Adverbs of Manner
How do you speak? Is it softly, quickly, or loudly? How do you drive a car? Is it carefully or recklessly?
To answer questions that begin with the word “How”, we need Adverbs of Manner.
What are Adverbs of Manner?
Adverbs of Manner are words that explain how an action is performed. Because their function is to describe an action, these adverbs are always closely related to verbs.
Examples:
- She walked slowly. (Describes how she walked).
- He speaks English fluently. (Describes how he speaks).
How to Form Adverbs of Manner
The good news is, forming Adverbs of Manner is very easy! Most of them are formed simply by adding the suffix -ly to Descriptive Adjectives.
1. General Rule (+ly)
Simply add -ly to the end of the adjective.
| Adjective | Adverb of Manner |
|---|---|
| slow | slowly |
| quick | quickly |
| quiet | quietly |
| beautiful | beautifully |
2. Ending in y
If the adjective ends in the letter y, change the y to i, then add -ly.
| Adjective | Adverb of Manner |
|---|---|
| happy | happily |
| easy | easily |
| angry | angrily |
3. Exceptions / Irregular
Be careful! Some adverbs have the EXACT SAME form as their adjectives, or change completely. They do not take the -ly suffix.
| Adjective | Adverb of Manner |
|---|---|
| good | well |
| fast | fast (NOT fastly) |
| hard | hard (NOT hardly*) |
| late | late |
Note: The word hardly does exist, but it doesn’t mean with hard effort. It means almost not, which is an Adverb of Frequency.
Position in a Sentence
Adverbs of Manner are generally placed at the end of a sentence or directly after the main verb.
However, there is a golden rule that must not be broken: Never place an adverb between a verb and its direct object.
-
Correct: She speaks English fluently. (Subject + Verb + Object + Adverb).
-
Incorrect: She speaks fluently English.
-
Correct: He ate the pizza quickly.
-
Incorrect: He ate quickly the pizza.
If there is no object in the sentence, the adverb can be placed directly after the verb:
- She smiled happily.
Conclusion: Use Adverbs of Manner to give life to your verbs. Most end in -ly, but be careful with the words fast, hard, and good (which changes to well)!