Grammar Practice > Word Types > Adverbs ✓

This worksheet has been created to help you or your students with
Adverbs Worksheet understanding adverbs. To check your comprehension, complete the
attached activities and make a note of your score.

Chapter 1
How do adverbs function in English grammar?
No knowledge of English grammar would be complete
without a thorough understanding of the many categories
of word. Whether you’re learning about nouns, verbs or
adjectives, the study of word types normally involves an
exploration of their form, function and distribution in order
to memorise the rules that govern them. In this short
reader on adverbs, we therefore cover these three areas first, turning in Chapter 2
to the sixteen types of adverb among their adjunctive, conjunctive and disjunctive
categories. Finally, in Chapter 3, we explore the accurate use of adverbs in academic
settings such as when writing essays or when delivering presentations.

Are there clear similarities among adverbs?

While words such as ‘adequately’, ‘furthermore’ and ‘somewhat’ are traditionally

considered as belonging together under the label ‘adverb’, some grammarians argue
that this categorisation may be a lazy one. In truth, adverbs are a large and jumbled
grouping of words that perform a wide variety of functions. Though these words
certainly do share similarities, it can sometimes seem that adverbs comprise many
minor word types which have been grouped together simply because they do not
function like any of the major types, such as nouns, pronouns or prepositions.

Do adverbs look similar to each other?

The short answer is no. Unlike the major word types, students may find it tricky to
identify adverbs because they lack clear patterns of word formation. The only
noticeable pattern is when certain adjectives such as ‘adequate’ or ‘essential’ are
formed into adverbs using the suffix ‘-ly’, as in ‘adequately’ or ‘essentially’. Even
this pattern isn’t particularly common however, and as the following table shows, the
spelling of an adjective can lead to variation in the ‘-ly’ suffix too:

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 adjective + suffix = adverb
adequate -ly adequately, essentially, virtually

academic -ally academically, ethnically, genetically

evolutionary -ily evolutionarily, satisfactorily, voluntarily

noun + suffix = adverb

side -ways breadthways, lengthways, sideways

While a limited number of adverbs may also be formed from nouns by adding ‘-
ways’, as in ‘lengthways’, most adverbs such as ‘furthermore’ and ‘somewhat’ lack
any pattern. Adverbs are therefore a challenging word type to identify by form alone.

Do adverbs at least function in the same way?

Unfortunately not. Just as adverbs cannot be readily identified by form, nor is it easy
to identify them by function. This is because the benefits they offer to a speaker are
so varied. One commonly cited function is that adverbs add to the meaning of a verb
by expressing aspects such as how, when, where, how often or to what extent:

(how) My students [speak] English fluently.

(when) My students now [speak] English fluently.

(where) My students speak English when they [go] home.

(how often) My students [study] English daily.

(to what extent) My students [study] English comprehensively.

However, while other word types are more strict in their function (such as how
adjectives can only modify nouns), the following examples show that adverbs may
modify adjectives, adverbs, prepositional phrases and sentences as well as verbs:

(adjective) The results of the study were quite fascinating.

(adverb) The students are studying remarkably diligently.

(verb) The students are studying diligently.

(prepositional phrase) You are truly in a lose-lose situation.

(whole sentence) Nevertheless, the study was a success.

What’s more, adverbs don’t always express aspects such as how, when, or where.

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Nevertheless, as we will see in more detail in Chapter 2, adverbs can thankfully be
categorised in three ways based on a shared functionality (although each of these
categories possesses a number of subcategories too):

1) Adjunctive adverbs: these add optional information about an

event or state in relation to its circumstances, such as its place,
time, condition or manner (‘I failed the exam this morning.’).

2) Conjunctive adverbs: these join clauses together, forming

relations between expressions such as addition, contrast and order
(‘Jessica studied hard; therefore, she received a good grade.’).

3) Disjunctive adverbs: these provide additional information about entire clauses, expressing
attitudes, evaluations and probabilities (‘Surprisingly, she failed the exam.’).

How about adverb distribution?

