wunder beta✏️ Adjectives vs. Adverbs
An adjective dresses up a thing (the slow dog). An adverb usually dresses up an action (the dog walks slowly). One question tells you which word you need.
What you’ll learn
- Two Kinds of Describing WordsUnderstand that describing words split into two jobs: adjectives describe things, adverbs usually describe actions.Describing words add detail like pots of paint. Adjectives describe things (nouns), such as the fluffy dog. Adverbs usually describe actions (verbs), such as she sang loudly. Point at what you are describing and you know which word to use.
- Adjectives Dress Up ThingsIdentify adjectives and where they sit, and understand that they describe nouns.An adjective describes a noun (a thing), telling what kind, what color, or what size. It usually sits just before the noun (the fluffy cat) or after a linking word (the cat is fluffy), and it makes the picture of the thing sharper.
- Adverbs Tell You HowIdentify adverbs, understand they usually describe verbs, and use the -ly clue without treating it as a law.An adverb usually describes an action (a verb), telling how it happens (she sang beautifully). Many adverbs are made by adding -ly to an adjective (quick to quickly). Fast, well, high, hard, late, and early do the same job without -ly.
- The Big TestChoose between an adjective and an adverb by asking whether a thing or an action is being described.When two forms look similar, ask one question: am I describing a thing or an action? The slow turtle describes the turtle (a thing, adjective). The turtle moves slowly describes moving (an action, adverb).
- Never Mix Them UpFix the real good/well mix-up, leave flat adverbs like drive slow alone, and form common -ly adverbs.She sings good needs well, because good is an adjective and well is the adverb. Drive slow is not the same mistake: slow is a flat adverb, and both slow and slowly are English. Most other adjectives become adverbs by adding -ly (happy to happily).
Questions this course answers
What is the main difference between an adjective and an adverb?
Adjectives describe things (nouns). Adverbs usually describe actions (verbs) — and can also dress up other describing words.
In 'the fluffy cat slept,' what is the word 'fluffy' doing?
'Fluffy' is an adjective describing the noun 'cat.' It tells us what kind of cat, so it points at a thing.
In 'the cat slept quietly,' what does the adverb 'quietly' describe?
'Quietly' is an adverb. It describes the verb 'slept' by telling us HOW the cat slept — it points at an action, not a thing.
You see the word 'softly.' What is a good first guess about it, and why?
Many adverbs are made by adding -ly to an adjective (soft becomes softly). The -ly ending is a strong first clue, not a perfect rule.
Which sentence uses the describing word correctly?
'Sang' is an action, so it needs an adverb. 'Beautifully' correctly describes how the singer sang. Beautiful would dress up a thing, not the singing.
Someone writes 'She sings good.' Why is that mixed up, and how do you fix it?
'Sings' is a verb (an action), so it needs an adverb. The adverb form of 'good' is 'well,' so the correct sentence is 'She sings well.'
Grounded in trusted sources
- Purdue University Online Writing Lab, Adjective or Adverb? (Rule #1: adjectives modify nouns; adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs; many adverbs are formed by adding -ly. Rule #2: an adjective follows a form of to be when it modifies the noun before the verb — I was nervous. Good or well: good is an adjective, so you do not do good or live good, but you do well and live well; after sense-verbs and be-verbs, feel good / look good / are good is fine), https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/grammar/how_to_use_adjectives_and_adverbs/adjective_or_adverb.html
- British Council LearnEnglish, Adverbials of manner (adverbs of manner are usually formed from adjectives by adding -ly: bad > badly, quiet > quietly; spelling changes easy > easily; the adverb formed from good is well; a few adverbs of manner have the same form as the adjective: hard, late/early, fast; do not use adverbs of manner after link verbs — They looked happy, not happily), https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/free-resources/grammar/english-grammar-reference/adverbials-manner
- Merriam-Webster, Drive Safe or Drive Safely / In praise of flat adverbs (both drive safe and drive safely are acceptable; a flat adverb has the same form as its related adjective — safe in drive safe, slow in go slow, easy in take it easy; most still compete with an -ly form: slow and slowly, safe and safely), https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/drive-safe-or-safely
- Cambridge Dictionary, Adjectives and adverbs (adjectives describe the qualities of people and things — poor, blue, interesting; adverbs indicate the time, place, manner, degree or frequency of an event or action), https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/adjectives-and-adverbs
- Common Core State Standards Initiative, English Language Arts Standards, Language, Grade 2: L.2.1.e Use adjectives and adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be modified; L.2.6 using adjectives and adverbs to describe, https://www.thecorestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/L/2/
- Standards and Testing Agency / GOV.UK, Key stage 1 English grammar, punctuation and spelling test framework (content domain G1.6 Adverbs: use of –ly in standard English to turn adjectives into adverbs; drawn from national curriculum Appendix 2), https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/key-stage-1-english-grammar-punctuation-and-spelling-test-framework/key-stage-1-english-grammar-punctuation-and-spelling-test-framework
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