Adverbs of Manner
Adverbs of manner give us more information about how the verb is done. To learn their grammatical function and how to use them, read this.
They show the way something is happening in a sentence. Take a look at some examples:
You have to walk
Here, we are showing the pace and the way of something.
I found the restroom
He tried to open the door
How Do We Make Adverbs of Manner?
We can usually form an adverb of manner from adjectives by adding the suffix –ly.
- quick + -ly → quick
ly - easy + -ly → easi
ly - quiet + -ly → quiet
ly
However, there can be some changes in the spelling. For example, when an adjective ends in -y we have to change the -y to -i then add -ly:
- eas
y + -ly → easi ly - happ
y + -ly → happi ly - angr
y + -ly → angri ly
If the adjective already has as -ly in the end, we use the phrase in a (...) way/manner to form an adverbial of manner:
- brotherly → in a brotherly manner
He treats his relatives
- silly → in a silly way
She behaved
- deadly → in a deadly way
He stared at his opponent
Some adverbs of manner look exactly the same as the adjectives. These adverbs are called flat adverbs (also called bare adverbs or simple adverbs)
- hard
She worked
- late
Can you stay
- early
I arrived
- fast
Our son is growing up
- high
He kicked the ball
using an adverb of manner in a sentence
Warning
Some of these adjectives have different meanings when they take an -ly in the end:
- hardly
- lately
- highly
I was so shocked I could
What have you been doing
He's a
Adverbs of Manner: placement
Adverbs of manner are usually placed:
- after the main verb and or its object or object phrase
- after the auxiliary and before the main verb
- at the beginning or at the end of a sentence
She plays the piano
He couldn't
She
Cheetahs run
Warning
Adverbs of manner cannot come between a verb and its direct object. We put them either before the verb or at the end of the clause (after the verb).
She ate hungrily
She ate a slice of bread
He walked
He walked towards his house
Tip!
Especially in a literary usage, writers put adverbs of manner at the beginning of a sentence or before a verb + object to put emphasis and draw our attention to the adverb.
She
Is the Place of Adverbs of Manner Important?
The position of an adverb of manner is important when we have more than one verb in the sentence.
- If we put the adverb before or after the main verb, it describes only that verb.
- If we put the adverb after a clause, it describes the whole clause.
Mary
The telling is secret.
Mary told Alan
The telling is secret.
Mary asked Alan to leave her house
The leaving is secret
Warning
We cannot use adverbs of manner after linking verbs. We use adjectives instead:
The girl seemed happily.)
The flowers smelled pleasantly.)
Review
Adverbs of manner modify verbs and they are either placed at the end of the sentence or after the subject. Remember we cannot use adverbs of manner with linking verbs, and they never modify linking verbs.
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