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Adverbs

Overview

Adverbs respond to the questions how, how much, where, and when. As a part of speech, they modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. In English these words often end in -ly, some examples of which are slowly, quickly, studiously, magnanimously, etc. Perhaps the most common irregular adverb in English is well.

Formation

Many adverbs that respond to the question how are formed by adding -mente to the feminine form of an adjective or, if lacking a feminine form, simply to the adjective.

Serio: seria + mente = seriamente

Chistoso: chistosa + mente = chistosamente

Leal: leal + mente = lealmente

Other adverbs simply have their own form and must be memorized as such. Some examples are mucho, muy, tan, tanto, bien, mal, despacio, etc.

Use

The following examples show how adverbs perform their functions within the sentence.

Placement

As in the examples above, adverbs normally follow the verb with which they are associated. When they modify adjectives or other adverbs they precede those words.

Ellos caminan rápidamente. (verb + adverb)

Chile es un país muy interesante. (adverb + adjective)

Llegamos muy temprano. (adverb + adverb)

See also

Comparisons of adverbs, adjectives, and nouns