2. What's an Adverb?
• Adverbs are one of the form classes in
grammar.
• They are the hardest to pin down in terms of
both form and position.
• Many adverbs have no distinguishing affixes.
• Adverbs do not fill required slots in sentence
patterns, except in Pattern I.
• Certain verbs in Patterns VI and VII, such as lay,
put, place, and set, do require adverbials.
3. Moveable Adverbs
• Adverbs are often movable, which is a
distinguishing characteristic.
• They can be placed in various positions within a
sentence.
• The flexibility of adverbs to move allows for different
emphasis and nuances in the sentence.
4. Adverbs for Traditional Grammar
• The class we call "adverb" differs from the
traditional grammar's definition of "adverb."
• In traditional grammar, adverbs are defined as
words that modify a verb, adjective, or another
adverb.
• This traditional definition includes "qualifiers" that
intensify or qualify the meaning of adjectives and
adverbs (e.g., very nice, quite slow, rather quickly).
5. Adverbs for Traditional Grammar
Let's take a look at some examples of traditional
adverbs:
• He runs quickly. (modifying the verb "runs")
• She sings beautifully. (modifying the verb "sings")
• It's extremely hot today. (modifying the adjective
"hot")
• They are quite skilled. (modifying the adjective
"skilled")
• The car moves very slowly. (modifying the adverb
"slowly")
6. Defining Adverb
• Our definition of "adverb" is based on their
inflectional and derivational affixes and the words
that signal them.
• We classify adverbs as a distinct form class based
on their unique characteristics.
• The definition of "adverbial" is related to a function
in a sentence, not a word class.
7. Adverb Derivational Suffixes
• One common indicator of form for adverbs is the
derivational suffix "-ly."
• We use "-ly" to derive adverbs of manner from
adjectives, which describe how or in what way an
action is performed with respect to the verb.
• Example: He walked slowly.
9. -ly Suffix and Its Usage
• The "-ly" suffix can be added to both nouns and
adjectives to form adverbs.
• Examples:
⚬ Nouns to adverbs: folly (from fool), lovely (from
love), ugly (from ugliness).
⚬ Adjectives to adverbs: quickly (from quick),
smoothly (from smooth).
10. -ly Suffix and Its Usage
Let's begin with examples of how the "-ly" suffix can
transform nouns into adverbs:
• Noun: folly → Adverb: foolishly
• Sentence: He acted foolishly during the meeting.
• Noun: lovely → Adverb: lovingly
• Sentence: The mother gazed lovingly at her
newborn baby.
• Noun: ugly → Adverb: uglily
• Sentence: The old building was constructed rather
uglily.
11. Restrictions on
Adjective-to-Adverb
Transformation
• Not all adjectives can become manner adverbs; restrictions are based on
meaning.
• Adjectives describing states, fixed characteristics, or inherent qualities tend
not to become manner adverbs.
• Examples of such adjectives: tall, old, fat, young, short, thick, large, flat,
round, red.
12. Restrictions on
Adjective-to-Adverb
Transformation
Let's take a look at examples of adjectives that cannot be transformed into manner adverbs:
• Tall: She grew taller every year. (Correct)
• He ran tallly across the field. (Incorrect)
• Old: The book is old and worn. (Correct)
• The tree swayed oldly in the breeze. (Incorrect)
• Fat: He is gaining weight and becoming fatter. (Correct)
• She smiled fattily at the joke. (Incorrect)
13. Specialized Adverbs
from Objective
Adjectives
• Some objective or stative adjectives may become manner adverbs, but
with specialized, often metaphorical meanings.
• Examples: shortly (from short), hardly (from hard), flatly (from flat), squarely
(from square).
14. Specialized Adverbs
from Objective
Adjectives
Let's examine some examples of specialized adverbs derived from objective adjectives:
• Adjective: short → Adverb: shortly
• Meaning: Shortly refers to a brief or concise period of time.
• Example: The meeting will end shortly.
• Adjective: hard → Adverb: hardly
• Meaning: Hardly means almost not or barely.
• Example: He hardly had any time to spare.
15. Other Derivational
Suffixes for Adverbs
• Besides "-ly," two other derivational suffixes create adverbs: "-ward" and "-wise."
• "-ward" indicates direction in words like homeward, forward, backward, upward,
downward.
• "-wise" indicates manner and includes both old usages (e.g., otherwise,
lengthwise, crosswise) and newer, potentially unnecessary jargon (e.g.,
budgetwise, weatherwise, moneywise, profitwise).
16. Other Derivational
Suffixes for Adverbs
Examples:
• Homeward: They journeyed homeward after the vacation.
• Forward: The team moved forward with their plans.
• Backward: He stumbled backward after the sudden push.
• The "-wise" suffix is used to indicate manner, showing how something is done or the way it is
related.
