Adverbs of Movement and Direction
Adverb of movement or directions shows an action toward a place or points to a particular direction. In this lesson, we will learn about them.
What Are Adverbs of Movement and Direction?
Adverbs of movement and direction are used to describe a verb that implies an activity or a certain movement. And adverbs of direction point to a particular direction.
Adverbs vs. Prepositions of Movement and Direction
Prepositions are only used to show relations between words, but adverbs are used to describe verbs, adverbs, and adjectives.
Adverbs are not followed by an object and are used after the direct object of a transitive verb, but prepositions are followed by a noun or pronoun as their object. Here are the examples:
I couldn't get
Water will be pumped
How to Use Adverbs of Movement and Direction
Adverbs of movement and direction are used after main verbs or after the direct object of a transitive verb. However, in both ways, we are describing the verb with the adverb.
Remember, we do not use an adverb before the object and after the main verb, if you face this structure you are facing with a preposition, not an adverb.
Here are the examples:
We went
In this example 'went' is a main verb and 'outside' is used after it to define it.
I moved it
Adverbs of Movement and Direction vs. Adverbs of Place
Adverbs of place are used to show a state in a particular place or to indicate where something is; however, adverbs of direction show where something is moving or pointing to.
Some adverbs can be both adverbs of place and adverbs of movement based on the verb that describes. Here are the examples:
Those kids are playing
We will take the dog
Common Adverbs of Movement and Direction
Adverbs of movement and direction are a lot in number, but here are the most common adverbs of ones for more clarification:
Adverbs with Suffixes -ward or -wards
-Wards or -ward is a suffix that forms adverbs showing direction. In American English, and sometimes in British English, -ward is used instead of `-wards' to form adverbs of direction. For example:
- backwards/forwards
- northwards/southwards/eastwards/westwards
- homewards
- inwards
- onwards
- outwards
Take a look at some examples:
I stretched
Adverbs with the Suffix -side
'Outside' and 'inside' are opposite in meaning. Outside means not inside a particular place. 'Upside' means a direction which is to the top area of something. If we use these adverbs with proper verbs which can indicate the movement toward the out area or inside a building then they are adverbs of movement. Here are the examples:
They stay
They take the dog
We will carry the trolley
"inside" is an example of adverbs of movement and direction
Adverbs with the Suffix -stairs
Downstairs is the opposite of upstairs. Downstairs means toward the lower floor of a building, while upstairs means toward the upper floor of a building. Here are the examples:
Carry the bags
I pushed the box
the Adverb Back
Back as an adverb of movement and direction means to a previous place. Here are the examples:
Those animals were sent
Tip!
Usually when the word back is used as an adverb of movement or direction, it is followed by the prepositions in. For example:
They went
Below, Above, Behind, Under, Between
Above, below, under, behind, between are considered adverbs of place and they cannot be used as adverbs of movement or direction when used alone.
The kite was high
Look at the examples
Through
Through means into a place from one side to the another. Here are some examples that may help you understand this adverb better:
Let me
Keep going in straight
Off
The adverb off means away or far from a place. With some verbs, it can actually have a meaning which implies a movement or direction. Here are the examples:
When she heard it, she just drove
Adverbial Phrases
Adverbs can be combined with some prepositions or adverbs and make an adverbial phrase that can also be used as an adverb of movement or direction. Here are the examples:
We were driving
Let us just walk
Adverb Order
Adverbs can be placed in different positions. The only important point is to know that adverbs of movements usually modify verbs, thus they are used before adverbs of time.
But in a sentence, they can be placed at the beginning, middle position, or at the last. Check out the examples:
Driving
We just took the hive
Review
Adverbs of movement and direction show movement toward a particular place or they can point to it. They are placed:
- after the main verb
- after the direct object of a transitive verb
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