Adverbs of Manner

Introduction

An adverb of manner in basic grammar is an adverb (including such quickly or slowly) that defines how and in what manner an action represented by a verb is performed. All of these are known as manner adverbs or manner adverbials.

The majority of manner adverb is generated by attaching -ly to adjectives, although there are few notable exceptions (such as well). In majority way adverbs' comparative and superlative forms are created along more (or less) and most (or least), accordingly.

Adverbs of manner are commonly seen after the verb or at the ending of the verb phrase.

"It is adverbs of manner which are most flexibly changed by other adverbs (usually of degree)," explains Rodney Huddleston. She spoke very gently. (Huddleston 1984).

What are adverbs of manner?

Adverbs of manner define the manner in which something occurs. It is conceivable, for instance, to walk or run at varying speeds. Adverbs of manner are phrases used to express walking or running at different speeds (for example, rapidly or slowly). They help readers in gaining a better understanding of how a written scenario is unfolding.

Examining the sentences below will help you learn how well these adverbs alter the entire meaning and structure of statements in which they appear.

1. The men ran. (Since there is no adverb of manner in this statement, we can only guess how rapidly the men are running.)
2. The kids ran rapidly. (The adverbs of manner are rapidly. It indicates that the kids are in a rush or hurry.)
3. The teenagers were fatigued, so they drove more slowly than ever before. (The manner adverb is slowly.) It indicates that the teenagers are traveling but not moving as much territory as they were previously.)

There are a few guidelines to consider when it comes to adverbs of manner:

• When employing these adverbs, be cautious not to position them between the object and the verb. They are frequently used following the sentence's object or primary verb. If there really is a preposition prior to the object, the adverb of manner can be positioned either before or after the preposition.
• Place an adverb of manner preceding both the verb and the object to bring emphasis. Whenever these adverbs are positioned at the opening of a phrase, they attract the reader's attention.
• As you study the instances of way adverbs below, you will see how the similar adverb can offer distinct meanings to phrases that include almost an identical collection of terms.

Examples of Adverbs of Manner

The adverbs of manner are highlighted/ bolded in every instance for ease of recognition.

1. John quickly agreedto go to the supermarket for dairy. (His consent came quickly.)
2. Joe agreed to go to the supermarket for dairy quickly. (He would go to the supermarket quickly)
3. Helen quietly askedus to move out of the hall. (Her plea was quiet)
4. Helen asked us to walk out of the room (I will just not make any noise when I leave.)
5. The physician woke the gently nappingill kid. (The ill kid was sleeping gently.)
6. The physician softly wokethe ill kid. (The physician was soft while trying to wake up the ill kid)

A manner adverb can never be used in between a verb as well as its direct object. The adverb should come prior to the verb or at the ending of the phrase.

Examples

1. She ate greedily the cheesecake. [incorrect]
2. She ate the cheesecake greedily. [correct]
3. She greedily ate the cheesecake. [correct]
4. John gave us wholeheartedly the cash. [incorrect]
5. John gave us the cash wholeheartedly. [correct]
6. John wholeheartedly gave us the cash. [correct]

If in the sentence there is the preposition prior to the verb's object, the adverbs of manner might be placed either prior to or following the prepositions.

Examples

1. The girl ran gladly towards her mom.
2. The girl ran towards her mom gladly.

Adverbs of manner must always occur right after verbs with no object (intransitive verbs).

Examples

1. The village grew rapidly after 1997.
2. John waited patiently for his aunt to arrive.

These common manner adverbs are nearly always placed immediately just after the verb: well, badly, hard, and quickly.

Examples

1. He competed well despite being fatigued.
2. The rain fell hard during the cyclone.

If the sentence comprises of more than one verb, the positioning of the adverb is significant. If the adverb comes before or after the primary verb, it solely changes that verb. When an adverb follows a clause, it alters the entire action stated by the sentence.

For instance, have a look at the following examples;

1. She swiftly agreed to rewrite the article - The agreement is swift.
2. She agreed swiftly to rewrite the test - The agreement was swift
3. He agreed to rewrite the article rapidly - the rewriting is rapid.

