Dictionary Translate Grammar Thesaurus +Plus !

" # + Log in / Sign up ) English (UK) * & Search

Adverb phrases & Grammar ' ( English English–Spanish

Spanish–English

Adverb phrases ! # Test your vocabulary with our

fun image quizzes
Grammar > Adjectives and adverbs > Adverbs > Adverb phrases

from English Grammar Today

Adverb phrases: forms

An adverb phrase consists of one or more words. The adverb is the head
of the phrase and can appear alone or it can be modified by other words. Image credits
Adverbs are one of the four major word classes, along with nouns, verbs
and adjectives. Try a quiz now

In the examples the adverb phrases are in bold. The other words that
modify the adverb are underlined:

We usually go on holiday in August.

Time goes very quickly.

The day passed quickly enough.

This works really well for its size.

Luckily for us, the cost was not so high.

We kept the new money quite separately from what we’d already
collected.

In general, these patterns are similar to adjective phrases.

See also:

Adjective phrases

Adverb phrases: types and meanings

An adverb phrase can consist of one adverb or an adverb plus other
words before it (premodification) or after it (postmodification). Adverb
phrases have many different meanings.

In the examples the adverb phrases are in bold. The other words that
modify the adverb are underlined.
! #

WORD OF THE DAY

used to give
example type information money doesn't
about
grow on trees
We walked very carefully across how something
manner
the floor. happens
said to warn someone to be careful
how much money they spend,
because there is only a limited
Here is where I was born. where something amount
place
That’s it. Right there. happens
About this

when something
Dad got home very late. time
happens

how long
This pill will take away the pain
duration something
temporarily.
happens

how often
They almost never invite people to
frequency something BLOG
their house these days.
happens
Rustling leaves and the
howling wind (Sounds, Part 2)
A: Want some sugar in your
March 23, 2022
coffee? something
focusing
specific
B: Only half a spoon, please. Read More

how much or to
That dog behaves incredibly what degree
degree
stupidly! something
happens

The train will probably be late. certainty how certain or

or necessary
It doesn’t necessarily mean that.
necessity something is
NEW WORDS

Unfortunately for me, I can’t

the speaker’s Earthing
evaluative opinion of
speak Italian. March 21, 2022
something

More new words

the speaker’s
Personally, I don’t see why the
viewpoint perspective or
party has to start so early.
reaction

It rained very heavily this summer. relationships

Therefore, many of the vegetables linking between clauses
were very small. and sentences

See also:

Adverbs: types

Adverb phrases: functions

Adverb phrases + verbs
We use adverb phrases most commonly to modify verbs. In the
examples the adverb phrases are in bold. The verbs that they modify are
underlined:

Children grow up really quickly.

I exercise very regularly and I eat quite healthily.

Adverb phrases + be
We use adverb phrases with be. This is especially typical of adverbs of
place:

I’m upstairs. I’ll only be a minute.

A: Have you seen my gloves?

B: They’re right there, on the table.

Adverb phrases + adjectives/adverbs

We use adverb phrases (adv) to modify adjectives and other adverbs:

[ADV] [adjective]
I found it extremely difficult to talk to her.
[ADV] [ADV]
He drives really carefully.

Adverb phrases + other phrases

We use adverb phrases (adv) to modify noun phrases (np) and
prepositional phrases:

[ADV] [NP]
That’s quite a tree. (it’s a tree that is special in some way, e.g. it’s very
big)
[ADV] [pronoun]
There was hardly anyone at the concert.
[ADV] [prepositional phrase]
We climbed right over the top of the hill and down again.

Adverb phrases + determiners

We use adverb phrases to modify determiners, especially words like all,
some, half, many (quantifiers):

Only half of my friends could come to my party.

Very few people have heard of my city. It’s very small.

Popular searches
01 Relative clauses: defining 06 Adverbs and adverb
and non-defining phrases: position

02 Comparison: adjectives 07 Conditionals: other

(bigger, biggest, more expressions (unless, should,
interesting) as long as)

03 Adjectives: forms 08 As, because or since?

04 Formal and informal 09 Verbs: basic forms

language
10 Dates
05 Speak or talk?

Contents ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS EASILY CO NFU SED WO RDS NOUNS, PRONOUNS AND DETERMINERS PREP OSI TIONS AND PARTI CL ES To top %
USING ENGLISH VERBS WORDS, SENTENCES AND CLAUSES

LEARN DEVELOP ABOUT

! " #
New Words Dictionary API Accessibility
Help Double-Click Lookup Cambridge English
In Print Search Widgets Cambridge University Press
Word of the Year License Data Cookies Settings
© Cambridge University Press 2022
Cookies and Privacy
Corpus
Terms of Use