Very

'Very' is pretty standard in the English language, In this lesson, we will learn all about it. Come one.

'Very' is one of those words that every professional English speaker must be familiar with. In this lesson, we will discuss how to learn and use it.

'Very' as an Adverb

As stated above, 'very' can function as an adverb. Let us see what kind of an adverb it is, below:

Use

'Very' as an Intensifier

'Very' as an intensifier mainly modifies adjectives, adverbs, etc., and emphasizes them to a higher degree. However, below we are going to learn all about its different meanings as an adverb:

It means 'extremely':

I still cannot understand why she got very angry at me.

You have very piercing eyes, Martha.

When we want to emphasize that something was said/done before, it mainly comes before 'same':

This is exactly the very same thing we did last time.

Am I the only one who thinks this is the very same thing I said a few minutes ago?

When we want to emphasize something belongs to someone, we use it before 'own':

No one can stop me cause it's my very own money.

Stop it mom! It's his very own car!

When we want to emphasize superlative adjectives, we use 'very' before them:

In the very least, we get to talk to you.

Here, 'least' is the superlative form of 'little'.

The very best thing you can do right now is to stay quite.

Position in a Sentence

Since 'very' is an adverb here, it mainly comes before adjectives, adverbs, or specific words like 'same', 'own', etc. Look below:

The very worst kind of girl you ever meet is her.

They told me the news and I got very sad.

Anna just said the very same thing, though.

'Very' as an Adjective

'Very' can also come before nouns and function as adjectives. Below we are going to learn all about it:

Use

'Very' as an Attributive Adjective

'Very' can modify nouns that come after them; so, they go under the name of 'attributive adjectives'. Look at the following list for more clarification:

When we want to emphasize what we are saying:

So, you tell me this at this very moment?

As you can see, we have a noun after it.

A one-week break from everything is the very thing I need right now.

When we want to emphasize the time or place of something/someone, we use it:

They kissed at the very end of the movie.

The very reason we are doing this is because we still care for you.

Position in a Sentence

Attributive adjectives always come before the nouns they are modifying. So, 'very' always precedes the noun. Look at the following examples:

The very thought of going back to my ex makes me wanna vomit.

Being an extrovert is in your very nature.

Idioms and Expressions with 'Very'

We only have one idiom with 'very' and we are going to learn about it below:

Before/in front of one's very eyes: When something happens in the presence of someone, we use it:

Right before my very eyes, he took her hand and left.

The students shouted at the manager before the governor's very eyes.

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