Grammar-Quizzes › Adverbials › Adverbs › Adverb Suffixes
Adverb Suffixes
Express how an action occurs
Adjective vs. Adverb
| ADJECTIVE |
|---|
An adjective modifies a noun with qualities such as size, shape, color, worth, age, origen, and so on. By adding the suffix -ly, the word form may be changed to an adverb (with a few exceptions that differ in form or meaning). |
| MODIFIES A NOUN |
He is an excellent tennis player. |
He is a graceful athlete. |
He is a smart player. |
He is a defensive player. |
He is a professional athlete. |
He is an expert player. |
| ADVERB -LY |
|---|
An adverb provides information about the manner, frequency, degree, or other circumstances of the activity expressed by the verb or verb phrase. A similar meaning can usually be expressed with a prepositional phrase. |
| MODIFIES A VERB |
He plays tennis excellently. (adverb) He plays tennis in an excellent manner. (prep phrase) |
He moves gracefully. He moves in a graceful manner. |
He dresses smartly. (fashionably) He plays in a smart way. (strategic) |
He will play defensively in tomorrow's game. He will play in a defensive manner in tomorrow's game. |
He appears professionally at fundraisers. (appear–take part in) He appears in a professional role at fundraisers. |
He plays expertly. *He appears expertly. (appear–seem) (static verb). |
*Yellow highlighted words are examples of incorrect usage.
An adverb can also modify other word forms: He moves surprisingly quickly (Adv). He is rather young (Adj). He is exactly in the middle (PP). He slept practically the whole day (NP). See Adverb Uses and Adverb Properties.
Related pages: Adverb of Manner–positioning | Adverb–modifying an adjective | Adverb–modifying a preposition.
Other word forms: Word Forms (comparison) | Adjective Suffixes | Noun Suffixes .
Adverb Suffixes
-ly, -ily, -ally
Adjective ⇒ Adverb
| ADJ. FORM + LY | –Y to – ILY | – LE to – LY | – IC to – iCALLY |
|---|---|---|---|
For most words, add -ly to the end of an adjective form to create an adverb word form. |
For words with more than one syllable ending in -y, replace the -y with -ily. |
For words with more than one syllable ending in -le, replace the -le with -ly. |
For words ending in –ic, replace –ic with –ically. |
late – lately |
angry – angrily |
able – ably |
academic – academically |
right – rightly |
busy – busily |
capable – capably |
acoustic – acoustically |
hopeful – hopefully |
easy – easily |
idle – idly |
artistic – artistically |
complete – completely |
happy – happily |
noble – nobly |
classic – classically |
real – really |
lucky – luckily |
possible – possibly |
magic – magically |
definite – definitely |
ready – readily |
probably – probably |
politic – politically |
mature – maturely |
voluntary – voluntarily |
|
tragic – tragically |
| EXCEPTIONS | ONE SYLLABLE | EXCEPTIONS | EXCEPTION |
true – truly |
dry – dryly (One syllable - no change.) |
subtle – subtly – not easily noticed |
public – publicly |
full – fully |
coy – coyly |
smile – smiley |
|
whole – wholly |
sly – slyly |
hole – holey |
|
|
shy – shyly |
rule – unruly "an unruly crowd" |
|
Adverbs for Manner
List
Adverbs for Manner (just a few)
abnormally |
accidentally |
accurately |
affectionately |
anxiously |
artfully |
awkwardly |
awesomely |
badly |
beautifully |
briskly |
brutally |
busily |
calmly |
carefully |
cautiously |
cheerfully |
clearly |
cleverly |
colorfully |
comfortably |
competitively |
confidently |
cowardly |
crazily |
customarily |
deliberately |
delightfully |
desperately |
dependably |
distinctly |
doubtfully |
eagerly |
easily |
extraordinarily |
expertly |
famously |
fashionably |
freely |
furiously |
gently |
gracefully |
guiltily |
happily |
harshly |
helpfully |
hurriedly |
imaginatively |
irresponsibly |
jealously |
jokingly |
joyfully |
justly |
kindly |
knowledgeably |
lawfully |
leisurely |
lifelessly |
luckily |
lovingly |
loyally |
magnificently |
maturely |
mechanically |
mindlessly |
miraculously |
miserably |
musically |
naturally |
neatly |
noisily |
oddly |
officially |
painfully |
personally |
proudly |
punctually |
purposefully |
quickly |
readily |
regretfully |
religiously |
romantically |
sadly |
safely |
secretly |
silently |
skillfully |
sleepily |
steadily |
suspiciously |
tastefully |
tenderly |
terribly |
thoroughly |
uniquely |
universally |
untruthfully |
vocally |
voluntarily |
warmly |
watchfully |
weakly |
willingly |
External Resources: " Adverbs List". ESL Desk. http://www.esldesk.com/vocabulary/adverbs
LDOCE. (word definitions) http://www.ldoceonline.com (Note in most cases the adjective form appears in the dictionary with the adverb form entry at the bottom.)
