Adverbs
ICSE Class 6 · English · Chapter 6
What this chapter covers
- Kinds of adverbs
- Position of adverbs
- Degrees of comparison of adverbs
- Adjectives and adverbs distinguished
Key points
- An adverb adds to the meaning of a verb, an adjective or another adverb.
- Adverbs of manner tell how, of place tell where, of time tell when, of frequency tell how often, and of degree tell how much.
- Many adverbs end in -ly, but fast, hard, well, soon and never do not, and friendly and lovely are adjectives.
- An adverb of manner comes after the verb, or after the object if there is one.
- When place and time come together, place comes first; the usual order is manner, place, time.
- Adverbs of frequency come before the main verb, after am, is, are, was, were, and between a helping verb and the main verb.
- An adverb of degree comes before the word it describes, except enough, which comes after.
- Short adverbs add -er and -est; -ly adverbs take more and most; well, badly, much, little and far are irregular.
- An adjective describes a noun or a pronoun; an adverb describes a verb, an adjective or another adverb.
- Good is an adjective and well is its adverb; hardly means almost not and lately means recently.
Questions answered
What is an adverb?
An adverb is a word that adds to the meaning of a verb, an adjective or another adverb.
Name the kind of adverb in italics: "Grandfather seldom watches television."
Seldom is an adverb of frequency, because it tells how often.
Pick out the adverb and say which word it describes: "The puppy is extremely playful."
Extremely is an adverb of degree. It describes the adjective playful.
Correct the sentence: "She is enough tall to reach the shelf."
She is tall enough to reach the shelf. (Enough comes after the adjective.)
Put the adverb in the right place: "We go to the temple on Tuesdays. (usually)"
We usually go to the temple on Tuesdays.
Give the comparative and superlative forms of well, soon and happily.
well, better, best; soon, sooner, soonest; happily, more happily, most happily.
Is hard an adjective or an adverb in "The farmer works hard in the fields"? Give a reason.
It is an adverb, because it describes the verb works and tells how the farmer works.
Correct the sentence: "Meera did good in the test."
Meera did well in the test. (Well is the adverb that describes the verb did.)