One unique feature of adverbs that makes them somewhat easier to identify is that
they have a much greater freedom of distribution than other word types. This
means that they can move position within a sentence without breaking the
grammar or meaning of that expression. However, as the below shows, not all
possibilities are grammatical, and some sound odder than others to native speakers:

Carefully, the students completed the experiment. ✓

The students carefully completed the experiment. ✓

The students completed carefully the experiment. X

The students completed the experiment carefully. ✓

Are adverbs and adverbials the same?

Many students get confused by the similar terms ‘adverb’ and ‘adverbial’, but while
these two grammar items are similar in many ways, it’s important to recognise that
the classification ‘adverb’ denotes a word type and ‘adverbial’ a phrase function -
such as subject or object. It’s true that adverbs and adverbials do often function
similarly and share patterns of distribution, but where an adverb is also an adverbial,
not all adverbials are composed of adverbs. This is because an adverb is only one
word, whereas an adverbial may comprise a word, a phrase or a clause:

The students study English in the classroom.

The students study English as hard as they can.

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Student: Q1 Q2 Q3 Total

Class: /5 /5 /5 /15

Grammar Practice > Word Types > Adverbs ✓

Answers to the following activities can be found in the Chapter 1

Chapter 1 Activities Worksheet and attached answer key. After completing these tasks, check
your score, take a quick break and then continue studying with Chapter 2.

1. Circle true (T) or false (F) for each of the following statements:

a) Adverbs are a confusing grouping of words due to their variation. T F

b) All adverbs are formed from adjectives using the suffix ‘-ly’. T F
c) Adverbs are only able to modify verbs. T F
d) There are three categorisation of adverb and sixteen subtypes. T F
e) Many adverbs can be moved about a sentence without changing meaning. T F

2. Use the words in the boxes to label the expressions below and underline
the adverbs:

how
(_____________) The teacher goes home to mark the students’ essays.
when (_____________) The teacher teaches English too quickly.

where (_____________) The teacher will mark the examinations later.

(_____________) The teacher completely understood his student.

how often
(_____________) The teacher helps students with their English daily.
to what extend

3. Circle the correct words to complete the paragraph:

Many students get confused by the similar terms ‘adverb’ and ‘adverbial’, but while
these two category/grammar items are similar in many ways, it’s important to
recognise that the classification/type ‘adverb’ denotes a word type and ‘adverbial’
a phrase function - such as subject or object. It’s true that adverbs and adverbials
do often form/function similarly and share patterns of definition/distribution,
but where an adverb is also an adverbial, not all adverbials are composed of
adverbs. This is because an adverb is only one word, whereas an adverbial may
comprise a word, a phrase or a clause/discourse.

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 Chapter 1 Answer Key

1. Circle true (T) or false (F) for each of the following statements:

a) Adverbs are a confusing grouping of words due to their variation. T

b) All adverbs are formed from adjectives using the suffix ‘-ly’. F
c) Adverbs are only able to modify verbs. F
d) There are three categorisation of adverb and sixteen subtypes. T
e) Many adverbs can be moved about a sentence without changing meaning. T

2. Use the words in the boxes to label the expressions below and underline
the adverbs:

(where) The teacher goes home to mark the students’ essays.

(how) The teacher teaches English too quickly.

(when) The teacher will mark the examinations later.

(to what extent) The teacher completely understood his student.

(how often) The teacher helps students with their English daily.

3. Circle the correct words to complete the paragraph:

Many students get confused by the similar terms ‘adverb’ and ‘adverbial’, but while
these two grammar items are similar in many ways, it’s important to recognise that
the classification ‘adverb’ denotes a word type and ‘adverbial’ a phrase function -
such as subject or object. It’s true that adverbs and adverbials do often function
similarly and share patterns of distribution, but where an adverb is also an
adverbial, not all adverbials are composed of adverbs. This is because an adverb is
only one word, whereas an adverbial may comprise a word, a phrase or a clause.

Notes:

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 Grammar Practice > Word Types > Adverbs ✓

This worksheet has been created to help you or your students with
Adverbs Worksheet understanding adverbs. To check your comprehension, complete the
attached activities and make a note of your score.

