- An adverb is a word that modifies or describes a verb (“he sings loudly”), an adjective (“very tall”), another adverb (“ended too quickly”), or even a whole sentence (“Fortunately, I had brought an umbrella.”).
- Adverbs provide additional context, such as how, when, where, to what extent, or how often something happens. They can describe the manner, time, place, frequency, or degree of an action or a quality.
- Adverbs often end in -ly, but some (such as fast) look the same as their adjective counterparts.
- Adverbs can show comparison (“more quickly,” “most quickly”) and should be placed near the words they modify to avoid ambiguity.
- Avoid overusing adverbs when stronger verbs or adjectives can convey meaning more effectively.
Adverbs are versatile words that enhance sentences, but knowing when to use them can be confusing. Here, we’ll use rules and examples to explain what adverbs are, how they’re used correctly, and when to avoid them.
Table of contents
Adverbs and degrees of comparison
Common adverb mistakes to avoid
Adverb definition
Adverbs are words that modify verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, or sentences, providing additional information about how, where, when, to what extent, or how often something happens.
Adverbs often end in -ly, but that’s not always the case.
Flat adverbs
Flat adverbs are adverbs that have the same form as their adjective counterparts. Common flat adverbs include safe, fast, hard, slow, easy, and bright:
Some flat adverbs have alternate forms that do take on -ly—safe/safely, slow/slowly, and bright/brightly are three pairs of adverbs in which both forms are acceptable as adverbs:
How adverbs modify parts of speech and sentences
Here’s how adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, and sentences:
- Verb: An adverb describes how, when, where, or to what extent the action happens. (Example: She runs quickly.)
- Adjective: An adverb adds intensity or degree to an adjective. (Example: The lake is incredibly beautiful.)
- Adverb: When an adverb modifies another adverb, it clarifies or intensifies it. (Example: She sings very beautifully.)
- Sentence: An adverb used with a sentence conveys the speaker’s attitude or provides a general perspective on the statement. (Example: Fortunately, we arrived on time.)
Adverbs and verbs
Adverbs most often modify verbs. They do this by characterizing the action of the verb. They usually do this by specifying something about the manner, time, place, frequency, or degree of the action.
Manner
Adverbs that describe manner answer the question of how a verb’s action is performed. Here are some examples:
Time
Adverbs that describe time usually answer the question of when a verb’s action is done:
Some adverbs that describe time are concerned with duration and answer the question of how long a verb’s action is done.
Place
Place adverbs answer the question of where a verb’s action takes place:
Frequency
Frequency adverbs answer the question of how often a verb’s action occurs.
Degree
Adverbs of degree answer the question of to what extent a verb’s action is done.
Adverbs and adjectives
Adverbs can also modify adjectives. They appear before the adjectives they modify in a sentence, and they add detail to how the adjectives describe nouns.
That detail generally has to do with how the quality described by an adjective is true, the degree to which it is true, or how often it is true.
Manner
When an adverb of manner modifies an adjective, it tells us something about how the adjective applies to the noun it modifies.
Notice the difference in meaning between the following two sentences, where two different manner adverbs modify the same adjective (quiet) modifying the same noun (voice):
Degree
An adverb of degree modifying an adjective communicates the intensity with which the adjective describes its noun or to what extent it does so, either on its own or in comparison to something else. Here are some examples:
Frequency
Adverbs of frequency answer the question of how often an adjective is true about the noun it modifies:
Adverbs and other adverbs
Adverbs sometimes modify other adverbs. Like an adverb modifying an adjective, a second adverb adds detail to the information the original adverb communicates about the word it is modifying.
The adverbs that can modify other adverbs pretty much all convey degree—answering the question of to what extent or how intensely the principal adverb applies to the word it modifies.
In the following sentence, the adverb of degree (almost) modifies the adverb of frequency (always), which modifies the adjective right:
Here’s an example in which a degree adverb (quite) modifies a manner adverb (elaborately):
Multiple adverbs together
Because adverbs can modify other adverbs, it is grammatically possible to string together multiple adverbs, each modifying the next. This can be useful for expressing unusual intensity, especially in informal or emotional contexts, or for a specific tonal emphasis.
Here are a couple of examples:
However, such devices are best used thoughtfully and sparingly. They can make for sentences that are too equivocal, indirect, weak, or clunky. Here’s an example of such a sentence:
Adverbs and sentences
Some adverbs, called sentence adverbs, modify entire sentences. Common ones include generally, fortunately, interestingly, naturally, hopefully, and accordingly.
The meaning of a sentence adverb applies to the writer or speaker’s feeling about all the information contained in the sentence, rather than modifying a specific sentence element.