Adverbs from Nouns
Suffixes -ways and -wize
Noun ⇒ Adverb: -ways and -wise
| ADVERB FOR MANNER |
|---|
A few adverbs are formed from nouns with the suffix -wise, meaning "in this/that way". |
He hit the tennis ball sideways. "in a way that sent it off to the side of the court" |
The official turned the timer clockwise. "in the circular direction that the hands of a clock turn" |
He folded his towel lengthwise. "with the fold as the length of the item" |
| ADVERB FOR OPINION |
|---|
In these examples, the adverb ending in -wise modifies the idea of the clause, and it limits the viewpoint of the speaker to a specific viewpoint, area or domain. See Adv for Opinion. |
Weather-wise, it will be a great day for a tennis match. "In view of the weather…" |
It can't be too windy. Otherwise, the officials postpone the match. |
Likewise, heavy rain can be a reason for postponing a match. |
Other Words with -wise
| IN THIS WAY | FROM THIS PERSPECTIVE¹ | ||
|---|---|---|---|
clockwise/ |
counterclockwise |
otherwise |
job-wise |
lengthwise / ways |
edgewise / ways |
price-wise |
time-wise |
sideway / |
crosswise |
health-wise |
money-wise |
sideways/ sidewize |
|
likewise |
weather-wise |
It's hard to get a word in edgewise — to succeed in entering a conversation or expressing one's opinion in spite of competition or opposition
¹The suffix -wise can be added to a number of words to limit the specific area or domain. A hyphen is used with a new term that is created for a specific use. See Hyphens.
††always - is not related to the -ways and -wize suffixed words
Adverbs
Word Form Exceptions
Adverb Differs in Form or Meaning
| UNCOMMON ADVERB FORMS | |
|---|---|
In these words, the adjective and adverb word forms are the same, or already end in -ly. |
|
daily – daily (already ends in -ly)
|
It is the daily edition of the newspaper. (Adj) The newspaper arrives daily. (Adv) |
early – early (already ends in -ly)
|
It is the early edition of the newspaper. (Adj) The newspaper arrives early. (Adv) |
fast – fast |
He is a fast runner. (Adj) |
friendly – friendly (Rephrase the adverb with manner or way.) |
He is friendly. (Adj) He behaves in a friendly way. (Adv) |
good – well |
He is a good runner. (Adj) |
hard – hard |
It was a hard game. (Adj) |
loud – loud or loudly |
He is a loud speaker. (Adj) |
lovely – in a lovely way (Rephrase the adverb with manner or way.) |
Her dancing is lovely. (Adj) She dances in a lovely manner / way. (Adv) |
| SHIFT IN MEANING | |
|---|---|
In these words the adjective and adverb differ in meaning. |
|
hard (tough) – hardly (barely) |
A desk has a hard surface. (Adj) I hardly have time to sleep. (Adv) |
late (tardy) – lately (recently) |
He arrived late to work. (Adj) He hasn't been working lately. (Adv) |
high (related to height) – highly (very much) |
The picture is high on the wall. (Adj) The picture is highly valuable. (Adv) |
free (no cost) – freely (without restriction) |
Water is free. (Adj) You can speak freely. (Adv) |
pretty (beautiful) – pretty (rather) |
She is a pretty child. (Adj) She is pretty difficult to manage. (Adv) |
short (not tall) – shortly (soon) |
The distance is short. (Adj) We'll arrive there shortly. (Adv) |
real (genuine) – real (very) |
This is a real diamond (Adj) That was real nice of you. (Adv) |
right (correct, direction) – right (just, exactly, completely) |
You are right. (Adj) Take the right fork in the road. (Adj) The birds flew right over us. (Adv – directly) The wind blew my hat right off. (Adv –completely) We'll leave right away. (Adv – immediately) Do it right. (Adv – correctly) |
Common Mistakes
Errors and Solutions
Error and Solution
| ERROR |
|---|
*He was breathing hardly. |
*She arrived lately. |
*The car goes extremely fastly. |
He feels badly about the matter. |
He becomes happily when he sees her. |
The crowd went wildly. |
He is very successfully and earns a lot of money. |
| SOLUTION |
|---|
He was hardly breathing. (adv degree)–barely, not much He was breathing hard. (adv manner) –with great effort |
She arrived late. (Adj) She arrived and was late. (See adjective complement.) She hasn't been here lately. (recently) |
The car goes extremely fast. (adv degree) –extremely, very; adv manner–fast The car is fast. (Adj) |
He feels bad. (Adj) This use of "feel" is static; see Feel sensation.) He is regretful about the matter. |
He becomes happy when he sees her. (Adj) – "become" is static He will happily come to see you. |
The crowd went wild. went (static verb)– behaved, acted; wild (Adj) –out of control The crowd went inside slowly. ;went (dynamic verb)–move in a direction |
He is very successful and… be + (Adj) –a stative verb |
Practice 1
Golfer Hits Gopher
Read for Word Choice
James, a golfer, was playing a round golf yesterday when he (accidental–accidentally) hit his ball into a hole off the golfing greens. James made an (accidental–accidentally) shot. Unexpectedly, an (angry–angrily) gopher appeared. The gopher (angry–angrily) pushed the ball out out of its hole. The gopher complained (loud–loudly). The gopher made a (loud–loudly) complaint. The ball hit him (hard–hardly) on the head. James could (hard–hardly) believe that a gopher was making its home on the golf course. Normally, James has (good–well) eyesight. However, he didn't see (good–well) this time because his ball did land anywhere near the golf green.
