Sheila ran to the phone to call her mother. (answers “why” or what purpose)
Raymond quit his job to travel. (answers “why”)
Angela bought an entire new wardrobe to celebrate her raise in pay. (answers “why”)
Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives (but adjectives cannot modify adverbs), other adverbs, phrases and clauses. They show time, place, cause, frequency, degree, and manner. They also answer “Where?” “How?” “How much?” “When?”
Adverbs can add more or less emphasis to a word or idea:
Belinda simply forgot to call him. We almost stopped believing in him after he lied to us. I am so ready to leave! You really know how to make a person feel welcome. Whitney and Alanna know each other well. He was endorsed completely by the President.
Adverbs to be used seldom (because they are not specific and don’t intensify much):very extremely really awfully (and similar others) |
Click on the type of adverb to find out more
TIME (“When?”): She did it yesterday. I never forget a face. The sale begins soon. Some other adverbs of time: again, early, late, now, sometime, then, today, tomorrow, yesterday.
MANNER (“How?”): He ran swiftly home, but she always walks slowly. The ghoul moaned eerily. Some other adverbs of manner: carefully, correctly, eagerly, easily, fast, loudly, patiently, quickly, quietly, well.
PLACE (“Where?”): Paul lives here now. Put the gun down Lefty. Is anyone there? Some other adverbs of place (location): ahead, back, forward, high, low, near, outside, somewhere.
PURPOSE (“Why?”): Nathaniel buys only the best to get maximum length of service. Will studies hard to get good grades. Zeb wears sunglasses to look cool.
FREQUENCY ("How often?"): If I told you once, I told you a hundred times! Do you go there often? Carl would never treat someone badly. Some other adverbs of frequency: always, ever, frequently, generally, rarely, seldom, sometimes, usually.
DEGREE or FOCUS (Intensity): You are so funny! I was just going to call you. That meal was quite good.
CERTAINTY: Maybe I'll tell you, and maybe I won't. The truck was definitely speeding.
ADVERBIALS: A group of words that is used as an adverb, or a single word that is not an adverb, but is used as one. Nouns can be adverbials. "I arrived Wednesday." The noun Wednesday modifies "arrived", showing "when". (See also Adverb Clauses & Phrases)
Infinitive phrases can be adverbs. They usually explain “why” when modifying.
Sheila ran to the phone to call her mother. (answers “why” or what purpose)
Raymond quit his job to travel. (answers “why”)
Angela bought an entire new wardrobe to celebrate her raise in pay. (answers “why”)
Adverbs are more mobile within a sentence than adjectives. All these sentences mean the same, even though the adverb “quickly” is in a different position in each version. An adverb modifying a verb may be in the beginning, middle, or end position in a clause.
Quickly, the quarterback snapped the ball. [beginning]
The quarterback quickly snapped the ball. [middle]
The quarterback snapped the ball quickly. [end]
More: “I never see her at choir practice (in front of the main verb). I have never seen her at choir practice (between the auxiliary and main verbs). I never used to see her at choir practice come to think of it (before “used to”).
You can see that usually an adverb fits almost anywhere you want to put it. These adverbs are called "adjuncts." Those occasions when an adverb can't fit just anywhere in the sentence, when it has to be at the beginning of the sentence or clause in order for them to be understood properly, it is often set off by commas. This sort of adverb may be called a "disjunct or a conjunct." A disjunct often "evaluates" the rest of the sentence. "Luckily, the meteor missed the town." "Sadly, the house burned to the ground."
Here are the most usual places to place the various 'types' of adverbs in a clause, phrase, or sentence:
| Type of Adverb | Place in Clause, etc. |
| manner | at the end, before other adverbs |
| time | at the end, after adverbs of manner and place |
| frequency | in the middle |
| conjunctive adverbs | at the beginning |
Learn more about the types of adverbs below, and try your hand at the exercises.
TIME (“When?”): Adverbs of “time” can go in any position depending on the adverb used. MOST adverbs of time, however do not go in the middle of the clause. Pepe finally left for the airport (before main verb). Brunhilda had only recently arrived (between auxiliary and main verb).
Yesterday, Arvid received a traffic ticket. He has to go to court tomorrow.
