Table of Contents
Adverbs of manner: further information
Introduction
He drove to the airport quickly.
Definition
Adverbs of manner tell us more about verbs - about how something happens or is done.
Uses
We use them to answer the question, 'How?'
| Use | Examples |
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To talk about how people do things. |
They eat healthily.
The team members work efficiently together.
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To talk about how things happen.
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It's raining heavily.
This wine will age beautifully.
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To talk about changing trends and figures.
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The situation is improving rapidly.
The temperature is falling steadily.
The profits fell sharply.
We expect the sales figures to increase slowly.
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Construction
Regular adverbs are formed with an adjective and 'ly'. Sometimes, there are spelling changes.
| Spelling rule | Examples |
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Add 'ly' to adjective.
Note that if an adjective ends in 'l', we still add 'ly' so we have 'lly'. |
slowly quietly badly seriously bravely strangely
carefully beautifully
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Adjectives ending in 'y' - change 'y' to 'i' and add 'ly'. |
happ angr laz eas nois
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Adjectives ending in a consonant + 'le' - drop 'e' and add 'y'.
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gentl reasonabl simpl horribl
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Adjectives ending in 'ic' - add 'ally'. [this is because in older English, some of these adjectives ended in 'ical'. Some, like 'practical' and 'logical' still do, of course.]
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automatic automatically organic organically basic basically energetic energetically |
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Others: with these three adjectives, drop 'e' and add 'ly'.
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due duly true truly whole wholly
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Note that
1. Not all words that end in 'ly' are adverbs. Some adjectives also end in 'ly'. For example, 'friendly', 'silly', 'leisurely', 'lonely' and 'lively'. We cannot form adverbs from them but can say 'in a ....way/manner/fashion'. For example:
She greeted them in a friendly way.
They walked along the beach in a leisurely manner.
2. Some adjectives ending in 'ed' do not have an 'ly' adverb form. We can say 'in a ....way/manner/fashion'. For example:
She carried out the tasks in a very organised fashion.
He approached the situation in a relaxed way.
Or use a preposition and a noun:
She looked at him in surprise. [not surprisedly]
She read the article with interest. [not interestedly]
If you are not sure if an adjective takes 'ly', check in a good dictionary.
Irregular adverbs
| Adjective | Adverb |
| fast | fast |
| hard | hard |
| good | well |
Note that
1. 'Hardly' is not the adverb related to 'hard':
She works hardly. 
She works hard. 
It has a completely different meaning and use - it suggests 'a very little'; 'almost none' or 'almost not at all':
Her voice is very quiet; I can hardly hear her.
I was so busy yesterday - I hardly ate anything all day.
We need to buy more coffee - there's hardly any left.
2. 'Well' is also an adjective. It is used to describe a person who is in good health.
"How's your mother?"
"She's very well, thanks."
3. Some adverbs have two forms - either unchanged from the adjective or with 'ly'.
For example:
He spoke loud.
He spoke loudly.
He bought a new car cheap.
He bought a new car cheaply.
You spelt my name wrong.
You spelt my name wrongly.
The 'ly' form is considered more grammatically correct and is preferred in formal contexts.
Word order
These are the most common structures.
| Where to place the adverb | Examples |
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After the main verb when the verb is intransitive or there is no object.
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He spoke loudly so that they could hear at the back.
He always eats slowly.
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Sometimes before a transitive verb if we want to add emphasis.
Writers sometimes place the adverb at the beginning of a sentence to catch our attention or build suspense.
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He carefully picked up the broken glass.
Carefully, he picked up the broken glass. |
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These adverbs go after the verb: well, badly, hard, fast.
Compare with adjectives:
He speaks English well. He speaks good English.
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He's managing the team well but dealing with the customers badly.
He tried hard but couldn't fix it.
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After an object - never between the verb and object.
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He always eats his lunch slowly.
He always eats slowly his lunch.
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When there is a preposition - before the preposition OR after the object. |
They responded positively to his suggestion. Or They responded to his suggestion positively.
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Note that we need to be careful when there is more than one verb in a sentence. Note the differences in the following sentences:
She quickly explained how to solve the problem. [her explanation was quick]
She explained how to solve the problem quickly. [the solving of the problem was quick]
Examples
As I get older, it's important for me to eat healthily and sensibly.
We had to live very economically when we were students. 
"If I understand you well, you're saying that we need to solve this problem fast or we lose the contract?
