Adverbs for Manner
Placement (usual word order)
A burglar is opening a safe.
Adverbs for Manner – Placement
| MODIFYING A VERB | MODIFYING AN ADJECTIVE | MODIFYING A CLAUSE |
|---|---|---|
An adverb for manner is usually placed after the verb. It tells us how the action or activity was performed. |
An adverb for manner is placed before an adjective. It modifies the quality or character of the adjective. |
A manner adverb or an evaluation adverb (stance) placed before a clause expresses the attitude of the speaker on content of the clause. |
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He listened closely. |
He was sadly mistaken. |
Silently, the police surrounded the bank. |
He spoke softly. |
He was regretfully wrong. |
Illegally, he broke into the safe and took the money. |
He worked quickly. |
He is extraordinarily good at safe-cracking. |
Fortunately, he was acting the scene for a movie. |
safe (n.) – a strong metal box where valuable things such as money and jewelry can be locked away.
dial (n.) – the round mechanism that one turns to enter numbers. (Now, a keypad is usually used.)
sadly mistaken (expression) – an idea based on an incorrect understanding
safe-cracking (n.) – to open a safe illegally and steal the things inside it
Adverb Placement
Modifying a Verb
Manner Adverb Placement — Modifying a Verb
| BEFORE A VERB | BETWEEN AN AUXILIARY AND MAIN VERB | AFTER A VERB + OBJECT |
|---|---|---|
An adverb for manner is commonly placed before the main verb. The placement can also be used for emphasis. |
When an auxiliary verb is present, the adverb for manner is placed after the auxiliary and before the main verb. |
An adverb is placed after the verb and its object or object phrase when no particular emphasis on it is desired. |
Three Positions for Placement
| BEFORE THE VERB | BETWEEN THE AUXILIARY AND MAIN VERB | AFTER THE VERB |
|---|---|---|
For emphasis, an adverb for manner can be placed before a verb if the verb is a transitive verb. |
An adverb for manner commonly occurs between an auxiliary verb and the main verb. |
An adverb for manner may also be placed after the verb (and after the object if there is one.) |
| TRANSITIVE VERBS | ||
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He continuously watched the front door. |
He was continuously watching the front door. |
He watched the front door continuously. |
He cautiously laid his tools on the floor. |
He was cautiously laying his tools on the floor. |
He laid his tools on the floor cautiously. |
He slowly raised his head to listen to the dial turning. |
He would slowly raise his head to listen. (repeatedly) |
He raised his head slowly to listen to the dial turning. |
| INTRANSITIVE VERBS | ||
*He closely listened. (intrans. v. – sounds awkward) |
*He doesn't closely listen. (intran. v. – sounds awkward) |
He listened closely. |
*He softly spoke. (intrans. v. – sounds awkward) |
*He should softly speak. (intran. v. – sounds awkward) |
He spoke softly. |
*He quietly lay under the counter. (past tense) |
?He was quietly lying under the counter.? |
He lay quietly under the counter. |
He carefully rose to check the front door. |
?He was carefully rising to check the front door. |
He rose carefully to check the front door. . |
He quickly walked away. (intrans. v. – sounds OK) |
He would quickly walk away. |
He walked away quickly. |
* incorrect usage /
? questionable usage
intransitive verb (intrans. v.) – a verb without an object complement
transitive verb (trans. v.) – a verb with an object complement
Manner Adverb Placement – Exceptions
| MEDIAL POSITION |
|---|
Adverbs with no -ly forms – hard, fast, good, late, well – are not placed between the auxiliary and main verb. (Note that early and daily are irregular because they .) |
* The wind was hard blowing over the crowd. |
*The emotion was fast rising inside the hearts of the people. |
*All agreed that the event had well gone. |
*The organizers were late called. |
*President Obama was early starting work. |
| FINAL POSITION |
|---|
Some irregular adverbs without -ly forms can only occur after the verb phrase. |
The wind was blowing hard over the crowd. |
The emotion was rising fast inside the hearts of the people. |
All agreed that the event had gone well. |
The organizers were called late. |
President Obama was starting work early. (end of sentence) |
Related page: "right over"
Adverb Placement
Modifying an Adjective
Manner Adverb Placement — Modifying an Adjective
| BEFORE AN ADJECTIVE |
|---|
An adverb for manner can also modify an adjective – the quality or character of someone/thing. |
He was purposefully silent. |
He is extraordinarily good at safe-cracking. |
He was regretfully wrong. |
He was remarkably quick. |
| BEFORE A PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVE |
|---|
An adverb for manner can modify an adjective formed from a passive verb, ending in -ed. (Part Adj) |
He was sadly mistaken. |
The safe was badly damaged. (participial adj.) |
The burglar was clearly experienced. |
The actor was skillfully prepared. |
purposefully silent – silent on purpose)
sadly mistaken (expression) – an idea based on a wrong understanding
Adverb Placement
Modifying a Clause (Stance Adverb of Evaluation)
Manner Adverb Placement — Modifying Clause
| INITIALLY PLACED ADVERB SET OFF BY A COMMA | NORMAL PLACEMENT |
|---|---|
We place a manner adverb at the beginning (separated by a comma) in speech and writing to create a pause. The focus shifts to the adverb creating emphasis or 'setting the scene'. The adjunct modifies the verb phrase of the clause. |
We normally place a manner adverb before the verb or after the direct object. Placing an adverb before the subject is not done. See Adv for Evaluation (Evaluation Adverbs and Speech-act Related Adverbs) |
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*Quietly he turned the dial on the safe. not done He turned the dial quietly on the safe. after object of the verb He quietly turned the dial on the safe. before the verb
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Silently, the police surrounded the bank. means the same →
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*Silently the police surrounded the bank. not done The police surrounded the bank silently. after object of the verb The police silently surrounded the bank . before the verb
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Common Mistakes
Errors and Solutions
| ERROR | SOLUTION |
|---|---|
*We opened quietly the door. adverb placement error
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*He moves quickly the ball toward the goal. adverb placement error |
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*He strangely was very unhappy even though he was wealthy.
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It is strange that he was so unhappy even though he was wealthy. Strangely, he was very unhappy even though he was wealthy. He was strangely unhappy even though he was very wealthy |
Air traffic continues to steadily return to normal across Europe.
Related page: The Split Infinitive Debate
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Move the adverb directly before or after the word you wish it to modify. In this sentence, moving the adverb does not really change the meaning. |
Practice
Telling How an Action is Done
- Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- Click the "check all" button at the bottom of the practice to reveal the answers after you finish, or
c lick the individual "check" buttons #1-16 to compare responses as you go.