When at the end of a clause, adverbs of time usually come after adverbs of manner and adverbs of place.
"Now, then and once" are adverbs of time that can be used at the beginning, end, or middle of a clause.
Once he was a bareback rider in the circus. (beginning)
He was once a bareback rider in the circus. (middle)
He was a bareback rider in the circus once. (end)
Adverb phrases and clauses of time generally are found at the beginning or at the end of a clause.
The bear will leave the picnic area when he is ready! On Valentine's Day, Michael gave eleven girls each a box of candy.
MANNER (“How?”): Adverbs of manner are usually at the end of a clause and either follow an intransitive verb or the direct object of a transitive verb. (Remember, intransitive verbs do not take a direct object, transitive verbs do!) A lot of the adverbs of manner end in "ly".
Doctor Frankenstein watched fearfully as the monster lumbered through the laboratory. ("fearfully" is at the end of the clause "Doctor Frankenstein watched") Igor grabbed the club tightly.
You can put an adverb of manner at the beginning of a clause if you want to draw attention to the meaning or idea of the adverb.
Fearfully, Doctor Frankenstein watched as the monster lumbered through the laboratory. Tightly, Igor grabbed the club.
If there is no adverb of frequency, an adverb of manner might be put in the middle of the clause.
Kurt lovingly smiled at his baby brother. Greta has worked diligently at her term paper.
When writing and speaking informally, an adverb of manner is sometimes put right after "to" in an infinitive. This is called a "split infinitive" and was once thought to be a big "no-no". In recent years, however, is has become more and more common. In fact, it may make the sentence more forceful and interesting to split the infinitive. It may also make the sentence confusing and awkward, so be careful!
To boldly go where no man has gone before. Paul needed to bravely face his enemy.
(In formal English one would use "To go boldly where no man has gone before." "Paul needed to face his enemy bravely."
Adverb phrases and clauses of manner are generally found at the end of a clause.
They traveled by train. They arrived as soon as they could. (The adverb phrases of manner follow intransitive verbs "traveled" and "arrived".)
Mom prepared supper as quickly as possible. She made her famous double-chocolate cake from scratch. (The adverb phrases of manner follow transitive verbs "prepared" and "made".)
Sometimes they can be found at the beginning of a clause in order to add emphasis to the meaning of the adverb.
As quickly as possible, Mom prepared supper.
PLACE (“Where?”): Adverbs and adverb clauses showing place/location are often at the end of the phrase. The come before adverbs of time (when?) and adverbs of purpose (why?).
Zoe is leaving here (place) Saturday (time). She left a note for the milkman on the back door (place) before she left (time). Sheila knows where William's hotel is.
IF the verb of any clause is a motion verb, an adverb of place generally comes right after that verb.
Some motion verbs are : dance, walk, skip, jump, come, arrive, leave, fly, go.
Adverb order after a motion verb: Place, Manner, Time, Purpose
Nick will dance at the ball (place) gracefully (manner) Saturday night (time) to win the heart of the princess. (purpose)
Adverb order after a verb that is NOT a motion verb: Manner, Place, Time, Purpose.
Nick will smile gracefully (manner) at the ball (place) Saturday night (time) to win the heart of the princess. (purpose)
Now that you know all about adverbs of place, here is an exception: Adverbs and adverb phrases and clauses of place CAN be placed at the beginning of a clause or sentence if you want to give added emphasis to it. They are not usually used in the middle of a clause however.
There, Jack the Ripper murdered his first victim. Whenever I drive, I manage to get lost!
Carefully, Indiana Jones lifted the golden idol from its stand.
PURPOSE ("Why?") "Why?" is usually answered by an adverb phrase or clause instead of a single word. These adverb phrases and clauses of purpose are generally at the end of a clause and come after other adverbs or adverb phrases and clauses.
Angela drove to the beach Sunday to relax. ("to the beach" is an adverb of PLACE, "Sunday" is an adverb of TIME, "to relax" is an adverb phrase of PURPOSE)
She needs to relax often because her job is very stressful. ("often" is an adverb of FREQUENCY, "because her job is very stressful" is an adverb clause of PURPOSE)
Adverb phrases or clauses of purpose may be used at the beginning of a clause also. They add emphasis when they start the sentence.
