Adverb Formation
Learn Adverb Formation in English and master common spelling patterns, irregular forms, and everyday usage.
An adverb can describe how an action happens. Many adverbs of manner come from adjectives. They often answer the question how.
Many common adverbs are formed by adding -ly to an adjective. This pattern makes adverbs of manner from describing words.
| Word or Phrase | Definition |
|---|---|
| slowly | It describes an action that happens in a slow way 🐢. |
| quickly | It describes an action that happens in a quick way ⚡. |
| carefully | It describes an action that happens in a careful way 👀. |
| quietly | It describes an action that happens in a quiet way 🤫. |
If an adjective ends in consonant plus y, change y to i before adding -ly. This is a common spelling pattern in adverb formation.
| Adjective | Form |
|---|---|
| happy |  happily |
| easy |  easily |
| angry |  angrily |
| busy |  busily |
If an adjective ends in -le, remove the final e and add -y. The adverb keeps the same basic meaning as the adjective.
| Adjective | Form |
|---|---|
| simple |  simply |
| gentle |  gently |
| probable |  probably |
| terrible |  terribly |
If an adjective ends in -ic, add -ally to form the adverb. This spelling pattern is used in many common words.
| Adjective | Form |
|---|---|
| basic |  basically |
| automatic |  automatically |
| tragic |  tragically |
| specific |  specifically |
Some common adverbs do not follow the regular -ly pattern. These forms must be learned as whole words.
| Word or Phrase | Definition |
|---|---|
| fast | It can describe an action that happens at high speed 🚗. |
| hard | It can describe an action done with strong effort 💪. |
| well | It is the adverb form connected to good 🌟. |
| late | It can describe an action that happens after the expected time ⏰. |
Adverbs of manner describe how someone does an action. Many of them come from adjectives, but not all adverbs are adverbs of manner. You can now form many common adverbs and recognize the main spelling patterns.