Definition of adverb

ADVERB

An adverb is a word that modifies (describes) a verb (“he sings loudly”), an adjective (“very tall”), another adverb (“ended too quickly”), or even a whole sentence (“Fortunately, I had brought an umbrella.”). Adverbs often end in -ly, but some (such as fast) look exactly the same as their adjective counterparts.

Tom Longboat did not run badly.

Tom is very tall.

The race finished too quickly.

Fortunately, Lucy recorded Tom’s win.

It’s easy to identify the adverbs in these sentences.

Adverb examples

Adverbs are easy to recognize because they usually end in –ly, but not always. Some of the most common adverb examples include:

• really, very
• well, badly
• today, yesterday, everyday, etc.
• sometimes, often, rarely, etc.
• early, late, soon, etc.
• here, there, everywhere, etc.