Since the sun was shining so brightly, Angela had to wear a hat. (Why did Angela have to wear a hat? "Since the sun was shining so brightly"--an adverb clause of PURPOSE starting the sentence.)
Because her skin is so fair, she has to wear a strong sunscreen. (Why did she wear a sunscreen? "Because her skin is so fair" another adverb clause of PURPOSE.)
Notice by putting the adverb phrase or clause at the start of the sentence, it makes that thought stand out--gives it more importance.
FREQUENCY ("How often?"): Like adjectives, adverbs are put in a certain order in a sentence. If you are using more than one adverb at the end of a clause, for example, adverbs of frequency follow adverbs of manner and adverbs of location, but come before adverbs of time and purpose.
Adverbs of frequency might be placed in several positions in a sentence.
1. The beginning of clauses: “Sometimes the moon looks almost red.”
2. The end of clauses (after an intransitive verb, or after the direct object of a transitive verb.): “She yells rarely.” “She wears the color blue seldom.”
“Rarely” follows an intransitive verb “yells.” “Seldom” follows the direct object “the color blue” (color being the direct object, ‘the’ and ‘blue’ modify the object.)
3. The middle of a clause: Single word adverbs are found more often in the middle of a clause than are adverb phrases. The exact place they are used is determined by the type of verb that is used.
Before the simple present and simple past of any verb EXCEPT forms of “be”. “CC seldom goes to bed before midnight.”
After the simple present and simple past of forms of the verb “be”. “CC is always packing it seems.”
Before the simple present or simple past of forms of “be” or the first auxiliary verb in short statements. “Is CC anxious to get to her new home? Yes, she certainly is.”
After the first auxiliary verb when one is used: “We have sometimes wished that CC would stay put!”
More than one adverb can be at the end of a clause, but generally only one adverb will be at the beginning or in the middle of a clause.
Test your knowledge:
Put the adverb of frequency (shown in parenthesis) in the middle of the main clause. Remember the four possibilities listed above for placing adverbs of frequency. EXAMPLES:
Shawna leaves for work early. (generally) Shawna generally leaves for work early. (Before the simple present of the verb ‘leaves’.)
Michael, do you get headaches too? I don’t. (usually) I usually don’t. (Before the auxiliary verb in a short answer. The implied rest of the answer is “get headaches.”)
Kathy is on time. (always) Kathy is always on time. (After the simple present form of ‘to be’.)
1. Ms. Dion had won an award. (once)
2. We can’t. (frequently)
3. Penguins fly south for the winter. (never)
4. First-class plane tickets are expensive. (usually)
5. Dracula is asleep in the daytime. (always)
6. They were. (seldom)
7. Sheila would go to a wrestling match. (never)
8. Teak wood is made into beautiful items for the home. (sometimes)
9. Kurt is very well-informed. (often)
10. Hermits are seen in public. (rarely)
11. Do you eat spinach? (ever)
When you are constructing questions, either positive questions or negative questions using “n’t”, any adverbs in the middle of a clause are generally placed AFTER the subject of that clause.
Positive (affirmative) Question: Does Marcus always whistle when he is eating crackers? (subject “Marcus” followed by adverb “always’)
Negative Questions (using ‘n't’): Doesn't he usually spit cracker crumbs all over? (subject “he”
followed by adverb “usually”)
NOTE: Be careful with ‘sometimes’ and sometime’. “Sometimes” is an adverb of frequency, but “sometime” is an adverb of time. “They sometimes eat dinner on their patio”. (adverb of frequency, placed in the middle of the clause). “They would like to eat dinner on the roof sometime.” (adverb of time is at the end of the clause)
NOTE: “Daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, annually, biannually, semi-annually, etc., generally ARE NOT
placed in the middle of the clause:
“I daily visited Aunt Tilly.” (NO) “I visited Aunt Tilly daily.” (YES)
“Gus has semi-weekly complied the income statement all year.” (NO)
“Gus has complied the income statement semi-weekly all year.” (YES)
There are also adverb phrases and clause showing frequency. They too answer the question “How often?” These phrases and clauses are usually at the beginning or at the end of a clause.