Chapter 2
What are the 3 categories and 16 types of adverb?
In Chapter 2 of our short reader on adverbs, we divide this
word type into three categories and sixteen subcategories
so that students can better identify and use adverbs in their
speech and writing. As a fairly broad grouping of words,
adverbs can be a little tricky to master by patterns and rules
alone. This is because adverbs are able to modify many
parts of speech, including adjectives, other adverbs, verbs, prepositional phrases
and sentences, often answering the how, when, where, how often or to what extent
of an expression. If you’ve ever found this word type challenging to perfect, learning
about their various benefits and uses in this chapter should improve your ability.

What are the three categories of adverb?

Though adverbs as a grouping are less clearly defined than other word types such as
verbs and nouns, it is possible to categorise words like ‘additionally’, ‘furthermore’
and ‘somewhat’ in three distinct ways. There are adjunctive, conjunctive and
disjunctive adverbs, each of which has multiple subcategories:

1) Adjunctive adverbs add optional information about an event or state in relation to its
circumstances, such as its place, time, condition or manner (‘I failed the exam this morning.’).

2) Conjunctive adverbs join clauses together, forming relations between expressions such as
addition, contrast and order (‘Jessica studied hard; therefore, she received a good grade.’).

3) Disjunctive adverbs provide additional information about entire clauses, expressing attitudes,
evaluations and probabilities (‘Surprisingly, she failed the exam.’).

Adjunctive Adverbs

Optional adjunctive adverbs are usually subcategorised in five different ways

depending upon the meaning they express. As the following table shows, there are

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adverbs of degree, frequency, manner, place and time:

Adverb of... Function Example

these adverbs describe how
1. degree entirely, most, thoroughly, somewhat, very
much an action is performed
The student completely forgot about studying for the exam.
these adverbs describe the
2. frequency always, never, often, rarely, sometimes
frequency of an action
It will take the students forever to get a high score on the test.
these adverbs describe how
3. manner carefully, equally, kindly, nicely, quickly
an action is performed
The tutor resentfully answered yet another student email about the same thing.
these adverbs describe
4. place here, nowhere, there, through, sideways
where an action is performed
The students who were absent were falling behind.
these adverbs describe when
5. time 10am, now, Sunday, today, yesterday
an action is performed
The teacher is too tired and will have to mark the exams later.

While this is easily the most common category of adverb used in general English
settings, they are far less common in academic language (as Chapter 3 will explain).

Conjunctive Adverbs

Quite different to adjunctives are conjunctive adverbs such as ‘however’ or

‘therefore’. Conjunctives are particularly helpful for students because they join
clauses together and start or end sentences, demonstrating logical and rhetorical
relations between ideas such as contrast or result. Using these relationships as a
method of definition, we can group conjunctive adverbs into six different types:

6. additive in addition, furthermore, moreover 10. relative whatever, where, when

Additionally, VOCs significantly impact air quality. 4 o’clock is when the exam will finish.

7. contrastive however, in contrast, furthermore 11. interrogative how, when, where, why

VOCs are not the primary cause, however. When will the exam end?

8. listing finally, firstly, secondly

Finally, there are the multitude of greenhouse gases.

9. resultative consequently, therefore, thus

Therefore, pulmonary cancer rates are increasing.

We’ve separated relative and interrogative adverbs

as these are different from types 6-9 in the sense
that they are distinguished by grammar rather than by meaning. Relative adverbs,

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for instance, are used to introduce relative clauses, while interrogative adverbs are
placed at the front of questions in English.

Disjunctive Adverbs

The final categorisation of adverb is the disjunctive

adverb, which is used to express attitudes, evaluations
and probabilities about entire clauses and sentences.
These adverbs are particularly useful in academic
essays and conversations in which value judgements are often included in
sophisticated arguments. Hedging adverbs (type 15), which are a type of hedging
language, are also very handy as they allow a writer to be more cautious about the
arguments and claims they present:

12. attitude correctly, predictably, unexpectedly

Smith (2020) correctly delineates the issue.

