Kinds of Adverbs

Here you can see the basic kinds of adverbs.

Adverbs of Manner

Adverbs of Manner tell us the manner or way in which something happens. They answer the question "how?". Adverbs of Manner mainly modify verbs.

  • He speaks slowly. (How does he speak?)
  • They helped us cheerfully. (How did they help us?)
  • James Bond drives his cars fast. (How does James Bond drive his cars?)
We normally use Adverbs of Manner with dynamic (action) verbs, not with stative or state verbs.
  • He ran fast. She came quickly. They worked happily.
  • She looked beautifully. It seems strangely. They are happily.

Adverbs of Place

Adverbs of Place tell us the place where something happens. They answer the question "where?". Adverbs of Place mainly modify verbs.

  • Please sit here. (Where should I sit?)
  • They looked everywhere. (Where did they look?)
  • Two cars were parked outside. (Where were two cars parked?)

Adverbs of Time

Adverbs of Time tell us something about the time that something happens. Adverbs of Time mainly modify verbs.

They can answer the question "when?":

  • He came yesterday. (When did he come?)
  • I want it now. (When do I want it?)

Or they can answer the question "how often?" (frequency):

  • They deliver the newspaper daily. (How often do they deliver the newspaper?)
  • We sometimes watch a movie. (How often do we watch a movie?)

Adverbs of Degree

Adverbs of Degree tell us the degree or extent to which something happens. They answer the question "how much?" or "to what degree?". Adverbs of Degree can modify verbs, adjectives and other adverbs.

  • She entirely agrees with him. (How much does she agree with him?)
  • Mary is very beautiful. (To what degree is Mary beautiful? How beautiful is Mary?)
  • He drove quite dangerously. (To what degree did he drive dangerously? How dangerously did he drive?)

Mini Quiz

Test your understanding with this quick quiz.

1. Which kind of adverb is used in this sentence? "Fast cars have to be driven carefully."

adverb of degree
adverb of manner
adverb of time
a) adverb of degree b) adverb of manner c) adverb of time

2. In this sentence, which is the adverb of degree? "Selena always tries really hard."

always
really
hard
a) always b) really c) hard

3. Which is the adverb of time or frequency? "Nick never tries hard enough."

never
hard
enough
a) never b) hard c) enough

4. Which kind of adverb isn't used in this sentence? "The dam we built here never gets completely full."

adverb of manner
adverb of degree
adverb of place
a) adverb of manner b) adverb of degree c) adverb of place

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