What is an Adverb

If you are wondering what an adverb is, then you are probably taking a grammar class or trying to diagram a sentence! Too many people are uncertain of exactly what an adverb is, and may never ask the question. As a result, grammatical mistakes get made. In fact, adjective and adverb errors are so common, you may come across them every day and not even be aware that you are hearing one. Fortunately, this article answers the question of what is an adverb and provides you with some information about the most common adverb errors in English.

What is an Adverb
An adverb is a descriptive word that describes- or modifies, as grammarians put it- a verb, an adjective or another adverb. For those who are a little hazy on their parts of speech in general:

y y y y

A verb is an action word (jump, run, swim, ski, fish, talk) An adjective is a descriptive word that describes a noun (pretty, happy, silly, sunny) A noun is a person, place or thing (girl, dog, mom) An adverb is--- well, the very thing we are trying to define--- another descriptive word.

It is easy to see how adjectives describe, or modify, verbs, since they simply explain how you do the action. For example:

y y y

He quickly runs She slowly walks He happily chatters

However, it may become a bit more confusing when you consider the fact that adverbs also describe adjectives or other adverbs. After all, how can a descriptive word modify or describe another descriptive word? Its simple- they just provide more information about that other descriptive word. For example:

He very quickly runs. In this sentence, quickly is an adverb describing the word runs. Very is another adverb, this time describing the word quickly. Likewise, in the sentence The very pretty girl, pretty is an adjective describing the noun girl. Very is an adverb describing the adjective pretty.

How Can You Tell if You have an Adverb?

You can tell whether or not a word is an adjective by considering its function in the sentence. If it is describing one of those three parts of speech- a verb, adjective or other adverb- it is an adverb. You can also tell whether something is an adverb by looking at the ending of the word. A lot of adverbs- not all, but a lot- end in ly. For example, happily, quickly, speedily, steadily, foolishly, and angrily are all adverbs. So, if you said:

He happily runs

You can tell that happily is an adverb because it is describing the word runs and because it ends in ly. Many frequency words are adverbs as well. For example, very, much, more and many can all be adverbs.

y y

The very pretty girl The much smarter boy

Common Errors
People often mistakenly use adjectives when they should use an adverb and vice versa. For example, a sentence that reads:

He behaved very bad on the field trip

Is incorrect, because bad is modifying or describing behaved, which is a verb. It should read

He behaved very badly.

On the other hand, if you said:

His behavior is bad

That would be correct, because in this case, the word bad is an adjective describing the noun behavior. This error occurs most commonly with the words good and well. Well is an adverb that modifies a verb (he listens well), or even an adjective (the well educated boy). While good is an adjective that should modify nouns (the good boy). To practice, identify the adverb in each of the following sentences. 1. Jim will miss the many wonderful people at work. 2. Joe walked slowly and steadily up the hill. 3. Becky ate quickly and then felt silk. 4. Joe is very late. 5. Clark wanted to be the great big house. Ads by Google Learn English in Toronto - General English Language Courses in Toronto, Canada, Start Next Monday! www.SchoolofEnglish.org.uk/Toronto TEFL courses - Accredited, recognised TEFL courses TEFL jobs in UK and abroad www.tefltraining.org English grammar worksheets - Printable Grammar Worksheet For ESL Teachers. Log On Today! www.ESL-Library.com/Grammar

Answers:
1. Jim will miss the many wonderful people at work. Many is the adverb, which modifies the adjective wonderful, which modifies the noun people 2. Joe walked slowly and steadily up the hill. Slowly and steadily are both adverbs here, describing the way Joe walked. 3. Becky ate quickly and then felt silk. Quickly is the adverb here, modifying the verb ate. 4. Joe is very late. Very is an adverb modifying late which is an adjective modifying Joe.

5. Clark wanted to be the great big house. Great is an adverb modifying big which is an adjective modifying house. Now that you know what an adverb is, you will be able to avoid making adjective/adverb mistakes, and youll be able to properly describe all of your actions from here on out. Now, go and happily brag to your friends all about your new knowledge.