Grammar › Adverbs

Adverbs of manner

520 fill-in-the-gap exercises, 52 tests of ten

They say how. Most are made by adding -ly to an adjective, but the common ones are irregular.

Where they go

After the verb, or after the verb and its object:

He answered politely. She closed the door quietly.

Never between the verb and its object: She closed quietly the door is wrong.

Some can also come first, for emphasis: Slowly, the door opened.

good and well

Good is an adjective, well is its adverb:

a good driver → drives well

Well has a second life as an adjective meaning healthy: I don’t feel well. That is the only case where well describes a person rather than an action.

hard and hardly

These are not related in meaning, which is why the mistake is so noticeable:

He works hard. — a lot of effort. He hardly works. — almost never.

The same trap sits in late/lately and near/nearly.

After linking verbs, use the adjective

The music sounds lovely. The soup smells wonderful. She looks tired.

These verbs describe a state rather than an action, so an adjective follows. Writing sounds lovelily is the classic overcorrection.

All forms

Examples

Taken from the 520 sentences in this drill. The answer is highlighted.

• The violinist played beautifully at the concert.
• The girl twirled gracefully in her pretty dress.
• The baby laughed happily when the clown made a funny face.
• The teacher spoke loudly to get the students' attention.
• The roller coaster went fast down the track.
• The boy ate his ice cream quickly.
• They cooked dinner carefully for their guests.
• Josephine speaks confidently in front of large audiences.
• The bell rang softly, indicating the end of the class.
• The old man walks slowly with the help of a cane.
• The teacher explained the lesson clearly to the students.
• The fireworks exploded brightly in the night sky.

Mistakes to avoid

Other forms of Adverbs