13. certainty clearly, indisputably, undeniably

These results are undeniably conclusive.

14. doubt hypothetically, seemingly, theoretically

Such findings are only theoretically conclusive.

15. hedging maybe, perhaps, possibly

This decrease is possibly due to government policy.

16. source according to, evidently, reportedly
According to Smith (2020), emissions are increasing.

Well done on finishing this second chapter in our reader on adverbs. Now that
you’re familiar with the sixteen types of adjunctive, conjunctive and disjunctive
adverb, it might be a good idea to keep reading with Chapter 3 to find out which of
these are more commonly used in academic English and which should be avoided.

Notes:

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Student: Q1 Q2 Total

Class: /10 /10 /20

Grammar Practice > Word Types > Adverbs ✓

Answers to the following activities can be found in the Chapter 2

Chapter 2 Activities Worksheet and attached answer key. After completing these tasks, check
your score, take a quick break and then continue studying with Chapter 3.

1. Use the words in the boxes to complete the three categorisations:

clauses disjunctive adjunctive therefore condition

contrast surprisingly conjunctive attitudes optional

1) _______________ adverbs add _______________ information about an event or state in

relation to its circumstances, such as its place, time, _______________ or manner (‘I failed
the exam this morning.’).

2) _______________ adverbs join _______________ together, forming relations between

expressions such as addition, _______________ and order (‘Jessica studied hard;
_______________ , she received a good grade.’).

3) _______________ adverbs provide additional information about entire clauses,

expressing _______________ , evaluations and probabilities (‘_______________ , she
failed the exam.’).

2. Decide which of the sixteen adverb types is being used in the sentences:

a) Empirical evidence is always more convincing.

b) Furthermore, smoking is another negative factor.

c) This consequently created new concerns over the methods.

d) This increase is perhaps the result of government policy.

e) The findings were somewhat inconclusive.

f) Evidently, Smith (2020) agrees with this assumption.

g) The tutor answered the student’s question quickly.

h) Where will the final exam be held?

i) This is clearly the reason for the recent increase.

j) Secondly, pulmonary cancer may have begun to decline.

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 Chapter 2 Answer Key

1. Use the words in the boxes to complete the three categorisations:

1) Adjunctive adverbs add optional information about an event or state in relation to its
circumstances, such as its place, time, condition or manner (‘I failed the exam this morning.’).

2) Conjunctive adverbs join clauses together, forming relations between expressions such as
addition, contrast and order (‘Jessica studied hard; therefore, she received a good grade.’).

3) Disjunctive adverbs provide additional information about entire clauses, expressing attitudes,
evaluations and probabilities (‘Surprisingly, she failed the exam.’).

2. Decide which of the sixteen adverb types is being used in the sentences:

a) Empirical evidence is always more convincing. 2. frequency

b) Furthermore, smoking is another negative factor. 6. additive

c) This consequently created new concerns over the methods. 9. resultative

d) This increase is perhaps the result of government policy. 15. hedging

e) The findings were somewhat inconclusive. 1. degree

f) Evidently, Smith (2020) agrees with this assumption. 16. source

g) The tutor answered the student’s question quickly. 3. manner

h) Where will the final exam be held? 11. interrogative

i) This is clearly the reason for the recent increase. 13. certainty

j) Secondly, pulmonary cancer may have begun to decline. 8. listing

Notes:

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 Grammar Practice > Word Types > Adverbs ✓

This worksheet has been created to help you or your students with
Adverbs Worksheet understanding adverbs. To check your comprehension, complete the
attached activities and make a note of your score.

Chapter 3
Which adverbs are important in academic writing?
Having now explored adverbs in some depth, discussing
their form, function and distribution in Chapter 1 and
their sixteen types and three categories in Chapter 2, this
third and final chapter deals with their use in academic
contexts. By studying this chapter, you’ll review the
sixteen adverb types in brief and will learn which adverbs
are most common in English for Academic Purposes (EAP) and which should be
avoided. After completing this reader, don’t forget to unlock and complete our
Chapter Worksheets to check your knowledge of adverbs and improve your overall
English proficiency.

