 Position of adverbs in English sentences from espressoenglish.net Adverbs are words that describe verbs, adjectives, other adverbs, or clauses. Adverbs often answer the questions, how, and in what way. For example, she sings beautifully. The adverb beautifully answers the question, in what way does she sing? He runs very fast. The adverbs very fast describe the verb run. How fast does he run? Very fast. I occasionally practice speaking English. The adverb occasionally describes the verb practice. How frequently do I practice? Occasionally. The position of an adverb in the sentence depends on what type of adverb it is. Here are some general guidelines. Do not place an adverb between a verb and its object. For example, you can say, I carefully painted the house, or I painted the house carefully. But don't say, I painted carefully the house. This is incorrect. It just doesn't sound natural because the adverb carefully is in the middle between the verb, painted, and its object, the house. You can say, I sometimes read a book before bed, or sometimes I read a book before bed. You can even say, I read a book before bed sometimes. This is okay. It's just informal. But don't say, I read sometimes a book before bed. This doesn't sound natural. Again, because the adverb sometimes is in between the verb, read, and its object, a book. There are three normal positions for adverbs. The front position is when the adverb is at the beginning of a clause. For example, suddenly the phone rang. Fortunately, nobody was injured. Maybe I'll go for a walk. The mid position is when the adverb is next to the main verb. For example, I always exercise before work. They have completely forgotten about our appointment. He was probably late for the interview. She slowly began to recover. As you can see, the adverb slowly comes next to, usually before, the main verb, began. And the end position, when the adverb is at the end of a clause. For example, you speak English well. Please sit there. They ate dinner quietly. The position of adverbs depends on their type, and some can be used in various positions. Adverbs of manner include words like quickly, slowly, easily, happily, well, hard, fast, badly, and seriously. The adverbs of manner that end in LY can be in the mid position, before the main verb, or the end position. For example, she easily passed the test, or she passed the test easily. Adverbs of manner that do not end in LY, like well, hard, and fast, occur in the end position, after the main verb. For example, they dance well. He's working hard. She runs fast. Adverbs of time and frequency usually come at the front or end position. For example, we went to Australia last year, or last year we went to Australia. We don't usually say we went last year to Australia. Adverbs of time and frequency that end in LY usually come at the mid or end position. For example, let's meet weekly to discuss this, or I call my mother daily. Always and never go in the mid position before the verb. I always wake up early. He never gets angry. Other adverbs of time and frequency can go in various positions. For example, soon you'll be finished with school. You'll soon be finished with school. You'll be finished with school soon. Occasionally we drink wine. We occasionally drink wine. We drink wine occasionally. These three sentences are all correct, but again, do not say we drink occasionally wine, because this commits the error of putting the adverb between the verb, drink, and its object, wine. Adverbs of place usually go at the end or mid position. For example, the children are playing outside. The glass shattered and the pieces flew everywhere. They drove south, or southward, on the highway. He walked towards the police station. Connecting adverbs show the relationship between events or ideas. For example, however, anyway, then, next, similarly, additionally, furthermore, and otherwise. And commenting adverbs show us the speaker's attitude or opinion, like fortunately, surprisingly, stupidly, personally, and honestly. Connecting adverbs are usually in the front position. For example, first I went to the bank, then I went to the post office. The test will be difficult, however, the students are well prepared. He doesn't have a job. Furthermore, he's not interested in finding one. Commenting adverbs are also usually in the front position. For example, I dropped my wallet on the street. Surprisingly, an honest person found it and gave it back to me. They showed me all the products available. Honestly, I didn't like any of them. Although for some connecting and commenting adverbs, other positions are possible. For example, they showed me all the products available. I didn't like any of them, honestly. They showed me all the products available. I honestly didn't like any of them. Now let's talk about adverbs of certainty. The adverbs maybe and perhaps are usually in the front position. For example, maybe we'll go out to eat tonight. Perhaps I should explain further. Other adverbs of certainty usually go in the mid position. For example, we'll probably go out to eat tonight. I should definitely explain further. He clearly made a mistake. That's certainly not the case. Emphasizing adverbs are words like very, really, extremely, terribly, quite, pretty, and almost. These usually go in the mid position immediately before the word they describe. For example, we're very tired. Their new house is really impressive. He plays the piano extremely badly. This lesson is pretty easy to understand. The employees are terribly underpaid. That's quite generous of you. 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