If you have followed our past few lessons, you will be aware that we are on a roll with our Elementary Grammar lessons. An adverb is next on our list! Before you go ahead with this lesson, why don’t you go back to our previous lesson on Verbs? Click here to read the article.
A sentence only becomes smoother and better with the presence of an adverb. It is that part of speech that takes the meaning and emphasis in the sentence up a notch! Here’s a little tip, when you find a word that ends with “ly,” you’ll know that is the one. Although, this is not a possibility at all times.
The way is to understand what this part of speech does, know its types to recognize it correctly. That is exactly what we will cover in this lesson.
Adverb- A quick revision in one Lesson
1. What is an adverb?
It is that word in a sentence, that adds more description to the verb, adjective, or another adverb. When you find that we have more details about any of these three other parts of speech, you’ll know it is an adverb.
For example, He runs quickly. In this sentence, the verb is “runs.” But it is the word “quickly” that adds more description to the verb. Hence, it becomes the word in our context.
Sometimes, they also add more description to another adverb. He runs very quickly. Here “very” answers the question “How quickly.”
2. How many types of adverbs do we have?
There are seven distinct types that hold a lot of importance in understanding the concept and recognizing them in a sentence. Let’s take a look at each separately.
(i) Adverbs of Time
The words that fall in this category usually answer the question “When.” For example, That day he arrived late. The word “arrived” is the verb, and the word “late” adds more information to the verb. Plus, it also answers the question “When.”
(ii) Adverbs of Frequency
When a word answers the question “How Often,” you’ll know it belongs to this diversification of the concept. For example, He often makes mistakes. The sentence establishes that “he” makes mistakes. But what is the frequency? It is “often.”
(iii) Adverbs of Place
All the words that answer the question “Where” are the adverbs of place. For example, My brother is out.
(iv) Adverbs of Manner
Those words that demonstrate “how” or in “what manner” take space under this category. For example, This story is well written. They can be positioned anywhere in the sentence. Hence, they are the most flexible.
(v) Adverbs of Degree or Quality
They answer the questions “how much,” “to what extent” and “to what degree.” An example will help you understand better. The sea is very stormy. The word “very” adds emphasis to the word “stormy.”
(vi) Adverbs of Affirmation and Negation
Words that confirm something strongly, or negate something strongly, are adverbs of affirmation and negation. We will take a look at one example of each.
He certainly went home.
I do not know him.
(vii) Adverbs of Reason
In this last type, we see words that justify a reason in the sentence. For example, He, therefore, left school.
3. Can you use comparisons for this part of the speech?
Yes, much like adjectives, adverbs can also use comparisons. Although, only adverbs of manner, degree, and time can lead to the three degrees of comparisons- positive, comparative, and superlative. Let’s take a look at the example sentences below.
Ryan runs fast. (Positive)
Ryan runs faster than his brother. (Comparative)
Ryan runs the fastest in his class. (Superlative)
Those adverbs that use “ly” as a suffix take the prefixes “more” and “most” respectively. For example, Swiftly, more swiftly, and most swiftly.
4. How do you position them in a sentence?
Every different kind of adverb has its own place in a sentence. We will discuss each separately.
(i) Manner- These words usually find their place after the verb. (It is raining heavily.)
(ii) Frequency- We can either place them between the subject and the verb or, after the first word when there is more than one verb. (I quite agree with you/ I have often told him to write neatly.)
(iii) If the sentence has verbs like is, are, am, was, etc., place the adverb after the verb. (I am never late for my classes.)
(iv) Adverb Phrases- In such cases, place the word after the verb or after the subject. (Hang the picture there/ He will come here.)
We are confident that you found Vocabulary Today’s this lesson very helpful, and also easy to understand. Feel free to let us know in the comment section below. Subscribe to u for daily word updates and to partake in fun vocabulary quizzes.
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