Position of Adverbs

An adverb is a word that works as a modifier for a verb, an adjective, another adverb, or sometimes an entire sentence by expressing some relation of place, time, manner, quality, or degree. An adverb answers the questions of when, how, where or to what degree. Most adverbs end in -ly, for example: badly, sadly, etc., but there are some exceptions where the adverb is the same as its adjective counterpart, for example: fast, slow, etc.  

Examples: 

• The dog ran towards the owner quickly. (here, the adverb quickly modifies the verb ran) 
• The extremely happy man plays the guitar for the crowd. (here, the adjective happy has been modified by the adverb extremely) 

Position of Adverbs 

Regardless of what an adverb modifies, it can be used in front, middle, and end. 

• The front position:

The front adverb would be the first word of a clause – 

Suddenly, the lights turned off.

Yesterday, my mom and I went shopping. 

• The mid position:

The mid position of an adverb is between the subject and the main verb –

My neighbours always mow their lawn at night.

She easily completed her chores. 

• The end position:

The end position of the adverb is after the verb/object –

He completed his assignments quickly.

She went about her day happily.

Types of adverbs and their positions in a clause

• Adverb of manner: 

An adverb of manner is a word that describes how an action is carried out and in what way it is carried out. Like a normal adverb, most of the adverbs of manners are formed by adding -ly to the end, but there are exceptions. The position of an adverb of manner usually is at the end of a clause, but there are times when the adverb is not the most important part of the clause, and during those times, the position of the adverb of manner is in the middle of the sentence. 

For example:

She got done with her work quickly.

Reena quickly cleaned her room and went out to play.

• Adverb of place:

An adverb of place is used when you want to describe where the action has been carried out. Since these adverbs answer the question of ‘why?’, they can be directional. The position of the adverb of place is in the end, but writers tend to use it in the front.

For example:    

Can you move the book there?   

Here lie the remains of the great soldier. 

• Adverb of time:

Adverbs of time are used when the time of the action needs to be described. Such adverbs answer the question of ‘when?’. They usually go at the end of a sentence, but they can go in the front to emphasise when you will carry out the action. 

For example:

I will be going out tomorrow. 

Today is the day I finish all my assignments. 

• Adverb of degree:

Such adverbs specify the degree to which a verb or an adjective applies. An adverb of degree answers the question of ‘how much?’ or ‘how often?’. The position of such adverbs usually depends on the kind you use. If you use ‘really,’ ‘quite,’ ‘very,’ the position of these adverbs would be in the middle, but if you use the adverbs ‘a lot,’ ‘a bit,’ they will go in the end.  

For example:

She’s quite a brilliant child. 

I don’t go out a lot. 

• Adverb of duration:

Adverb of duration explains how long an action lasted or was carried out. The position of an adverb of duration is usually in the end.

For example:

She will not be staying for long. 

We haven’t seen each other in a while.

• Adverb of frequency:

An adverb of frequency is used to describe how often action has taken place. There are six main adverbs of frequency: often, sometimes, rarely, never, always, and usually. They are usually used in the middle position but can be used in the front and the end. The three adverbs ‘always,’ ‘ever,’ and ‘never’ will never be seen in the first position. 

For example: 

I visit my grandparents often. 

She will never come last.

They usually miss their classes.

Exercise 

Add the given adverb in the appropriate place and rewrite the sentence:

1. I skip my meals. (never) 
2. She forgot about her chores. (completely)
3. Dad needs to come. (also)
4. We go out on the weekends. (often) 
5. It will rain. (today) 
6. She worked, and it showed in her grades. (hard)
7. He comes to school daily. (late)
8. They are rich. (very)
9. The trip was boring. (rather)
10. I go to sleep by ten. (usually) 

Answer 

1. I never skip my meals.
2. She completely forgot about her chores.
3. Dad also needs to come.
4. We often go out on the weekends.
5. It will rain today.
6. She worked hard, and it showed in her grades.
7. He comes late to school daily.
8. They are very rich.
9. The trip was rather boring.

I usually go to sleep by ten.

Conclusion 

An adverb is a part of speech used when there is a need to describe or modify a verb, an adjective, another adverb, or any other word group to show the action’s manner, time, place, frequency, or degree. Based on these, the position of an adverb is determined. The three basic positions of an adverb are front (before the subject), middle (in between the subject and verb), and end (after the main verb/object). Adverbs of manner, place, and time are usually used in the end position, while adverbs of frequency and degree usually go in the middle with a few exceptions in all cases.