Second Grade English: Adverbs of Manner, Time, and Place (-ly words, soon, everywhere)

While adjectives describe nouns, another agile group of words describes actions. These dynamic words are called adverbs. An adverb is a word that modifies or describes a verb, telling the reader how, when, or where an action takes place. Adding adverbs to your writing allows you to control the exact pacing and mood of a scene: a character can walk into a room casually, sneak in silently, or burst in suddenly! In this chapter, you will master the three primary varieties of adverbs adverbs of manner, adverbs of time, and adverbs of place and learn how the suffix -ly creates adverbs.

What Is an Adverb?

An adverb adds detail to a verb. It answers one of three fundamental questions about the action: How? When? Where?

+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|                    THE ADVERB QUESTION TRIANGLE                 |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|                                                                 |
|                         [ THE VERB ]                            |
|                            "WALKED"                             |
|                                |                                |
|        +-----------------------+-----------------------+        |
|        |                       |                       |        |
|    HOW did they walk?     WHEN did they walk?    WHERE did they |
|    (Adverb of Manner)     (Adverb of Time)       (Adverb of Pl) |
|                                                                 |
|         QUICKLY                  YESTERDAY             OUTSIDE  |
|                                                                 |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+

Adverbs of Manner: Answering "How?"

Adverbs of manner explain the way or style in which an action is performed. The vast majority of manner adverbs are formed by taking a descriptive adjective and adding the suffix -ly.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|                 MANNER ADVERBS (-LY TRANSFORMATIONS)            |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|  Adjective (Describes Noun)   | Adverb of Manner (Describes Verb|
+-------------------------------+---------------------------------+
|  soft ("a soft voice")        | softly ("she spoke softly")     |
|  quick ("a quick runner")     | quickly ("she ran quickly")     |
|  loud ("a loud chime")        | loudly ("the bell chimed loudly)|
|  careful ("a careful painter")| carefully ("he painted carefull)|
|  patient ("a patient student")| patiently ("she waited patientl)|
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+

The Power of Manner Adverbs

Notice how changing the adverb of manner transforms the entire feeling of a sentence: "Leo opened the door nervously." (He expects something scary). "Leo opened the door eagerly." (He expects a wonderful surprise). "Leo opened the door sluggishly." (He is exhausted or reluctant).

Adverbs of Time: Answering "When?"

Adverbs of time tell when an action occurred, how long it lasted, or how often it happens. These words usually do not end in -ly.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|                    COMMON ADVERBS OF TIME                       |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|  Word Examples        | When the Action Occurs                  |
+-----------------------+-----------------------------------------+
|  now, soon, today     | Present or near-future moments          |
|  yesterday, earlier   | Past moments already finished           |
|  tomorrow, later      | Future moments waiting to arrive        |
|  always, never, often | Frequency (how repeatedly it happens)   |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+

Examples of Time Adverbs in Sentences

"We will leave soon." (Soon tells when we will leave). "Maya always washes her hands before dinner." (Always tells how often). "The rain stopped yesterday." (Yesterday tells when it stopped).

Adverbs of Place: Answering "Where?"

Adverbs of place tell the location or direction of the action.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|                    COMMON ADVERBS OF PLACE                      |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|  Word Examples        | Where the Action Occurs                 |
+-----------------------+-----------------------------------------+
|  here, there          | Specific nearby or distant locations    |
|  inside, outside      | Boundary locations                      |
|  upstairs, downstairs | Elevation locations                     |
|  everywhere, nowhere  | Universal or absent locations           |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+

Examples of Place Adverbs in Sentences

"The children played outside." (Outside tells where they played). "We searched everywhere for the lost puppy." (Everywhere tells where they searched). "Come here right now." (Here tells where to come).

Practice Exercises

Exercise 1: Identify the adverb in each sentence and state whether it tells How, When, or Where: "The turtle moved slowly across the grass." "We will eat dinner soon." "The birds flew upstairs into the barn attic."

Exercise 2: Create three different adverbs of manner from the adjectives "brave," "polite," and "gentle." Write a complete sentence using one of them.

Exercise Solutions

Solution to Exercise 1: In sentence 1, slowly is an adverb telling How (Manner). In sentence 2, soon is an adverb telling When (Time). In sentence 3, upstairs is an adverb telling Where (Place).

Solution to Exercise 2: The adverbs are bravely (from brave), politely (from polite), and gently (from gentle). A student could write: The firefighter bravely climbed the ladder to save the trapped kitten.