Adverbs of manner

In a Nutshell

The vocabulary and grammar rules approached in this summary are about the adverbs of manner, why and when to use them and how are they formed. Adverbs of manner describe how you perform an action and are really useful because they allow us to add extra details to descriptions, which translates into a more interesting and dynamic dialogue for the listener or reader.

Info 1: Adverbs formation

There are some rules on how to form an adverb of manner. Usually, the suffix -ly is added to the adjective. When the adjective ends in -y, the last letter is changed to an -i and -ly is added. But when the adjective ends in -c, an -a is added and then -lly goes at the end of the word.

Suffix	Adjective	Adverb
-ly	Quick	Quickly
-ly	Careful	Carefully
-ily	Happy	Happily
-ily	Easy	Easily
-ally	Specific	Specifically
-ally	Ethic	Ethically

Info 2: Irregular adverbs

There are some irregular adverbs to which the previous rules don't apply.

Adjective	Adverb
Good	Well
Hard	Hard
Fast	Fast
Late	Late
Straight	Straight
High	High

Info 3: Order into a sentence

In most cases, adverbs of manner come after a verb.

Examples:

The students are listening carefully.

We dress casually on Tuesdays.

However, the adverb is sometimes placed before the verb, in order to add emphasis to the meaning.

Examples:

They sadly left before you arrived.

I quickly washed the dishes.

In the case of having two verbs in one sentence, the position of the adverb can change the meaning.

Example:

They cooked dinner immediately and served it.

They cooked dinner and immediately served it.

Note: An adverb of manner cannot be placed between a verb and its direct object.