What are the key facts about adverbs?

As mentioned in Chapter 1 and 2, adverbs are one of most variable of all the word
types in that their form, function and distribution is quite varied. This can make
adverbs challenging to identify and master. In case you’re a student that’s jumped
straight to Chapter 3 to find out about adverbs in academic contexts, let’s
summarise what we’ve discussed so far:

• many (but not most) adverbs are formed from adjectives using the suffix ‘-ly’

• adverbs can modify adjectives, adverbs, verbs, prepositional phrases and sentences

• adverbs tend to express how, when, where, how often or to what extent

• adverbs are often quite flexible in where they can be placed within a sentence

• adverbs can be categorised into adjunctive, conjunctive and disjunctive types, each of which can
be divided into a number of subcategories due to their shared meaning or grammar

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Which adverbs are common in EAP?

To help students who are writing academic essays or designing academic

presentations, we’ve included a list below of almost 100 high-frequency academic
adverbs. It might be a good idea to learn the grammar and meaning of these words
and incorporate them into your academic language:

above, accordingly, accurately, adequately, also, approximately, basically, clearly, closely, commonly,
consequently, considerably, conversely, correctly, directly, effectively, either, equally, especially,
essentially, explicitly, extremely, fairly, far, frequently, fully, further, furthermore, generally, greatly,
hence, highly, however, increasingly, indeed, independently, indirectly, individually, inevitably,
initially, largely, less, mainly, more, moreover, most, namely, necessarily, normally, notably, often,
only, originally, over, partially, particularly, potentially, previously, primarily, purely, quite, readily,
recently, relatively, secondly, significantly, similarly, simply, socially, solely, somewhat, specifically,
strongly, subsequently, successfully, then, there, thereby, therefore, thus, traditionally, typically,
ultimately, virtually, voluntarily, wholly, widely

What are the 16 types of adverb?

Among the adjunctive, conjunctive and disjunctive

categories of adverb we discussed earlier, there are
sixteen types of adverb. That’s a lot to learn!
Thankfully, we’ve included each type with an example
for you below. However, if you’d like to study these types in more detail, consider
returning back to Chapter 2 where more examples are provided.

Adjunctive
1. Adverbs of degree: The student completely forgot about studying for the exam.

2. Adverbs of frequency: It will take the students forever to get a high score on the test.

3. Adverbs of manner: The tutor resentfully answered yet another student email.

4. Adverbs of place: The students who were absent were falling behind.

5. Adverbs of time: The teacher is too tired and will have to mark the exams later.

Conjunctive
6. Additive adverbs: Additionally, VOCs significantly impact air quality.

7. Contrastive adverbs: VOCs are not the primary cause, however.

8. Listing adverbs: Finally, there are the multitude of greenhouse gases.

9. Resultative adverbs: Therefore, pulmonary cancer rates are increasing.

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10. Relative adverbs: 4 o’clock is when the exam will finish.

11. Interrogative adverbs: When will the exam end?

Disjunctive
12. Adverbs of attitude: Smith (2020) correctly delineates the issue.

13. Adverbs of certainty: These results are undeniably conclusive.

14. Adverbs of doubt: Such findings are only theoretically conclusive.

15. Hedging adverbs: This decrease is possibly due to government policy.

16. Source adverbs: According to Smith (2020), emissions are increasing.

Which types are common in academic language?

