Adverbs
Learn how adverbs describe verbs, adjectives, other adverbs and whole sentences, where they appear, and how they change to make comparisons.
How, when, where, how often, how much
An adverb adds detail to more than just a noun.
An adverb describes or adds detail to a verb, an adjective, another adverb, or sometimes an entire sentence. It can tell you how, when, where, how often, or to what degree something happens.
In the sentence She sang beautifully., the word beautifully is an adverb. It describes the verb sang, telling you how she sang.
This page covers the different types of adverbs, where they appear in a sentence, how they are formed, and how they change to make comparisons.
Before you begin
Adverbs are closely related to adjectives.
Many adverbs are formed directly from adjectives, and the two word types are often confused with one another.
Reviewing adjectives first may make the differences in this lesson clearer.
The central idea
An adjective describes a noun. An adverb describes almost everything else.
Compare an adjective describing a noun with an adverb describing a verb.
01
Adjective
Describes a noun.
a quick driver
02
Adverb
Describes a verb.
drives quickly
The useful question is: What word is this describing?
quick driver → describes the noun driver
drives quickly → describes the verb drives
extremely quick → describes the adjective quick
If a word describes a noun, it is an adjective. If it describes almost anything else, including a verb, an adjective or another adverb, it is usually an adverb.
What adverbs describe
Adverbs can modify four different kinds of words.
A verb
He carefully opened the box.
Describes how the action of opening was done.
An adjective
The exam was extremely difficult.
Describes the degree of the adjective difficult.
Another adverb
She finished the race very quickly.
Describes the degree of the adverb quickly.
A whole sentence
Fortunately, no one was hurt in the accident.
Describes the speaker’s attitude toward the entire statement.
Forming adverbs
Many adverbs are formed by adding -ly to an adjective.
Add -ly to the adjective
quick → quickly
careful → carefully
sudden → suddenly
Spelling changes
happy → happily (change -y to -i)
terrible → terribly (drop the final -e)
automatic → automatically (add -ally after -ic)
Some adverbs keep the same form as the adjective
fast → fast
hard → hard
late → late
He is a fast runner. He runs fast.
These words do not add -ly to form the adverb.
An important irregular pair
good (adjective) → well (adverb)
She is a good singer. She sings well.
Well is the irregular adverb form of good. It does not follow the regular -ly pattern.
Types of adverbs
Adverbs are often grouped by the kind of information they add.
Manner: how
She spoke calmly.
Time: when
We will leave tomorrow.
Place: where
Please sit here.
Frequency: how often
He rarely arrives late.
Degree: how much
The soup was too salty.
Where adverbs appear
Adverbs can appear at the front, in the middle, or at the end of a sentence.
Front position
Yesterday, we visited the museum.
Often used for adverbs of time, or to set the scene for a sentence.
Mid position
She often walks to work.
Common for adverbs of frequency and degree, usually placed near the main verb.
End position
She finished the report quickly.
The most common position for adverbs of manner, place and time.
Adverbs of frequency and word order
These adverbs usually sit in a specific spot in the sentence.
Before the main verb
I always check my email in the morning.
With most verbs, adverbs of frequency such as always, often, usually and never come before the main verb.
After the verb “to be”
He is always on time.
When the verb is a form of to be, the adverb usually comes directly after it, rather than before.
Comparative and superlative adverbs
Like adjectives, many adverbs can be used to make comparisons.
Short adverbs: add -er and -est
fast → faster → the fastest
hard → harder → the hardest
She runs faster than her brother.
These are the same short adverbs that keep the same form as their adjective.
-ly adverbs: use more and most
carefully → more carefully → the most carefully
quickly → more quickly → the most quickly
He explained the problem more clearly than before.
Irregular adverbs
well → better → the best
badly → worse → the worst
far → farther / further → the farthest / the furthest
She sings better than anyone else in the choir.
Comparing equal actions
The pattern “as…as” also works with adverbs.
Equal
He drives as carefully as his sister.
