Englisch Institut · Ian Barnes
Marktstraße 8, A-6230 Brixlegg, Austria
email: [email protected]
tel: +43 676 7337 258
Adverbs
11th April 2015
Adverbs are an important part of English. English people use them a lot – some English people even over-use them.
In this level123english resource, I will explain:
- what adverbs are (level 1)
- how to make comparatives and superlatives from adverbs and irregular adverbs (level 2)
- the different types and positions of adverbs (level 3)
You will find examples of adverbs in almost all of the level 2 and level 3 resources, but the following resources have a
particular focus on adverbs:
- A trip to the theatre level 2 (comparison with adjectives, gapfill) and level 3 (irregular forms)
- Kitzbühel downhill level 2 (compared to adjectives, comparative forms, irregular adverbs)
- A visit to Carinthia level 2 (irregular and gapfill)
- Drei Zinnen level 2 (which words they describe, irregular and gapfill)
- How to live longer level 2 (examples)
- Scotland’s culture level 2 (examples)
- Safer internet day level 1 (present simple time adverbs)
- Bees and neonicotinoids level 3 (which words they describe)
- Christmas traditions level 2/3 (types of adverb)
- Anorexia level 2 (types of adverb and their positions)
- Food production level 3 (position in a sentence)
Level 1: what are adverbs?
Adverbs are words which describe how or when something happens.
They are usually formed with an –ly at the end of the word (eg. usually).
Normally, people learn about adjectives first. Adjectives1 only describe nouns2 (eg. the wine is red/nice/expensive), but adverbs can
describe any other word or words in a sentence. For example, adverbs can describe:
an adjective eg. the wine is really expensive
a verb
eg. She drives quickly
another adverb eg. she drives really quickly
a whole clause eg. Normally, she drives really quickly
[In German, normally there is no difference between an adjective and an adverb eg. es ist schnell / sie fährt schnell.
Sometimes you can see a difference: es ist normal / normalerweise fährt sie]
In the following sentences, is the missing word an adjective or an adverb? (tip: think about which word it describes)
1.
The bodybuilder is a _____________ (strong) man. The sun is shining ____________ (strong)
2.
My sister skis very ________________ (careful). She is a _______________ (careful) skier.
3.
That is a __________ (quick) rabbit. It is running _______________ (quick).
4.
_________________ (normal) my cousin works in Innsbruck. Her ____________ (normal) work is designing houses.
5.
Opera singers can sing ______________ (loud). Some of them can sing ___________ (real) __________ (loud).
6.
My little cousin is _____________ (real) ____________ (loud).
7.
_______________ (usual) my ____________ (normal) car goes ____________ (real) ____________ (slow).
8.
_____________ (frequent) the _________ (quiet) _______ (little) mouse eats _____________ (surprising) _________ (quiet)
1
2
adjective = Eigenschaftswort
noun = Hauptwort
Englisch Institut · Ian Barnes
Marktstraße 8, A-6230 Brixlegg, Austria
email: [email protected]
tel: +43 676 7337 258
Level 1 answers
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The bodybuilder is a strong (strong) man. The sun is shining strongly (strong)
My sister skis very carefully (careful). She is a careful (careful) skier.
That is a quick (quick) rabbit. It is running quickly (quick).
Normally (normal) my cousin works in Innsbruck. Her normal (normal) work is designing houses.
Opera singers can sing loudly (loud). Some of them can sing really (real) loudly (loud).
My little cousin is really (real) loud (loud).
Usually (usual) my normal (normal) car goes really (real) slowly (slow).
Frequently (frequent) the quiet (quiet) little (little) mouse eats surprisingly (surprising) quietly (quiet)
Level 2 – comparatives and irregular adverbs
Adverbs are ‘long’ words and so the comparative and superlative is formed with ‘more’ and ‘most’ (the same as with long adjectives).
So, my colleague can work more quickly than I can. (not: she can work quicker than I can)
There are lots of forms of irregular adverbs:
the adverb of an adjective that ends in ‘y’ (eg. easy, pretty) is spelt with –ily (easily, prettily)
the adverb of an adjective that ends in ‘–ly’ (eg. friendly, lovely, silly) is ‘in a friendly way’
some adverbs have the same spelling as the adjective: long, fast, low, straight, extra
one adverb in particular is very different from the adjective: good (adjective) well (adverb);
some adverbs are very similar in spelling, but different in meaning (one form has the same spelling as the adjective):
o hard = hart
hardly = kaum
o late = spat
lately = in letzte Zeit
o pretty = ziemlich
prettily = hübsch / schön
o fair = fair
fairly = ziemlich
o direct = direct
directly = sofort
o just = nur
justly = gerechterweise
there are some verbs that can only be described by an adjective (not an adverb), because they describe the property of a thing
o feel, taste, look, smell, sound, seem, become (get/turn/grow), be, remain [not: look at / taste (try)]
Can you fill in the correct form of adverb in these gaps:
1.
Maria Carey sings ____________ (pretty) _____________ (nice). She can sing _____________ (pretty).
2.
Maria Carey sings ______________ (pretty) than me! My cousins sings the _________________ (pretty) of all my family.
