Adverb Examples in Sentences

 

An adverb is a word that describes a verb, an adjective or another adverb. It answers how, when, where, how often or to what extent. In "She dances gracefully", the adverb gracefully tells you how she dances. Many adverbs end in -ly, but plenty do not: fast, well, soon, never.

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Below are the six types of adverbs in a single table, two example sentences for each of the main types, and the distinction that causes most of the trouble in school: choosing between an adjective and an adverb.

What is an adverb?

An adverb adds information to a verb, an adjective or another adverb. It does not describe a noun; that is an adjective's job, and the difference matters more than it sounds.

• Modifying a verb: She sings beautifully. How does she sing?
• Modifying an adjective: The soup is very hot. How hot?
• Modifying another adverb: He runs extremely quickly. How quickly?

Adverbs often end in -ly, and that is a useful clue rather than a rule. Fast, well, hard, soon and never are all adverbs with no suffix at all, and friendly and lovely end in -ly while being adjectives.

The six types of adverbs

A note on the last one. Adverbs of purpose are the trickiest category and the one most often illustrated badly. In "She studied hard to pass the exam", the phrase to pass the exam gives the purpose, but it is an infinitive phrase, not an adverb. The adverb in that sentence is hard, and it is an adverb of manner. Single-word adverbs of purpose are words like therefore, thus and consequently.

Adverbs in sentences, by type

Manner

• She dances gracefully. The adverb tells you how she dances.
• The children spoke loudly. It describes how they spoke.

Time

• He will finish the project soon. It tells you when he will finish.
• They have already left the party. It indicates when they left.

Place

• We searched everywhere for the missing book. It shows where they searched.
• She stayed indoors because of the rain. It tells you where she stayed.

Frequency

• He rarely misses a class. It describes how often he misses one.
• She always smiles at strangers. It shows how often she smiles.

Degree

• The water is too hot to touch. It describes the extent of the heat.
• I am very tired after the exercise. It indicates the level of tiredness.

Read each sentence and ask which word the adverb is attached to. In every case above it is attached to a verb, an adjective or another adverb, and never to a noun. For the longer structures that do the same job, see adverb clauses.

Adjective or adverb? The choice that matters

This is where marks are lost, and it is not really about spelling. An adjective describes a noun. An adverb describes a verb, an adjective or another adverb. Same idea, different job, often the same root word.

The test to use. Find the word being described. If it is a person, place or thing, you need the adjective. If it is an action, you need the adverb. "She drives careful" sounds wrong because careful is reaching for the verb drives, and only an adverb can do that.

The good and well row is worth extra attention, because the adverb is a different word rather than the adjective plus -ly. That is why "She did good" is so common and so often marked wrong.

Adverbs that do not end in -ly

The -ly ending is a clue, not a test. These are all adverbs without it:

• fast: He runs fast.
• well: She sang well.
• hard: They worked hard.
• soon: We will leave soon.
• never, often, always: frequency adverbs, none of them with a suffix.

And the trap in the other direction: friendly, lovely, silly and lonely all end in -ly and are adjectives. A child who has learned "-ly means adverb" will get those wrong, which is a good reason to teach the question rather than the ending. For a wider view of the word class, see our guide to adverbs and their uses.

What grade do children learn adverbs?

Grade 2. Common Core standard L.2.1.e asks students to "use adjectives and adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be modified". Source: Common Core State Standards, English Language Arts.

Notice how that standard is worded. It is not "identify adverbs" or "list the six types". It is choose between them depending on what is to be modified, which is the adjective-versus-adverb decision in the section above. The naming of types is a way into that choice, not the point of it.

The same grade's standard L.2.6 asks children to use adjectives and adverbs when describing things in their own writing, so the expectation from the start is production, not recognition. If your child can label adverbs on a worksheet but writes "he ran quick", the gap is in the part the standard actually asks for. Structured practice with grammar and sentence structure targets exactly that.

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Questions parents ask

What is an adverb?

An adverb is a word that modifies a verb, an adjective or another adverb. It gives extra information about how, when, where, how often or to what extent something happens. In "She sings beautifully", the adverb beautifully describes the verb sings.

How do I spot an adverb in a sentence?

Ask which word is being described. If the answer is a verb, an adjective or another adverb, the describing word is an adverb. Asking how, when, where, how often or to what extent usually finds it. Most adverbs end in -ly, but that is a clue rather than a test.

What are examples of adverbs that do not end in -ly?

Common ones include fast, well, hard, soon, never, often and always. Each modifies a verb without taking a suffix: "He runs fast", "She sang well", "They worked hard". The reverse trap also exists, since friendly and lovely end in -ly and are adjectives.

Can an adverb modify an adjective?

Yes. In "The soup is very hot", the adverb very modifies the adjective hot, telling you the degree. Adverbs of degree do this most often: very, quite, too, extremely. An adverb can also modify another adverb, as in "He runs extremely quickly".

What is the difference between an adjective and an adverb?

An adjective describes a noun or pronoun. An adverb describes a verb, an adjective or another adverb. "She is a careful driver" uses the adjective careful for the noun driver. "She drives carefully" uses the adverb carefully for the verb drives. Find the word being described and the choice follows.

What grade do children learn adverbs?

Grade 2 under Common Core standard L.2.1.e, which asks students to use adjectives and adverbs and choose between them depending on what is being modified. The same grade's L.2.6 expects children to use both in their own writing, so the standard is about production rather than labeling.

How can I help my child practice adverbs at home?

Take a plain sentence they have written and ask how, when or where. "The dog ran" becomes "The dog ran quickly" or "The dog ran outside". Then ask which word the new one is attached to. Doing this on their own writing works better than a worksheet, because the sentence already matters to them.

Related Articles

1. Understanding Adverb Clauses
2. Introduction to Non-Finite Verbs
3. Introduction to Grammar and Sentence Structure
4. Children's English Learning Journey: Tips and Resources