in (150b). A first difference, illustrated by (151), is that the noun phrase is optional in (150a), whereas it must be realized in (150b). A second difference, also illustrated by these examples, is that (150a) can be paraphrased by using the en doet dat-test, whereas (150b) cannot; cf. adverbial tests.

A third difference is that the adjunct can be replaced by the time adverb toen, but not by the personal pronoun hem, while the reverse is true for the nominal argument.

Finally, the examples in (153) show that passivization of (150a) leads to an impersonal passive, whereas passivization of (150b) results in the promotion of the noun phrase to subject.

An example such as (154a) is genuinely ambiguous between the two readings. The verb spelento play can be used transitively as in een etude spelento play/perform an etude or as an intransitive verb as in (met poppen\`1 spelento play (with dolls). In the active construction in (154a) the verb can be interpreted in either way. If the noun phrase is omitted or the sentence is paraphrased by the en doet dat-test, as in (154b), only the intransitive reading survives. The passive construction can also be used to disambiguate the sentence: if the passive construction is impersonal, as in (154c), we are dealing with intransitive spelen; if the noun phrase is promoted to subject, as in (154c'), we are dealing with transitive spelen.

In this specific case, the addition of an instrumental PP can also have a disambiguating effect, since the referent of the complement of the preposition met may can clarify which use of spelen is intended: in Jan speelde het hele concert met zijn poppenJan played with his dolls during the whole concert, the verb is clearly used intransitively. Verbs with a similar ambiguity as spelen are zingensing and fluitento whistle/to play the flute.

Noun phrases headed by the name of a day can easily be used as adverbial phrases. If preceded by a determiner, they refer to a time interval: such adverbial noun phrases are preferably modified by a quantifier such as heelwhole, as in (161).

If the noun phrases are not preceded by a determiner, they refer to a specific point in time, which can either precede or follow the speech time. The actual interpretation of maandagMonday in (161) depends on the tense of the modified clause and can be made explicit by adding a modifier like afgelopenlast or komendenext.

The genitive form can also be used to refer to a specific point in time. The difference between the adverbial phrase maandag in (162) and ’s maandags in (163a) is that the former refers to the Monday immediately preceding or following the speech time, whereas the latter refers to a particular Monday within a contextually determined span of time, e.g. the Monday during the Easter weekend; using this genitive form to refer to the Monday immediately preceding or following the speech time leads to an unacceptable result. The genitive form is also very common as a frequency adverb; example (163b) shows that in this use the genitive form alternates with the adverbial PP op maandag.

Reference to a more distant Monday that is not contextually determined is possible by using a postnominal PP-modifier, as in (164). Such cases differ from those in (162) in that a determiner must be used.

Noun phrases containing the names of months can also be used adverbially. They then refer to a certain time interval and are usually modified by a quantifier such as heelwhole, as in (165a). The use of the modifier halfhalf, as in (165b), leads to ambiguity: it can express that the proposition is true around the 15th of April, or (marginally for some speakers) that it is true for a large part of the month. In the former usage it has a similar function as the numeral in (165c), although in this case the adverbial phrase is preferably realized as a PP headed by opat.

Noun phrases headed by the names of months are not used to refer to a specific point in time, nor do the names of months appear in genitive phrases. Instead, a PP is used, headed by the temporal preposition in: in januariin January. Note that the names of months are not usually preceded by a determiner.

Noun phrases headed by the name of a season can be used adverbially to refer to a certain time interval, as in (166a). Unlike names of months, names of seasons must then be preceded by a determiner. Usually a modifier such as heelwhole is present. When used to refer to a certain position on the time axis, the noun phrase optionally contains a determiner, as shown in (166b). A modifier like komende is required unless the determiner is a demonstrative, as shown in (166c).

The use of the genitive form to refer to a particular season within a contextually determined period of time is not entirely natural: using (167a) to refer to, say, the winter of 1981 seems forced. However, it is very common to use the genitive form as an adverbial phrase of frequency, as in (167b). In this use, the genitive form alternates with the PP in de winterin winter; this option is, of course, the only one available for the nouns lentespring and herfstfall, since these have no genitive form.

Other conventional time units are expressed by nouns like weekendweekend, dagday, weekweek, ochtendmorning or avondnight. When a noun phrase headed by these nouns refers to a time interval, as in the (a)-examples in (168) and (169), it is preceded by a determiner and a modifier such as heelwhole is required. When the noun phrase is used to refer to a specific point on the time axis, as in the (b)-examples, the determiner can often be omitted. The (c)-examples show that the use of a modifier is preferred in the case of an article. When the noun phrase contains a PP-modifier, as in the (d)-examples, the determiner is obligatory.

Note, however, that the omission of the determiner in (169b) is somewhat marginal. It may be that the use of the bare noun phrases komende dag and komende avond is blocked by the existence of the lexical forms morgentomorrow and morgenavondtomorrow night. This is supported by the fact that noun phrases like vorige/afgelopen weeklast/the past week or volgende maandnext month, for which no such lexical items exist, are perfectly acceptable without the determiner: in fact, the determiner cannot be used in these cases.

Nouns that denote specific parts of the day can also be combined with the reduced genitive article: ’s morgenin the morning(s), ’s middagsin the afternoon(s), ’s avondsin the evening/night(s), ’s nachtsin the night(s), etc. These genitive phrases can either refer to the morning, afternoon, etc. of a contextually defined day, or be used as an adverbial phrase of frequency.

The genitive forms ’s avonds and ’s morgen in (171) cannot refer to the night/morning of the day that includes the speech time: for this, one must use the form vanavondtonight/vanmorgenthis morning. Other forms with the morpheme van that have a similar blocking effect are: vandaagtoday, vanmiddagthis afternoon and vannachttonight. These forms may be related to the phrases van de weeksometime this week, van de maandsometime this month, van de wintersometime last/next winter.

Finally, note that there are no genitive forms of the nouns dagday, weekweek, maandmonth, or jaaryear that can be used in the contexts in (171). There are, however, archaic genitive forms like daags and ’s jaars: they occur in formal language but do not have the same function as the genitive forms in (171). Some examples are daags na die ontmoetinga day after that meeting and tweemaal daags/’s jaarstwice a day/year.