Both people drive with the same level of care.
Not Equal
He does not drive as carefully as his sister.
He drives with less care than she does.
Comparative
His sister drives more carefully than he does.
The two are directly unequal.
A practical decision guide
Ask these questions before choosing an adverb form.
01
Is this word describing a noun, or something else?
If it describes a noun, use an adjective. If it describes a verb, adjective or adverb, use an adverb.
02
What kind of information does it add?
Check whether it shows how, when, where, how often, or how much.
03
Is it an adverb of frequency?
Place it before the main verb, or after a form of to be.
04
Are you comparing two or more actions?
Use -er/-est for short adverbs and more/most for -ly adverbs.
Common errors
Mistakes are useful when you understand why they happen.
She sings very good.
She sings very well.
Sings is a verb, so it needs the adverb well, not the adjective good.
He drives very quick.
He drives very quickly.
Drives is a verb, so it needs the adverb form quickly, not the adjective quick.
I check always my messages before breakfast.
I always check my messages before breakfast.
Adverbs of frequency generally come before the main verb, not after it.
This route is more fast than the other one.
This route is faster than the other one.
Fast is a short adverb, so it takes -er rather than more.
He always is late.
He is always late.
With the verb to be, the adverb of frequency comes after it, not before.
Your turn
Practise choosing the correct adverb form.
These activities are part of the learning process. There are no scores, no grades and no limit on how many times you may try.
He read the instructions ___ before starting.
✅ Exactly! Read is a verb, so it needs the adverb carefully.
❎ Not quite. Ask whether this word is describing the noun or the verb read.
This word describes how he read, not a noun.
My grandmother cooks extremely ___.
✅ Exactly! Cooks is a verb, so it needs the irregular adverb well.
❎ Not quite. Good is an adjective and cannot describe a verb.
The adverb form of good is irregular.
She ___ arrives before everyone else.
✅ Exactly! With a regular verb, the adverb of frequency comes before it.
❎ Not quite. Adverbs of frequency generally come before the main verb, not after it.
Arrives is not a form of to be.
Of all the runners, she finished ___.
✅ Exactly! With more than two runners being compared, the superlative form is needed.
❎ Not quite. All the runners signals a comparison among more than two people.
Count how many runners are being compared.
Try it another way
Complete the sentences.
Type the correct adverb form of the word shown.
✅ Exactly! Happy changes the final -y to -i before adding -ly.
❎ Not quite. Remember the spelling change needed before adding -ly to a word ending in -y.
✅ Exactly! Badly is irregular, and its comparative form is worse.
❎ Not quite. Badly does not follow the regular comparative pattern.
✅ Exactly! Rare drops the final -e before adding -ly.
❎ Not quite. Remember the spelling change needed before adding -ly to a word ending in -e.
Notice the difference
Correct the adverb mistake.
Rewrite each sentence using the correct adverb form or position.
She sings very good.
✅ Exactly! Sings is a verb, so it needs the adverb well, not the adjective good.
❎ Not quite. Replace the adjective with the irregular adverb form.
I walk usually to work.
✅ Exactly! Adverbs of frequency generally come before the main verb.
❎ Not quite. Move the adverb so it comes before the main verb walk.
Quick review
An adverb describes almost anything except a noun.
Adverbs describe verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, or whole sentences, often showing how, when, where, how often or how much.
Many adverbs are formed by adding -ly to an adjective, though some short adverbs keep the same form, and some, like well, are irregular.
Adverbs of manner, time and place often appear at the end of a sentence; adverbs of frequency usually appear before the main verb, or after a form of to be.
Short adverbs form comparisons with -er and -est; -ly adverbs use more and most.
As…as shows that two actions are equal.
A small group of adverbs, such as well and badly, form irregular comparatives and superlatives.
Remember
Ask what word is actually being described.
A noun needs an adjective. A verb, an adjective or another adverb needs an adverb. Once you know what is being described, the correct form and position become much easier to choose.