As often as we are able, we enter the annual hog-calling contest. (adverb clause of frequency at the beginning of the sentence)
Once in a while, the setting sun shows a flash of green. (adverb phrase of frequency at the beginning of the sentence)
(NOTE: See the commas after the adverb clause and phrase in the sentences above? Any time an adverb, adverb clause, or adverb phrase starts a sentence; a comma should follow it. The exceptions to this rule are the adverbs “now, tomorrow, today, usually, maybe, perhaps, then, and sometimes”. “Sadly, the fire destroyed the forest.” (adverb “sadly” followed by a comma) “Today the fire destroyed the forest.” (no comma after the adverb “today”)
The students went to the library as often as possible. (adverb phrase of frequency at the end of a sentence)
Mother bakes her famous double-chocolate cake as rarely as she can. (adverb clause of frequency at the end of a sentence)
Rewrite the sentence, putting the adverbs in the places where they would be most generally used. Remember: Conjunctive adverbs are at the beginning, adverbs of frequency are in the middle, and adverbs of time and place are at the end. (Manner comes before time) (See also Order of Adverbs)
Ricky eats. (before noon, sometimes)
Ricky sometimes (adverb of frequency) eats before noon (adverb phrase of time).
They arrived. (late, usually)
They usually (adverb of frequency) arrived late (adverb of time).
Your turn:
1. Doug worked. (slowly, yesterday)
2. She cries. (loudly, rarely)
3. They would have bought the car. (yesterday, otherwise)
4. Captain Mike left the rally. (nevertheless, early)
5. The band played. (last night, off-key)
6. The detective needs to analyze the clues. (soon, carefully)
7. I scream. (shrilly, never)
8. Aunt Tilly polished the silver. (each Saturday, carefully)
9. Carrie found a new boutique. (luckily, soon)
10. They reached an agreement. (quickly, therefore)
11. Will loses his wallet. (at the club, often)
12. Melissa cleans up after herself. (around the house, seldom)
Conjunctive adverbs join two clauses or ideas within a sentence or text to show how they are related. Conjunctive adverbs cannot join two independent clauses without also using a semicolon after the first clause.
Theo forgot to set his alarm; therefore, he was late for work. His boss lectured him severely; furthermore, Theo's pay was docked. **Consequently, on payday, Theo didn’t have enough money to take his sweetheart to the movies. He apologized to her for a long time; finally, she forgave him.
NOTE: To show how a paragraph is related to the one before it, you may start the paragraph with a conjunctive adverb.
**There is a comma after consequently because consequently is an introductory element. An introductory element is at the beginning of main clause (in front of the subject) and introduces it.
Here is a list of the some more common conjunctive adverbs:
To show addition: furthermore, moreover, besides, also, in fact, incidentally, likewise
To show examples: for example, that is, for instance, namely
To show conclusion (of an argument or process): consequently, therefore, as a result, accordingly, finally, thus, hence
To show location in time or space: first, next, meanwhile, then, second, later, before, further on, finally, still
Conjunctive adverbs are often placed at the beginning of a clause. (Connecting adverb phrases are usually put at the beginning also. "To be sure, the storm was bad, but not as bad as we had feared.")
Gary would like to go to the lecture. However, he promised to take Griselda to the concert. ("however" is used at the beginning of the sentence/independent clause "he promised to take Griselda to the concert" because it 'connects' that sentence with the previous sentence.)
Lorena had been working hard all day; therefore, she decided to cancel her date for the movies. ("therefore"--at the beginning of the clause "she decided to cancel her date for the movies" connects that idea with the previous clause ". . .working hard all day.")
Some conjunctive adverbs can be put in the middle of a clause. You will see this when the clause has no adverb of frequency.
He was, furthermore, angry at the bus conductor. The group, namely Chuck, Gus, and Rudy, were late to class. The professor, consequently, gave them a stern look.
"However" can be put in the beginning, middle or end of a clause: (Note that the conjunctive adverb is usually set off by commas.)
However, the car has stayed on the tracks. The car has, however, stayed on the road. The car has stayed on the road, however.
"Instead" is often found at the end of a clause. "Since the water was polluted, I drank beer instead. " "Because Percy was a prig, Amelia preferred to go with Rocky instead."
A group of words that has a subject and verb which acts as an adverb is called an adverb clause. " While the cat's away, the mice will play."
