Adverbs

Adverbs are words that give us more information about verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, or whole sentences. They help make your speech and writing more precise and interesting.

1. What Are Adverbs?

Adverbs answer questions like:

• How? → manner
• When? → time
• Where? → place
• How often? → frequency
• To what degree? → intensity

Tip: Many adverbs are formed by adding -ly to adjectives:

• quick → quickly
• careful → carefully
• happy → happily

If an adjective ends in -y, change -y to -i and add -ly:

• easy → easily
• happy → happily

Some adverbs do not end in -ly:

• often, always, never, soon, very, quite

Important: very/quite usually modify adjectives and other adverbs (very tired / quite well). They do not usually modify main verbs (not: I very like it).

2. Types of Adverbs

A. Adverbs of Manner

Adverbs of manner describe how something happens.

• Examples: slowly, carefully, well, badly

Sentence examples:

• “She explained the rules slowly.”
• “He drives very carefully.”

With an object, don’t put the adverb between the verb and the object.

• ✓ “He opened the door carefully.”
• ✗ “He opened carefully the door.”

B. Adverbs of Time

Adverbs of time describe when something happens.

• Examples: yesterday, tomorrow, now, soon, already

Sentence examples:

• “I will call you tomorrow.”
• “They have already left.”

Adverbs of time are often at the end, but some (e.g., already, just, still) often go:

(1) after the first auxiliary: “They have already left.” “I am still waiting.”
(2) after be: “She is already here.”

They can also go at the beginning for emphasis: “Yesterday, they left early.”

C. Adverbs of Place

Adverbs of place describe where something happens.

• Examples: here, there, everywhere, outside, nearby

Sentence examples:

• “I live nearby.”
• “She looked everywhere for her keys.”

Adverbs of place often come after the verb or after the object.

• “Put the books here.”
• “We met outside.”

D. Adverbs of Frequency

Adverbs of frequency describe how often something happens.

• Examples: always, usually, often, sometimes, rarely, never

Sentence examples:

• “I usually eat breakfast at 7 a.m.”
• “He rarely drinks coffee.”

E. Adverbs of Degree / Intensity

Adverbs of degree/intensity describe how strong or intense something is.

• Examples: very, quite, extremely, almost, too

Sentence examples:

• “I am very tired today.”
• “The exam was extremely difficult.”

F. Sentence Adverbs

A sentence adverb is not about the action itself; it comments on the whole sentence (your attitude, opinion, or how the information is connected).

Common sentence adverbs:

• probably, maybe, possibly (chance)
• fortunately, unfortunately (feeling)
• clearly, honestly (manner of the message)

Examples:

• “Probably, it will rain later.” (whole sentence)
• “I honestly don’t know.” (your opinion)

Sentence adverbs usually go at the beginning or sometimes in the middle:

• “Probably, we’ll be late.” / “We’ll be probably late.” (the first is much more natural)

3. Position of Adverbs in a Sentence

The position depends on the type of adverb.

A. Adverbs of Manner

Usually after the verb or after the object.

• “She writes beautifully.”
• “He opened the door carefully.”

B. Adverbs of Time

Usually at the end of the sentence.

• “I will finish my homework tomorrow.”
• “They left early yesterday.”

C. Adverbs of Place

Usually at the end of the sentence.

• “Put the books here.”
• “He lives nearby.”

D. Adverbs of Frequency

Usually before the main verb, but after the verb to be.

• “I always go to the gym.”
• “She is never late.”

E. Adverbs of Degree

Usually before the adjective/adverb they modify (very tall, quite well).

Some degree adverbs can also modify verbs (really like, almost finished, just arrived). They are often placed before the main verb or after the first auxiliary.

• “He is very tall.”
• “She speaks English quite well.”
• “I really like this movie.”
• “They have just arrived.”

F. How Position Changes Meaning

At B1, it helps to know that moving an adverb can change scope (what the adverb refers to) and emphasis.

1) Frequency vs. degree

• “I always go to the gym.” = at all times / every time.
• “I go to the gym always.” = sounds unnatural; if used, it often feels like emphasis on the idea of ‘always’. (Normally, use always before the main verb.)

2) Already / still (mid-position after auxiliaries / be)

Compare:

• “They have already left.” (already = before now)
• “They left already yesterday.” (often sounds wrong at B1; better: “They left yesterday.” + use already carefully, usually mid-position)

3) Sentence adverbs (whole-sentence meaning)

Compare:

• “Probably, he is at home.” = your guess about the whole situation.
• “He is probably at home.” = still possible, but the ‘whole-sentence’ meaning is usually clearer at the start.

4. Comparative and Superlative Adverbs

We often compare adverbs when we want to say how well/fast/often someone does something. Not all adverbs are commonly compared (e.g., very).

Some adverbs can be compared.

Regular form (-ly → more/most):

• quickly → more quickly → most quickly
• carefully → more carefully → most carefully

Irregular forms:

• well → better → best
• badly → worse → worst
• far → farther/further → farthest/furthest

Examples:

• “She runs more quickly than her brother.”
• “He speaks English better than anyone in the class.”
• “Of all the students, she works the hardest.” (Hard is an adverb here: work hard/harder/hardest. Hardly is different: ‘hardly’ = almost not.)

5. Common Mistakes with Adverbs

• Using an adjective instead of an adverb:

  • x “He runs quick.” → ✓ “He runs quickly.”
  • x “She sings beautiful.” → ✓ “She sings beautifully.”

• Misplacing frequency adverbs:

  • x “I go to the gym always.” → ✓ “I always go to the gym.”

• Confusing adverb types (manner vs. degree):

  • x “He spoke loud.” → ✓ “He spoke loudly.” (manner)
  • x “It is a really slowly process.” → ✓ “It is a really slow process.” (degree + adjective)

• Using too many adverbs (overloading the sentence):

  • x “She sang beautifully and nicely.” → ✓ “She sang beautifully.”

6. Key Takeaways

• Adverbs give extra information about verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.
• They answer how, when, where, how often, and to what degree.
• Many adverbs are formed with -ly, but some are irregular.
• Position depends on the type of adverb, and moving an adverb can change emphasis or meaning.
• Adverbs can also be compared (more/most or irregular forms like better/best).