Welcome to Adverbs. Be sure to watch the introductory grammar video on the left before continuing to read this section.

Adverbs describe how you do something. Adjectives describe nouns and adverbs describe verbs and can sometimes describe adjectives. In other words, they describe how you do something. Most Adverbs are formed by adding -ly to an adjective:

quick-quickly
clear-clearly

Some adjectives and adverbs have the same form:(fast, late, hard, early).

Adverbs of frequency desribe how often you do something and are always used with the Present Simple Tense. These adverbs have unique forms:

often, always, ever, sometimes, usually, never, seldom

Short adverbs have the same spelling rules as adjectives.


Try the games below to practice what you learned:

Adverbs Flashcards
Match the Adverbs
Matching Adverb Games
Gapfill Adverb Games

Test your knowledge of adverbs below:

Adverb Definitions
Mult Choice Adverbs 1
Mult Choice Adverbs 2

Adverb Tips

An adverb modifies a verb or an adjective. Take a look at the spelling rules below, using the adjective as the base form:

If the adjective ends in a y, change the y to i and add -ly.

If the adjective ends in a consonant + le, drop the -e and add -ly.

If the adjective ends in an e, just add -ly.

The comparative and superlative form of adverbs follow the same rules as adjectives.

If the adverb has three or more syllables or ends in -ly, add "more" for comparatives (more quickly), and "the most" for superlatives (the most brightly).