Usage

To emphasize a verb + object, an adverb of manner is often used before it.

Examples

1. He softly woke the resting woman.
2. She angrily locked the door.

Few authors use the adverbs of manner at the start of a sentence to draw the attentiveness and pique our interest.

Examples

1. Slowly she collected the sticks
2. Roughly john grabbed her hand.

Here are more usages of Adverbs Of Manner

Adverbs of manner are excellent for adding detail to your content, making it more readable and providing context. As a result, we can utilize them in a variety of ways inside a text, layering adverbs to create more compelling stories. There are numerous situations when writers employ more than one adverb in the exact same sentence, and it is entirely acceptable.

Here are some examples of how to combine two adverbs in a statement.

Using two adverbs in a statement for comparing two things

In our writing, we can utilize two adverbs in a statement to emphasize a comparison between two different objects or to generate contrast. As an example:

• 'Emma ate slowly, whereas Tommy quickly devoured his food.'
• 'The classroom was meant to be studying quietly, but Jimmy could be heard muttering clearly.'
• 'Our new dog must be trained to sit calmly, even though she likes to eat continuously.
• 'We're playing cautiously with this game piece as it cannot be handled roughly.'

Adding emphasis to a sentence by using two adverbs

We may wish to employ two adverbs in a sentence to communicate a mood, give an explanation, or emphasize what we are writing. Here are some examples of how this can be accomplished.

• 'The breeze blew powerfully and viciously.'
• 'Suddenly, the man felt extremely'
• 'Jima rushed quickly, desperately he would not miss the boat.'
• 'Bena smiled cheerfully as the sun shone brightly on his face.'

Using two adverbs in the same sentence

Is it grammatically permissible to utilize two adverbs in a sentence, one following the other? The answer is, indeed, yes. This is something we might wish to do on a number of occasions. Consider the following examples.

• 'Alia headed very swiftly to get home out of the snow.'
• 'The kitten purred really softly, but she was still heard.'
• 'The educator spoke extremely harshly to the kids.'
• 'The time slipped painfully slowly whereas kids waited for the classbell to ring.'

We can observe from these examples how utilizing two adverbs of manner in a row enhances meaning, providing us with extra information to help us visualize the scene as we read. It's a great approach for the writer to use to emphasize a specific topic. We can use this method in our writing to create tension and keep the reader intrigued.

Adverb Phrases of Manner

Prepositional phrases that function as adverbs of manner are referred to as adverb phrases of manner. Here are a couple such examples:

• She was performing with a lot of enthusiasm.
• He speaks to individuals in a hushed voice.
• Surma sings like an expert singer.

'very/extremely/so + regular adverb of manner' can be used to create an adverb phrase. Here are a couple such examples:

• She speaks with everybody very enthusiastically.
• Why are you chewing so loudly?
• Everyone treats him with extremely compassionately.

Adverb Clauses of Manner

Adverb clauses of manner are dependent clauses that function as an adverb. Here are a couple such examples:

• You are speaking to me as if I am a baby.
• I feel as resilient as you are.

Is It an Adjective Or an Adverb?

An adjective is used for describing a noun, whereas an adverb is used to describe a verb. So, the only verb we typically employ with an adjective is 'to be'. As an example,

• He is a quick runner.
• She is a cautious driver.

And if we replace the noun in these two statements with a verb, they become:

• He runs quick.
• She drives cautiously.

Look, sound, smell, and seem are the sole verbs which can be utilized with adjectives rather than adverbs. These verbs are used to describe what we can see, smell, or hear. As an example,

• You appear exhausted. - From what - I can see you're exhausted.
• It sounds fascinating. -From what I hear it is interesting.
• It smells mouthwatering. - I can tell from smell/ fragrance it's extremely good
• They appear to be bored. - I get a sense that they are bored based on their appearance.

Adverbs of manner enable us describe acts in great depth and can make us considerably more expressive. Begin to pay attention to when you hear them and try to incorporate them into your own vocabulary.