Adverbs

Lesson 1 Adverbs

Essential Question

How do we add meaning to action and descriptions?

Grammar in the World

You learned that adjectives modify (give more information about) nouns in sentences. Adverbs work in the same way to modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs in sentences. These handy words help us answer questions like where? when? how? when describing verbs and to what extent/ how much? and in what way? when it comes to adjectives and other adverbs.

For instance, read this sentence:

The cheetahs ran.

We know there are at least two cheetahs. We know they ran. Depending on the adverb we choose to modify the verb ran, we can share more interesting information about these animals. An adverb gives the reader more information, like how, when, where, and how much/how long.

Purpose		Example
	When?	Yesterday, I saw a cheetah. I saw a cheetah yesterday.
	Where?	The cheetah ran nearby. It ran away.
	How?	The cheetahs quickly ran away. They swam reluctantly in the river.
	How much/ How long?	The cheetah stayed a while. It usually seemed alert.

In this module, you’ll learn how to use adverbs to make your speaking and writing more meaningful and descriptive.

What Do I Know?

Use the interactive exercise below to see how much you already know about using adverbs:

Building Blocks

Grammar is a complex system and structure of language. Mizzou Academy Grammar Lab spotlights one skill (or block) at a time. It is also helpful to see how each skill works together with other, related blocks to build the language structure as a whole. You may find the following resource topics helpful as context for this lesson:

Learn About Adverbs

Adverbs are versatile words that have a big impact on sentence meaning. One adverb can change the meaning of an entire sentence. Here are some things to know about this part of speech.

Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs.

Modifying a Verb	Modifying an Adjective	Modifying another Adverb
Yesterday, I saw a cheetah.	The cheetah was unusually quiet.	The cheetah ran very fast.
It ran away.	It was quite beautiful and very strong.	Then, it leapt exceptionally gracefully across the field.

Adverbs can make sense in many different parts of a sentence.

- Yesterday, I saw a cheetah.
- I saw a cheetah yesterday.
- It was mostly hidden.
- Mostly, it was hidden.
- It ran quickly away.
- It quickly ran away.

Where you place an adverb is important. Moving it in a sentence sometimes changes the meaning.

Example	Explanation
Mothers carefully choose to hide their newborn cubs.	Carefully modifies choose, meaning mothers make careful choices.
Mothers choose to hide their newborn cubs carefully.	Carefully modifies hide, meaning mothers are careful in the way they hide the cubs.
I always like to read about cheetahs.	Always modifies like, meaning I always enjoy reading about cheetahs
I like to always read about cheetahs.	Always modifies read, meaning that I always read about cheetahs (and do nothing else).

Adverbs often end in -ly – but not always.

The cheetah leaps high.
She quickly leaps.

The cheetah lives there.

He slowly saunters to his home.

Words ending in -ly are often adverbs – but not always.

By all appearances, he is a friendly beast.

Note that friendly describes the noun beast. Though it ends in -ly, friendly is an adjective.

The bottom line is: Always confirm that a word is an adverb by usage.

Adjectives and Adverbs are similar, and it sometimes is hard to choose the right form. We often confuse bad and badly, as well as good and well.

Bad is an adjective. Badly is an adverb.

correct	I feel bad.	“Bad” is an adjective that modifies “I” (a pronoun) in this sentence. If I sprain my ankle, part of me (my ankle) will feel bad.
correct	I cook badly.	“Badly” is an adverb that modifies “cook” (a verb) in this sentence. If I offer to cook a meal for you, you may want to order a pizza instead.
incorrect	I feel badly.	“Badly” is an adverb that modifies “feel” (a verb). If I say that I feel badly, then I mean that my fingers are numb or incapable of feeling what I touch.
incorrect	I smell badly.	“Badly” is an adverb that modifies “smell” (a verb). If I say that I smell badly, then I mean that I am unable to enjoy the scent of cheesy pizza.

Good is an adjective. Well is an adverb.

correct	I feel good today.	“Good” is an adjective that describes “I” (a pronoun). If I say that I feel good, I mean that I feel healthy or upbeat.
correct	I cook well.	“Well” is an adverb that modifies “cook” (a verb) in this sentence. If I offer to cook a meal for you, you probably will enjoy it.
incorrect	I cook good.	“Good” is an adjective, so it cannot modify “cook” (a verb). I could say, “I cook good lasagna,” and that would make sense.
incorrect	I feel well today.	“Well” is an adverb that modifies “feel” (a verb). If I say that I feel well, then I mean that my fingers are exceptionally good at discerning textures.

Do I Get It?

What have you learned about adverbs? Check your understanding of adverbs in the interactive, below.

Exercise 1: Choose the adverb to fill in the blanks in these sentences.

Exercise 2: Decide whether the words in bold are adjectives or an adverb.