A group of words that does not have a subject and verb which acts as an adverb, is called an adverbial phrase. "During the reign of Queen Victoria, prudishness and licentiousness existed side by side."
Prepositional phrases often act as adverbs, usually showing place ("where") and time ("when"). "Hal left for the seashore." Ray will leave on Saturday."
Infinitive phrases can be adverbs also, usually showing reason ("why"). "Jan met the builder to sign the contacts." "Clarise stopped at the store to buy some strawberries."
Adverbials are a group of words that are used as adverbs. They are usually an adverb phrase, prepositional phrase, or a clause. Even a noun phrase can be used as an adverbial. Both phrases and clauses can be adverbials. Remember that adverbials CAN be left out of the sentence and a complete sentence remains. (See also Complements)
"Carl traveled to many countries." (phrase) "Carl traveled when he was able." (clause)
Adverbials, like adverbs, can show several meanings.
Time: In September, school started.
Contingency: If you can, stop by later.
Place: Flipper dove into the ocean.
Condition: If it storms, be sure and close the windows
Concession: Even though the witch was evil, she was beautiful.
Contrast: The town prospered while Rip Van Winkle napped.
Exception: Mr. Casper should retire, except he needs the paycheck.
Reason: Anticipating the request, the millionaire wrote out a check.
Purpose: To stay healthy, eat better and exercise more.
Result: Rita spoke gently to calm the maniac.
Comparison: The patrol leader obeys orders, as every good soldier does.
Preference: Free men believe in responsibility, rather than excuses.
Comment: Salt water, they thought, was the cure.
Introductory Adverbial Elements
Any adverbial word, phrase, or clause that appears at the beginning of a sentence is an introductory adverbial element. They answer the when, where, why, how, how much questions that all adverbs do.
When the introductory element is one word, it often modifies the entire sentence:
Fast, call the police! (The introductory element fast modifies call the police, answering how--call them how? fast)
Inside, the robbers had taken a hostage. (The introductory element inside modifies the verb had taken answering where--had taken them where? inside)
When the introductory element is a phrase, it can modify an adjective, verb, another adverb, phrase or clause:
During the monsoon season, mold begins to grow on everything, no matter how you try to keep them dry. (The introductory element during the monsoon season modifies the verb begin and answers when--begin when? during the monsoon season.)
Outside the door, the wolves were howling. (The introductory element outside the door modifies the verb were howling answering where--howling where? outside the door)
When the introductory element is a clause, it can modify an adjective, verb, another adverb, phrase or clause:
When the reign of Giants ended, the kingdom celebrated for days. (The introductory element when the reign of Giants ended modifies the verb celebrated answering when--celebrated when? when the reign of Giants ended.)
Since we had no other choice, we surrendered the fort. (The introductory element since we had no other choice modifies the verb surrendered answering why--surrendered why? since we had no other choice)
There is not only an adverb of place (location). It is often used as an introductory word also with verbs such as to seem, to appear, to be (and its forms).
There is sale at the mall this weekend.
There is only one answer to your problems.
There are over 2,000 employees at the factory.
If you are making a positive statement with there as the introductory word, the subject follows the verb.
There are forty-seven varieties of trees in the forest. (varieties = subject, are = verb)
There is a large dog in the yard. (dog = subject, is = verb)
When you are writing questions with there as an introductory word, there follows the verb IF that verb is the simple present or simple past form of to be, or the first auxiliary if one is used with that form. If a different verb is used, there comes after the first auxiliary verb, which must be a form of to do.
Are there any cookies left? (Are--simple present of to be)
Is there a chance she was delayed? (Is--simple present of to be)
Was there any doubt about it? (Was--simple past of to be)
Were there any students without a failing grade? (Were--simple past of to be)
Notice that the verbs (are, is, was, were) agree with the subject (cookies, chance, doubt, students) NOT with the word there. There is not a subject!
Do there appear to be storm clouds in the west? (Do--auxiliary verb)
Will there be enough cake for everyone? (Will--auxiliary verb)
Can there be any reason for this noise? (Can--auxiliary verb)
Would there be more money in the other account? (Would--auxiliary verb)
Again, the auxiliaries (do, will, can, would) and their main verbs agree with the subjects (clouds, cake, reason, money).