3.
My brother doesn’t ski very ________ (good). He can’t ski very _________ (fast), but he skis _____________ (mature) for a child.
4.
This train is non-stop: it goes _______________ (direct) to Munich. It is full and will leave _______________ (direct).
5.
That child is smiling at you ___________________ (friendly). She looks very _______________ (friendly).
6.
____________ (late) I have seen _____________ (hard) any good films; they have all been ___________ (fair) bad.
7.
This soup tastes ___________ (real) __________ (nice), but it smells _______________ (awful).
8.
Please look _______________ (careful) at that _______________ (horrible) long and scary snake.
9.
When the cheese is too old, it becomes ______________ (mature).
It is better to taste it ___________ (careful), because it might taste _____________ (horrible) and be __________ (bad).
10. ___________ (recent) I have been feeling ___________ (fair) _________ (bad); I have ________ (hard) eaten and have worked
_________________ (slow) than I ______________ (normal) do.
Englisch Institut · Ian Barnes
Marktstraße 8, A-6230 Brixlegg, Austria
email: [email protected]
tel: +43 676 7337 258
Level 2 answers
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Maria Carey sings pretty (pretty) nicely (nice). She can sing prettily (pretty).
Maria Carey sings more prettily (pretty) than me! My cousins sings the most prettily (pretty) of all my family.
My nephew doesn’t ski very well (good). He can’t ski very fast (fast), but he skis maturely (mature) for a child.
This train is non-stop: it goes direct (direct) to Munich. It is full and will leave directly (direct).
That child is smiling at you in a friendly way (friendly). She looks very friendly (friendly).
Lately (late) I have seen hardly (hard) any good films; they have all been fairly (fair) bad.
This soup tastes really (real) nice (nice), but it smells awful (awful).
Please look carefully (careful) at that horribly (horrible) long and scary snake.
When the cheese is too old, it becomes mature (mature).
It is better to taste it carefully (careful), because it might taste horrible (horrible) and be bad (bad).
10. Recently (recent) I have been feeling fairly (fair) bad (bad); I have hardly (hard) eaten and have worked
more slowly (slow) than I normally (normal) do.
Level 3 – types and positions of adverbs
Adverbs can be categorised into different types. Normally they go before the thing that they describe, such as the main verb.
These types all (usually) go before the main verb:
unspecific adverbs of time eg.already/yet/never/often/rarely (I have never been to Rome)
adverbs of frequency eg. normally/usually/regularly (She regularly swims in the Achensee)
adverbs which emphasise or modify a verb eg. really/only/unusually/surprisingly (I usually drive to work)
adverbs of probability eg. certainly/probably/possible (He will certainly ask you) [with a negative auxiliary, before it]
Adverbs which emphasise/modify an adjective go before it. (She is really interested in architecture)
Adverbs of frequency can also go after the object. (My sister practises her guitar regularly)
Adverbs of manner go after the verb or object eg. slowly, beautifully, easily (He skis excellently ; She plays the piano badly)
Specific adverbs of time go either at the end or at the beginning (for more emphasis) of a clause eg. tomorrow/yesterday/last week
Note that ‘adverbial phrases’ consisting of more than one word also go at the beginning or end of a clause.
Sometimes, an adverb can go in many positions in a sentence, depending on which specific word/s it relates to:
Normally my sister buys Christmas dinner in Harrods (but sometimes not my sister)
My sister normally buys Christmas dinner in Harrods (but sometimes eats/sells)
My sister buys Christmas dinner normally in Harrods (but sometimes somewhere else)
My sister buy Christmas dinner in Harrods normally (but sometimes doesn’t ‘buy Christmas dinner in Harrods’)
Where is the best place for the adverb in these sentences?
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I’m going to Italy for my holidays
I enjoy watching films
He’s leaving the country
I can understand her
She sings and dances
He isn’t going to be late
Oops! I fell over
I stayed at home and worked
The door opened and a hand appeared
He plays the piano
You’ll have to work to finish on time
They write to their parents
I’ve finished my work
He drives his car
He spoke to me and then I knew what to do
probably
always
tomorrow
hardly
beautifully
certainly
nearly
hard
slowly
very well
fast
every week
just
too fast, sometimes
slowly, exactly
Englisch Institut · Ian Barnes
Marktstraße 8, A-6230 Brixlegg, Austria
email: [email protected]
tel: +43 676 7337 258
Level 3 answers
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I’m probably going to Italy for my holidays
I always enjoy watching films
He’s leaving the country tomorrow
I can hardly understand her
She sings and dances beautifully
He certainly isn’t going to be late
Oops! I nearly fell over
I stayed at home and worked hard
The door opened slowly and a hand appeared slowly / The door slowly opened and a hand slowly appeared
He plays the piano very well
You’ll have to work fast to finish on time
They write to their parents every week / Every week they write to their parents
I’ve just finished my work
He drives his car too fast sometimes
/ Sometimes he drives his car too fast / He sometimes drives his car too fast
He spoke to me slowly and then I knew exactly what to do / He spoke slowly to me and then I knew exactly what to do