Grammar Explanation

How adverbs modify verbs

Adverbs modify verbs by offering information on where, when, and how the action of a verb takes place.

Adverbs of place

Adverbs that offer information on where a verb is happening are known as adverbs of place. Common examples include:

• up
• down
• left
• right
• forwards
• backwards
• towards
• there

For example:

• He looked up at the skyscraper -> The adverb ‘up’ shows us that the skyscraper is above him.
• Sabrina walked towards the house -> The adverb ‘towards’ tells us that Sabrina walked in the direction of the house. She didn’t walk away from it, or somewhere else.

Adverbs of time

Adverbs that offer information on when the action of a verb is happening are known as adverbs of time.

Common examples include:

• today
• tomorrow
• yesterday
• tonight
• early
• late
• before
• after

For example:

• Paul went to work today -> The adverb ‘today’ tells us when Paul went to work. Without the word ‘today’, we would know that Paul went to work but not when the action took place.
• Margot went to bed late -> The adverb ‘late’ tells us when Margot went to bed. With that extra information, we start to wonder if Margot went to bed late because she was busy, or if she woke up tired in the morning. We gain a lot more information and context by simply adding one word.

Adverbs of manner

Adverbs that offer information on how a verb is happening are known as adverbs of manner. They are mostly formed from adding ‘-ly’ to the end of an adjective. Take a look at the following examples and notice the differences between the correct and incorrect versions of each sentence:

• The cat moved slow -> This sentence is incorrect as ‘slow’ is an adjective and should only be used to describe a noun (as in ‘slow cat’).

Since we’re trying to describe the verb (‘moved’) rather than a noun, we need to use an adverb:

• The cat moved slowly -> With the adverb instead of the adjective, this sentence is now correct.
• The couple danced beautiful -> Again, this sentence is incorrect because ‘beautiful’ is an adjective and should only describe nouns.

We need to use an adverb form of the word instead:

• The couple danced beautifully -> This is correct as the adverb ‘beautifully’ describes the verb ‘danced’.

Adverbs which don’t end with ‘-LY’

While many adverbs end with ‘ -ly’, there are a few important exceptions which don’t. The first is the word ‘well’, which is the adverb form of the adjective ‘good’ (instead of ‘goodly’ – which just sounds strange!):

• Penelope plays the guitar well

Secondly, there are the words ‘lovely’ and ‘friendly’ – which are actually both adjectives:

• My mother is a lovely woman -> Here, the word ‘lovely’ is modifying the noun woman, so it’s an adjective.
• There are lots of friendly students in my class -> In this case, ‘friendly’ is describing the noun ‘students’, so it’s also an adjective. 

Positioning the adverb in a sentence

When using an adverb to modify a verb, it is best to put it after the verb it modifies. The adverb can go directly after the verb or after the noun or pronoun receiving the action of the verb:

• The students sat quietly -> Here, the adverb ‘quietly’ is directly after the verb ‘sat’ because there is no noun or pronoun after the verb.
• The students sat on their chairs quietly -> Now the students are sitting on chairs (noun), so the adverb ‘quietly’ is placed after it. 
• Katherine sang beautifully -> The verb ‘sang’ is at the end of the sentence, so the adverb ‘beautifully’ is placed directly after it.
• Katherine sang the song beautifully -> Now the noun ‘song’ is receiving the action of the verb ‘sing’, so the adverb ‘beautifully’ is placed after it.

Modifying adjectives & adverbs with adverbs

Adverbs can also be used to provide more information about both adjectives and other adverbs. An adverb that modifies an adjective or an adverb is called an intensifier. This is because it increases or intensifies the information given in the sentence. 

Fortunately, modifying adjectives and adverbs is easier than modifying verbs. The adverb simply comes directly before them:

• Usain Bolt is a very fast runner -> In this sentence, the adverb ‘very’ is placed in front of the adjective ‘fast’ (which is used to modify the noun ‘runner’). 
• Usain Bolt can run incredibly quickly -> Here, the adverb ‘incredibly’ comes before the adverb ‘quickly’ (which is being used to modify the verb ‘run’).