Adverbs of Manner
Adverbs of manner describe how an action is performed. They are the most common type of adverb and are mostly formed by adding -ly to an adjective.
What are adverbs of manner?
An adverb of manner tells us how something is done. It modifies a verb and answers the question "How?"
She smiled warmly. → How did she smile? Warmly.
He drove carelessly. → How did he drive? Carelessly.
The children played happily. → How did they play? Happily.
Forming adverbs of manner
| Rule | Adjective | Adverb of manner |
|---|---|---|
| Add -ly | slow, loud, clear, soft | slowly, loudly, clearly, softly |
| -y → -ily | angry, easy, heavy, noisy | angrily, easily, heavily, noisily |
| -le → -ly | gentle, simple, terrible | gently, simply, terribly |
| -ic → -ically | dramatic, frantic | dramatically, frantically |
| No change (irregular) | fast, hard, late, early | fast, hard, late, early |
| Irregular | good | well |
Position of adverbs of manner
Adverbs of manner almost always come after the verb or after the object (if there is one). They do not normally go between the verb and its object.
- After an intransitive verb (no object): She sang beautifully. He ran quickly.
- After the object: She read the letter carefully. He kicked the ball hard.
- NOT between verb and object: ✗ She read carefully the letter. ✓ She read the letter carefully.
He completed the task efficiently. ✓ (after object)
She spoke quietly to the children. ✓ (after verb)
They worked hard all day. ✓ (after verb)
He efficiently completed the task. ✓ (before verb — also acceptable, less common)
Common adverbs of manner
| Adverb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| carefully | with care and attention | Read the instructions carefully. |
| quickly | at speed | She quickly finished her homework. |
| slowly | without hurrying | He walked slowly down the street. |
| loudly | with a lot of noise | He shouted loudly for help. |
| quietly | with little noise | Please speak quietly in the library. |
| well | in a good way | She plays the piano well. |
| badly | in a poor way | The team played badly last night. |
| hard | with great effort | He worked hard to pass the exam. |
| gently | softly, with care | She gently picked up the baby. |
| suddenly | without warning | He suddenly stopped talking. |
Adverb of manner vs. adjective
This is the most common source of errors. After action verbs, use an adverb. After linking verbs (be, seem, look, feel, sound, taste, smell), use an adjective.
| Adjective (after linking verb) | Adverb (after action verb) |
|---|---|
| The music sounds beautiful. | She sang beautifully. |
| He looks nervous. | He spoke nervously. |
| The soup tastes good. | She cooks well. |
| She feels calm. | She answered calmly. |
Good vs. well: Good is an adjective: She is a good singer. Well is the adverb: She sings well. Never say She sings good — this is one of the most common errors in English.
Tip: Ask yourself: does the word describe a noun (adjective) or does it describe how an action is done (adverb)? "She is a careful driver" — careful describes the noun driver. "She drives carefully" — carefully describes how she drives.