Examples:
• Otherwise: She was busy; otherwise, she would have joined us.
• Lengthwise: Cut the fabric lengthwise to make it longer.
• Crosswise: Place the boards crosswise to form a stable structure.
17. 01
02
03
04
Activity - Exploring -ly Words
Sentence
Analysis
• In groups or individually, analyze each
sentence and identify the part of speech for
the "-ly" words.
• Discuss your findings and reasoning with
your classmates
YOU MAY START
NOW!
18. Sentence Analysis
• Sentence 1: We're leaving immediately and driving directly to Austin.
⚬ Are the "-ly" words adverbs, adjectives, nouns, or verbs?
• Sentence 2: Bob will be leaving directly.
⚬ What part of speech is the "-ly" word?
• Sentence 3: The natives around here are not always friendly.
⚬ Identify the "-ly" word and its part of speech.
• Sentence 4: One person I met tried to bully me.
⚬ Determine the part of speech for the "-ly" word.
• Sentence 5: He wasn't particularly neighborly.
⚬ Classify the "-ly" word in this sentence.
• Sentence 6: Shedding tears is not considered manly.
⚬ Is the "-ly" word an adverb, adjective, noun, or verb?
• Sentence 7: That is hardly a universal belief, however.
⚬ Identify the "-ly" word and its part of speech.
• Sentence 8: My belly aches, but I flatly refuse to stay home.
⚬ Determine the part of speech for the "-ly" word.
19. Correct Answers
• "immediately" and "directly" are adverbs.
• "directly" is an adverb.
• "always" is an adverb, and "friendly" is an adjective.
• There are no "-ly" words in this sentence.
• "particularly" is an adverb, and "neighborly" is an adjective.
• "manly" is an adjective.
• "hardly" is an adverb.
• "flatly" is an adverb.
21. Comparative and
Superlative F orms
• The comparative (-er) and superlative (-est) inflections
apply to adverbs and adjectives, but the use with adverbs is
more limited.
• The comparative form of -ly adverbs is often formed by
adding "more" rather than -er.
• The superlative degree with -ly adverbs (e.g., most suddenly,
most favorably) is rare in both speech and writing. It draws
attention to itself and is usually the main focus of the
sentence.
22. Flat Adverbs
• Some adverbs are formed from adjectives without
the addition of -ly. These are known as flat adverbs.
• Examples of flat adverbs: early, late, hard, fast, long,
high, low, deep, near.
• Flat adverbs can take -er and -est to form
comparative and superlative degrees, along with a
few others like soon and often. Most -ly adverbs use
"more" and sometimes "most" to form comparisons.
23. Examples
• Here are some examples of flat adverbs:
⚬ early: She arrived early for the meeting.
⚬ late: They stayed out late last night.
⚬ hard: He works hard every day.
⚬ fast: The car drove fast down the highway.
⚬ long: They waited long for the bus.
⚬ high: The kite flew high in the sky.
⚬ low: The temperature dropped low during the
night.
⚬ deep: The diver went deep into the ocean.
⚬ near: The grocery store is located near the park.
24. Adverbs Without Affixes
• Many adverbs lack derivational or inflectional affixes that
distinguish them as adverbs.
• Instead, we recognize them based on the information they
provide, their position in the sentence, and their movability.
• Examples of adverbs without affixes:
⚬ Time: now, today, nowadays, yesterday
⚬ Duration: already, always, still, yet
• Frequency: often, seldom, never, sometimes, always
• Location: there, here, everywhere, somewhere,
elsewhere, upstairs, abroad, outside, nearby
• Direction: away, thence
• Concession: still, yet
• Sequence: afterward, next, then
25. Prepositions and Adverbs
• Some words, such as above, around, behind, below,
down, in, inside, out, outside, up, can serve as either
prepositions or adverbs.
• These words do not have distinct forms as
prepositions or adverbs, and their usage depends
on the context.
26. Examples
• Above:
⚬ Preposition: The plane is flying above the clouds.
⚬ Adverb: The kite soared above.
• Around:
⚬ Preposition: Let's take a walk around the park.
⚬ Adverb: She twirled around.
• In:
⚬ Preposition: The keys are in the drawer.
⚬ Adverb: He walked in.
27. Something to
Ponder
• Adverbs can be derived using suffixes like "-ly," "-ward," and "-wise" to
modify adjectives and create words that express manner, direction, or
particular qualities.
• Understanding adverb derivational suffixes enhances our understanding of
how language is formed and used in various contexts.
• Adverb inflectional suffixes provide comparative and superlative degrees
for some adverbs, but the majority use "more" and "most" for comparisons.
• Adverbs without affixes are recognized by their function, position, and
mobility in sentences.
• Understanding the various forms of adverbs enhances our comprehension
of their roles in language.