When using English for Academic Purposes (EAP), it’s important to recognise which
adverb types are common and which are infrequently used. We’ve therefore
summarised their use for you in the following table. Those types with the most ticks
(✓) are the most important to study as they are used most frequently:

The 16 Types of Adverb (in Academia)

1. Adverbs of degree entirely, most, thoroughly, somewhat, very ✓✓✓

2. Adverbs of frequency always, never, often, rarely, sometimes ✓✓✓

3. Adverbs of manner carefully, equally, kindly, nicely, quickly ✓✓

4. Adverbs of place here, nowhere, there, through, sideways ✓

5. Adverbs of time 10am, now, Sunday, today, yesterday ✓

6. Additive adverbs in addition, furthermore, moreover ✓✓✓✓✓

7. Contrastive adverbs however, in contrast, furthermore ✓✓✓✓✓

8. Listing adverbs finally, firstly, secondly ✓✓✓✓

9. Resultative adverbs consequently, therefore, thus ✓✓✓✓

10. Relative adverbs whatever, where, when ✓

11. Interrogative adverbs how, when, where, why ✓

12. Adverbs of attitude correctly, predictably, unexpectedly ✓✓✓

13. Adverbs of certainty clearly, indisputably, undeniably ✓✓

14. Adverbs of doubt hypothetically, seemingly, theoretically ✓✓✓

15. Hedging adverbs maybe, perhaps, possibly ✓✓✓✓✓

16. Source adverbs according to, evidently, reportedly ✓✓✓✓

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Student: Q1 Total

Class: /16 /16

Grammar Practice > Word Types > Adverbs ✓

Answers to the following activities can be found in the Chapter 3

Chapter 3 Activities Worksheet and attached answer key. After completing these tasks, check
your score, take a quick break and then consider studying another reader.

1. Using any of the example adverbs provided below, write your own
academic sentences for each of the sixteen adverb types:

entirely, most, thoroughly,

1. Adverbs of degree
somewhat, very

always, never, often,

2. Adverbs of frequency
rarely, sometimes

carefully, equally, kindly,

3. Adverbs of manner
nicely, quickly

here, nowhere, there,

4. Adverbs of place
through, sideways

10am, now, Sunday, today,

5. Adverbs of time
yesterday

in addition, furthermore,
6. Additive adverbs
moreover

however, in contrast,
7. Contrastive adverbs
furthermore

8. Listing adverbs finally, firstly, secondly

consequently, therefore,
9. Resultative adverbs
thus

10. Relative adverbs whatever, where, when

11. Interrogative adverbs how, when, where, why

correctly, predictably,
12. Adverbs of attitude
unexpectedly

clearly, indisputably,
13. Adverbs of certainty
undeniably

hypothetically, seemingly,
14. Adverbs of doubt
theoretically

15. Hedging adverbs maybe, perhaps, possibly

according to, evidently,

16. Source adverbs
reportedly

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 Chapter 3 Answer Key

1. Using any of the example adverbs provided below, write your own
academic sentences for each of the sixteen adverb types:

entirely, most, thoroughly,

1. Adverbs of Degree The findings were thoroughly proven.
somewhat, very

always, never, often,

2. Adverbs of frequency Theories are sometimes disproven quickly.
rarely, sometimes

carefully, equally, kindly,

3. Adverbs of manner The chemicals were carefully mixed together.
nicely, quickly

here, nowhere, there,

4. Adverbs of place Nowhere on earth is devoid of air pollution.
through, sideways

10am, now, Sunday, today,

5. Adverbs of time Your essay deadline is this Sunday at 10pm.
yesterday

in addition, furthermore,
6. Additive adverbs Additionally, carbon monoxide is another factor.
moreover

however, in contrast,
7. Contrastive adverbs However, this is simply untrue for most people today.
furthermore

8. Listing adverbs finally, firstly, secondly Governments finally intervened in the matter.

consequently, therefore,
9. Resultative adverbs This thus meant that more investment was possible.
thus

10. Relative adverbs whatever, where, when People believe whatever comforts them most.

11. Interrogative adverbs how, when, where, why The question is, why would anyone infect themselves?

correctly, predictably,
12. Adverbs of attitude The findings were predictably favourable.
unexpectedly

clearly, indisputably,
13. Adverbs of certainty Obama was indisputably the most charismatic.
undeniably

hypothetically, seemingly,
14. Adverbs of doubt This is only hypothetically possible.
theoretically

15. Hedging adverbs maybe, perhaps, possibly That factor alone is possibly the primary cause.

according to, evidently,

16. Source adverbs Smith (2020) is reportedly correct in his assumptions.
reportedly

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