The gopher probably had a (painful–painfully) headache. The gopher lay still for a moment and then blinked its eyes(painful–painfully). The (guilty–guiltily) golfer, James, reached for his ball. "Sorry, little guy!" James said (guilty–guiltily). The gopher disappeared (quick–quickly) into its hole—with the ball! So James (quick–quickly) left the golfing green without his ball. After this experience, James (wise–wisely) wore his glasses whenever he played golf. The (wise–wisely) gopher found a new hole to live in.
GLOSSARY
a round of golf — a quantifier for 18 holes of golf
make a shot (N) — hit the golf ball (to a precise location)
complain (V) — protest, express dissatisfaction
complaint (N) — saying that someone is unhappy or unsatisfied
eyesight (N) — ability to see well
golfer (N) — a person who plays golf /gɒlf, gɔlf/
golf green — the grassy area on a golf course
guilty (Adj) — feeling ashamed or sad because you know that you have done something wrong
off the greens — outside of the official grass area of a golf course
wise (Adj) — clever, smart
Select the word form — adjective or adverb.
- Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- Compare your response to the feedback by clicking the "Check" or "Check 1-20" button.
Practice 2
"Fourno" Lamb
Read and Reword
Each year, we roast a spring lamb in the traditional way. That is to say, the lamb is prepared in a careful way as it has been for hundreds of years.
After we select a side of lamb, we take it home, and prepare the "fourno", a stone oven. First, my father builds a fire in a skillful way with dried wood from old fruit trees. It takes a while for the wood and the oven to get hot. In a happy way, he sits outside, "feeds" the oven, and talks to my uncle. He checks the burning wood frequently to see if it is turning a light gray color.
Meanwhile, we prepare the lamb. First, we wash it with water and lemon and pat it dry in a thorough manner. Then, we slice garlic in a fine way and insert in a gentle way under the skin of the lamb.
We sprinkle the lamb in a light manner with salt, pepper and oregano and place it in a large pan.
If needed, we tie the lamb in a secure way so that it won't fall apart. Then, we place the pan in the oven with the side facing out. As the lamb cooks, he adds twigs of rosemary, thyme, sage and oregano into the flames in a quick manner.
The wonderful smell of the roasting lamb and the smoky herbs causes us to wait in an impatient manner. In the last half hour of cooking, we arrange cut potatoes in a neat manner around the lamb in the pan.
When the lamb is ready, we take our places at the table and await our first bite in an eager manner. We sit together as a family and eat in a joyful manner.
fourno (N) — a Mediterranean outdoor brick or stone oven
herbs (N) — plants that give flavor to food in cooking such as oregano, rosemary and thyme
roast (V) — cook slowly aside a fire
secure (Adj) — tight or firm, not moving
skillful (Adj) — having knowledge, practice and experience; expert
smoky (Adj) — having the character or appearance of smoke, the dark gray gas given off by something, such as wood, burning
sprinkle (V) — pour something in drops or small particles
thorough (Adj) — complete, careful in detail
twig (N) — a small, dry, woody piece fallen from a branch
Change the prepositional phrase of manner to an adverb of manner.
- Enter your response in the edit box.
- Compare your response to the answers on the right by clicking the "check" button. The less preferred placement is shown in brackets [ ].