Adverbs of Manner

What Are Adverbs of Manner?

An adverb of manner describes how someone does an action or how something happens.

She speaks quietly.

The children played happily.

Please drive carefully.

In these examples, quietly, happily, and carefully describe the verbs speaks, played, and drive. They answer the question "How?"

Question	Answer
How does she speak?	She speaks quietly.
How did they play?	They played happily.
How should I drive?	Drive carefully.

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Adjective or Adverb?

At A2 level, the most important idea is the difference between adjectives and adverbs.

An adjective describes a noun.

An adverb of manner describes a verb.

Adjective	Adverb
He is a careful driver.	He drives carefully.
She is a good singer.	She sings well.
The bus was slow.	The bus moved slowly.
The children were quiet.	The children played quietly.

The Simple Test

Ask yourself: What does the word describe?

Sentence	What does it describe?	Use
She is a quick worker.	worker = noun	adjective
She works quickly.	works = verb	adverb
The answer was honest.	answer = noun	adjective
He answered honestly.	answered = verb	adverb

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Forming Adverbs with -ly

Most adverbs of manner are made by adding -ly to an adjective.

Adjective	Adverb
slow	slowly
kind	kindly
honest	honestly
careful	carefully
quick	quickly
quiet	quietly
loud	loudly
bad	badly

The teacher spoke slowly.

My friend answered honestly.

We listened carefully.

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Spelling Changes

Some adjectives change spelling before -ly.

1. Adjectives ending in consonant + y

Change y to i, then add -ly.

Adjective	Adverb
easy	easily
happy	happily
noisy	noisily
angry	angrily
lazy	lazily

She passed the test easily.

The dog barked noisily.

2. Adjectives ending in -le

Change -le to -ly.

Adjective	Adverb
gentle	gently
simple	simply
terrible	terribly
comfortable	comfortably

He picked up the baby gently.

I explained the problem simply.

3. Adjectives ending in -ic

Add -ally.

Adjective	Adverb
automatic	automatically
basic	basically
dramatic	dramatically

The doors opened automatically.

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Irregular and Same-Form Adverbs

Not every adverb of manner ends in -ly.

Good and Well

Good is an adjective. Well is the adverb.

Adjective	Adverb
She is a good cook.	She cooks well.
He is a good swimmer.	He swims well.
Your English is good.	You speak English well.

Note: Well can also be an adjective when it means “healthy.”

I do not feel well today.

Fast, Hard, and Late

Some words have the same form as an adjective and an adverb.

Adjective	Adverb
She is a fast runner.	She runs fast.
This is hard work.	He works hard.
The train was late.	The train arrived late.

Do not say fastly, hardly for “with effort,” or lately for “late.”

Meaning	Correct
with speed	She runs fast.
with effort	He works hard.
after the expected time	They arrived late.

Hard and Hardly

Hard means “with a lot of effort.”

Hardly means “almost not.”

Sentence	Meaning
I worked hard.	I used a lot of effort.
I hardly worked.	I did almost no work.
She can hardly hear you.	She can almost not hear you.

This is a very important difference.

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Words Ending in -ly That Are Not Adverbs

Some adjectives end in -ly, but they are still adjectives.

Adjective	Example
friendly	She is a friendly person.
lovely	It was a lovely day.
lonely	He felt lonely.
silly	That was a silly mistake.

Do not automatically think every -ly word is an adverb. Check what the word describes.

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Where Do Adverbs of Manner Go?

The most common position is after the verb or after the object.

1. After the Main Verb

Use this when there is no object after the verb.

Pattern	Example
verb + adverb	The baby slept peacefully.
verb + adverb	They laughed loudly.
verb + adverb	The bus moved slowly.

2. After the Object

If the verb has an object, put the adverb after the object, not between the verb and object.

Better	Not This
She opened the door quietly.	She opened quietly the door.
He answered the question correctly.	He answered correctly the question.
They cleaned the room carefully.	They cleaned carefully the room.

3. Before the Main Verb

Some adverbs can go before the main verb, especially when you want to emphasize the manner.

She quietly opened the door.

He carefully carried the glass.

They slowly walked home.

This position is common with adverbs like quietly, carefully, slowly, gently, and calmly.

4. Between an Auxiliary Verb and the Main Verb

When a verb has an auxiliary, an adverb can sometimes go between the auxiliary and the main verb.

She is carefully carrying the cake.

They are patiently waiting outside.

He has quietly finished his work.

For A2 writing, the safest position is usually after the verb or after the object.

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Common A2 Adverbs of Manner

Adverb	Example
carefully	Read the instructions carefully.
clearly	Please speak clearly.
loudly	They talked loudly.
quietly	We entered the room quietly.
slowly	Drive slowly in the rain.
quickly	She finished the test quickly.
easily	I found the answer easily.
politely	He spoke politely to the waiter.
rudely	She answered rudely.
safely	Everyone arrived home safely.
well	My cousin plays the piano well.
badly	Our team played badly.
hard	We worked hard all day.
fast	The children ran fast.

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Common Mistakes

Mistake	Better	Why
She drives careful.	She drives carefully.	The word describes the verb drives, so use an adverb.
He speaks English good.	He speaks English well.	The adverb of good is well.
She is a carefully driver.	She is a careful driver.	The word describes the noun driver, so use an adjective.
They opened quietly the door.	They opened the door quietly.	Put the adverb after the object.
I worked hardly on the project.	I worked hard on the project.	Hardly means almost not.
The bus came lately.	The bus came late.	Lately means recently.

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Practice: Exercises

Exercise 1 - Adjective or Adverb?

Choose the correct word.

1 / 16

My sister is a very ___ person.

AkindBkindly

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Summary

• Adverbs of manner describe how an action happens.
• Most adverbs of manner answer the question "How?"
• Adjectives describe nouns: a careful driver.
• Adverbs describe verbs: She drives carefully.
• Most adverbs of manner add -ly: quiet -> quietly, careful -> carefully.
• Some words change spelling: easy -> easily, gentle -> gently.
• Good is an adjective; well is the adverb.
• Fast, hard, and late can be adjectives or adverbs.
• Hard means with effort, but hardly means almost not.
• If a verb has an object, put the adverb after the object: She opened the door quietly.

Keep practicing by describing actions around you: How do people walk, talk, cook, work, or drive?