Types of Adverbs for intermediate learners
Adverbs give us a description of a verb in a sentence. There are five basic types of adverbs in the English language.
What Are Adverbs?
Adverbs are structures that modify verbs, adjectives, phrases, and other adverbs. We have different types of adverbs and they are used in various contexts. Below is a list of all kinds of adverbs in English:
Now, let us examine some of the most common and useful adverbs below:
Adverbs of Time
In order to specify the time in a statement, we mainly use the adverbs of time. Study the following examples carefully:
I've got too much on my hands
Here, the sentence is referring to a specific time.
She will be gone
Tip!
It is useful to know that mainly we put the adverbs of time at the end of the statements.
Adverbs of Manner
When we want to talk about 'how' things happen, we use adverbs of manner. Let us take a look at the following examples:
Pour the boiling water in the bowl
Richard plays the electric guitar
Adverbs of Place
Adverbs of place tell us where actions take place. Some call them spatial adverbs. Let us examine some examples below:
Warning!
Please note that adverbs of place refer to the location of the action that took place. However, adverbs of movement and direction modify verbs that show a movement or are giving directions. Compare the following examples:
I'm going to take a walk
As you can see, the adverb is showing a movement.
I live
Here, the adverb is showing the location.
Adverbs of Frequency
Adverbs of frequency are another kind of adverbs that native speakers frequently use. This group refers to 'how often' action takes place. Let us take a look at some examples below:
Sarah
They are
Tip!
It is useful to know that we can place adverbs of frequency either before the main verb, after the 'to be' verb, or after the auxiliary verb in statements.
Adverbs of Probability
Adverbs of probability are mainly used to show the possibility of an event taking place. In other words, it refers to how likely something will or will not happen. Take a look at the following examples:
It will