Adverbs
Adverbs and Adjectives
An adverb may describe most parts of speech. An adjective may describe only a noun
(sometimes a pronoun).
ADJECTIVES ADVERBS
He is a wise man He spoke wisely.
Susan is a careful driver. Susan drives carefully.
That was a miserable effort. He failed miserably.
What a good shot! John shot well.
Many adverbs are formed from adjectives by adding the suffix -ly, but not all words ending
in -ly are adverbs; for example, hilly, sickly and miserly are adjectives. Moreover, there are
many adverbs that do not end-in -ly. The simplest test is: Does the word describe a noun or
pronoun? If it does, then it is an adjective. If it describes any other part of speech, it is an
adverb.
The following verbs normally require an adjective and not an adverb to complete their
meaning.
to be seems appears looks becomes
ADJECTIVES ADVERBS
It was very good. They played well.
He seems contented. The cow grazed contentedly.
That looks tidy. They were arranged tidily
Comparison of Adverbs
Those adverbs that have degrees of comparison are compared as follows:
1. These adverbs add -er and -est:
near, nearer, nearest hard, harder, hardest
fast, faster, fastest long, longer, longest
2. Most adverbs that have two or more syllables form their com- parative and superlative by
means of the words more and most:
beautifully, more beautifully, most beautifully slowly, more slowly, most slowly quickly,
more quickly, most quickly.
An exception is:
early, earlier, earliest.
3. These adverbs are compared irregularly:
Well better best badly worse worst
Much more most little less least far
farther farthest late later latest or last
4. Some adverbs have no degrees of comparison as they are complete in themselves:
before already ago quite once never therefore
Position of Adverbs in Sentence
In English, the position of the adverb in a sentence is not subject to any hard and fast rules,
although there are certain general rules. It should be remembered, however, that different
shades of em- phasis can be expressed by a change of position. The rules that follow should
be studied with these reservations in mind. Follow the rules, unless you are certain that in
the particular sentence you have in mind the order can be varied.
1. When an adverb describes an adjective, another adverb, a preposition or a conjunction, it
precedes the word that it modifies:
rather slow near together shortly before midnight
just after you came enough is placed after the word that it modifies:
quick enough
2. Adverbs or adverbial phrases of time may be placed either at the beginning or at the end
of a sentence, the position depending on the degree of emphasis required:
I shall see him today. Today, I shall see him.
We shall be there in three months' time.
In three months' time we shall be there.
As you will see, the more emphatic position is at the beginning of the sentence.
3. When the time referred to is indefinite, the adverb usually precedes the main verb:
We often go there. He has never been here.
I always walk. I rarely refer to it
4. When a verb is transitive, the adverb should not separate a verb from its object (except
when the object is qualified by a long phrase or by a clause):
I heard it distinctly.
He read the words slowly.
She seldom plays the piano now.
I heard distinctly all that he said (object-all-qualified by a clause)
5. Adverbs of manner and place usually follow the verb:
He ran quickly. They will come here.
6. When more than one adverb or adverb phrase modifies a verb, the normal position is at
the end of the sentence, in the order: place, manner, time, or, manner, place, time:
He will come here tomorrow. (place, time)
He spoke very well this morning. (manner, time)
Sarah played well at the recital this afternoon, (manner, place, time).
