Adverbs

Adverbs often tell when, where, why, or how something happened.

Not All "ly" words are Adverbs

Most adverbs end in 'ly", but not all words that end in "ly" are adverbs...

ugly, lovely, friendly, neighborly = ADJECTIVES

slowly, quickly, cautiously, extremely = ADVERBS

That lovely woman lives in a friendly neighborhood.

                  adj                                                         adj

Adverbs Modify Verbs

We walked cautiously down the crowded street.

He read the paper carefully.

The dog indolently laid on the floor all day.

Adverbs Modify Adjectives

"The students showed a really wonderful attitude" 

"The students showed a wonderfully casual attitude" 

"My professor is really tall."

Emphasizers

I really don't believe him. 

He literally wrecked his mother's car. 

She simply ignored me. 

Amplifiers

The teacher completely rejected her proposal. 

I absolutely refuse to attend any more faculty meetings. 

They heartily endorsed the new restaurant. 

I so wanted to go with them. 

We know this city well.

Downtoners

I kind of like this college. 

Joe sort of felt betrayed by his sister. 

His mother mildly disapproved his actions. 

We can improve on this to some extent. 

The boss almost quit after that. 

The school was all but ruined by the storm.

Adverbs can modify adjectives, but an adjective cannot modify an adverb. 

Thus we would say that "the students showed a really wonderful attitude" and that "the students showed awonderfully casual attitude" and that "my professor is really tall, but not "He ran real fast."

Like adjectives, adverbs can have comparative and superlative forms to show degree.

Walk faster if you want to keep up with me.

The student who reads fastest will finish first.

We often use more and most, less and least to show degree with adverbs:

With sneakers on, she could move more quickly among the patients.

The flowers were the most beautifully arranged creations I've ever seen.

She worked less confidently after her accident.

That was the least skillfully done performance I've seen in years.

As as an Adverb

"As" can be used to create adverbs that express sameness or equality

"He can't run as fast as his sister."

Adverb Clauses

Adverb clauses provide information about what is going on in the main (independent) clause: where, when, or why. 

"When the movie is over, we'll go downtown."

"John wanted to write a book because he had so much to say about the subject."

"When this class is over, we're going to the movies."

Adverbial Phrase

When a group of words not containing a subject and verb acts as an adverb, it is called an adverbial phrase. Prepositional phrases frequently have adverbial functions (telling place and time, modifying the verb):

He went to the movies.

She works on holidays.

They lived in Canada during the war.

Infinitive Phrases as Adverbs

And Infinitive phrases can act as adverbs (usually telling why):

She hurried to the mainland to see her brother.

The senator ran to catch the bus.

But there are other kinds of adverbial phrases:

He calls his mother as often as possible.

Types of Adverbs

Adverbs serve many different purposes.  

Adverbs of Manner

She moved slowly and spoke quietly.

Adverbs of Place

She has lived on the island all her life.

She still lives there now.

Adverbs of Frequency

She takes the boat to the mainland every day.

She often goes by herself.

Adverbs of Time

She tries to get back before dark.

It's starting to get dark now.

She finished her tea first.

She left early.

Positions of Adverbs

Adverbs are flexible, and can be moves around in a sentence. 

Adverbs of manner are particularly flexible in this regard.

Solemnly the minister addressed her congregation.

The minister solemnly addressed her congregation.

The minister addressed her congregation solemnly.

The following adverbs of frequency appear in various points in these sentences:

Before the main verb: I never get up before nine o'clock.

Between the auxiliary verb and the main verb: I have rarely written to my brother without a good reason.

Before the verb used to: I always used to see him at his summer home.

Indefinite adverbs of time can appear either before the verb or between the auxiliary and the main verb:

He finally showed up for batting practice.

She has recently retired.

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