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Adverb Placement: by Marina Pantcheva

Adverbs can modify adjectives or entire sentences. When modifying sentences, adverbs have four possible positions: beginning, after verbs like "be" or auxiliaries, before other verbs, or end. Some adverbs are more restricted in their placement. Adverbs are commonly placed at the beginning separated by a comma, after auxiliary or modal verbs, before other verbs, or at the end denoting frequency, manner, or time. Certain adverbs like "always" cannot be first or last in a sentence.

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67 views2 pages

Adverb Placement: by Marina Pantcheva

Adverbs can modify adjectives or entire sentences. When modifying sentences, adverbs have four possible positions: beginning, after verbs like "be" or auxiliaries, before other verbs, or end. Some adverbs are more restricted in their placement. Adverbs are commonly placed at the beginning separated by a comma, after auxiliary or modal verbs, before other verbs, or at the end denoting frequency, manner, or time. Certain adverbs like "always" cannot be first or last in a sentence.

Uploaded by

Koushik Barua
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Adverb placement

site.uit.no/english/grammar/adverb-placement/

By Marina Pantcheva
Adverbs are words that answer the questions when, where, and how, for example,
recently, never, below, slowly, frankly. Typically, adverbs end in -ly though there are a few
adjectives that take this ending too, such as lovely, friendly, lonely.

Adverbs can be used to modify an adjective or an entire sentence. When modifying an


adjective, the adverb immediately precedes it: particularly hot weather, recently re-
elected president.

When modifying an entire sentence, adverbs can be placed in four positions:

at the beginning;
at the end;
after the verb to be and all auxiliary verbs: can, may, will, must, shall, and have, when
have is used as an auxiliary (for example in I have been in Spain twice);
before all the other verbs.

Some adverbs can appear in all four positions; others have less freedom, for example,
they cannot be the first word in the clause.

Beginning of the sentence

Adverbs placed at the beginning of the clause are often separated by a comma. The
comma is obligatory after however, in fact, therefore, nevertheless, moreover, furthermore,
and still.

(1) Usually the summer is hot and humid.

(2) Sometimes she wishes it was not so hot.

(3) Unfortunately, this summer is particularly hot.

Some adverbs cannot begin a declarative sentence. These are: always, ever, rarely, seldom
and never.

Next to the agreeing verb


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There are two positions next to the agreeing verb (this is the verb that changes its form
depending on the number of the subject, and also the tense): immediately before and
immediately after the verb. In which of the two positions the adverb will appear depends
on the verb.

auxiliary verbs (have, be): the adverb follows the verb;

(4) The summer is usually hot and humid.

modal verbs (have, can, will, shall, may, must, might): the adverb follows the verb;

(5) This summer will hopefully be cool and dry.

all other verbs (sleep, dance, read, want, etc): the adverb precedes the verb.

(6) She sometimes wishes it was not so hot.

The placement of adverbs with respect to the verb to have depends on whether to have is
used as an auxiliary verb (part of a verb complex), or as a main verb (standing alone and
meaning ‘possess’). When it is an auxiliary, the adverb follows it; when it is a main verb,
the adverb precedes it.

(7) He has always been very interested in technology.

(8) She always has a pair of pliers in her handbag.

End of the sentence

The adverbs that most frequently appear at the end of the sentence are:

adverbs of frequency: usually, normally, often, frequently, sometimes, occasionally;


adverbs of manner (answering the question how): slowly, quickly, badly, silently;
adverbs of time: today, already, last week, this year.

(9) The summer is very hot usually.

(10) She opened the envelope carefully.

(11) There is no wind today.

Some adverb cannot be last in a sentence. These are the same adverbs that cannot come
first: always, ever, rarely, seldom and never.

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