Here are a couple of examples:
Sentence adverbs often convey certain rhetorical things like certainty about what the rest of the sentence expresses, doubt about it, or anticipation of objections to it, as in the following examples:
Adverbs and degrees of comparison
Like adjectives, many adverbs can show degrees of comparison. In fact, the adverbs that can do this are very closely related to adjectives—they are almost all adverbs that have corresponding adjectives, including the many that are formed by adding -ly to an adjective.
The three degrees of comparison are the absolute, the comparative, and the superlative.
The absolute
The absolute (or positive) degree of an adverb is the adverb in its most basic form. An absolute adverb communicates a specific way in which an action was performed directly, without reference to anything else.
The comparative
The comparative degree of adverbs is for comparing the way two people, groups, or other entities did something in terms of the specific quality expressed by an adverb. To form the comparative degree of an adverb that ends in -ly, add the word more:
The superlative
The superlative degree of adverbs is for comparing the way three or more people, groups, or other entities did something in terms of the specific quality expressed by an adverb. To make the superlative form of an adverb that ends in -ly, add the word most:
Flat adverbs and degrees of comparison
The comparative and superlative forms of flat adverbs match the corresponding adjective’s comparative and superlative forms:
Placement of adverbs
There are some guidelines and conventions to be aware of when it comes to where you put adverbs in relation to the words they modify so that they most clearly communicate your meaning.
With single-word verbs
The most important thing to keep in mind about adverbs modifying verbs is that they should appear as near to the verb they qualify as possible. They most often come before intransitive verbs they modify:
However, some adverbs are more natural between the subject and intransitive verb:
With transitive verbs, the clearest adverb placement is usually after the object of the verb. It should never separate a transitive verb from its object:
With verb phrases
When an adverb is modifying a verb phrase, the most natural place for it is usually the middle of the phrase.
With adjectives and other adverbs
Adverbs modifying adjectives or other adverbs appear directly before the modified word:
With the adverb only
Be especially careful about the placement of the adverb only, which is one of the most often misplaced modifiers. Consider the difference between these two sentences:
The first sentence says that all Phillip did was feed the cat. The second sentence says that Phillip fed the cat, but he didn’t feed anything or anyone else.
Common adverb mistakes to avoid
Although many people are taught to avoid adverbs altogether in their writing, adverbs are an essential part of the language; the trick is to know when to use them and then to use them well.
Superfluous adverbs
When your verb or adjective doesn’t seem powerful or precise enough without appending an adverb, there’s often a stronger verb or adjective you can use without the adverb. Compare these two sentences:
The second, in which the verb wrested does all the work that the adverbs forcefully and away do in the first, packs more of a punch.
Intensifier overuse
Degree adverbs that communicate intensity, such as very, really, extremely, and quite, are easy to overuse and quickly begin to sound empty, insincere, or hyperbolic.
Sentence adverb pitfalls
Be careful not to overuse or misuse the sentence adverbs clearly, obviously, certainly, and inarguably, especially in persuasive or academic writing. Because they are used so often and what follows them is not always actually beyond questioning, they can weaken a writer’s claim instead of underscoring it.
Keep in mind that the word hopefully as a sentence adverb has been considered correct for decades, but it used to be so controversial that some readers may find it distracting.
Adverbs with linking verbs
Linking verbs, such as feel, smell, sound, seem, and appear, precede adjectives (modifying the linking verb’s subject), not adverbs. Here’s a common example of the type of confusion that happens with linking verbs:
Misplacement
Putting an adverb in the wrong spot can produce an awkward sentence at best and completely change the meaning at worst. Consider this sentence:
The meaning is ambiguous because of the placement of the adverb almost: Did the writer nearly drop all the papers but manage to hold on to them, or did they drop most of the papers but not all of them? If the former is true, the placement of almost is correct, but choosing an adverb that’s less likely to be misread as modifying a different word in the sentence might be clearer:
If it’s the second interpretation the writer is going for, the correct position of almost is directly before the word it modifies (all), and fixing that will make the sentence impossible to misunderstand:
Adverb FAQs
What are adverbs used for?
Adverbs are used to modify verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, or entire sentences, providing additional details about the manner, time, place, degree, frequency, or reason behind an action or quality.
How can you identify adverbs?
You can identify an adverb by looking for words that answer how, when, where, to what extent, or why. Many adverbs also end in -ly, although not all do.
What are some common examples of adverbs?
Some of the most common adverbs include:
- really, very
- well, badly
- today, yesterday, everyday
- sometimes, often, rarely
- early, late, soon
- here, there, everywhere
Where do adverbs go in sentences?
Adverbs should generally be placed as close as possible to the word they modify to avoid confusion, such as before an adjective (“very tall”) or after a verb (“sings loudly”).
When should you avoid adverbs?
You should avoid using unnecessary or redundant adverbs and instead opt for stronger verbs or adjectives that convey meaning more effectively, enhancing the clarity and impact of your writing.
