Morphologically adverbs can be divided into
- simple (hard, here, now, etc.),
- derivative (friendly, likewise, westward, etc.),
- compound (sometimes, anyway, etc.)
- composite (at least, at last, etc.).
CLASSIFICATION OF ADVERBS
According to their meaning adverbs can be classified into the following groups.
meaning | adverbs | meaning | adverbs | |
time | now, then | frequency | sometimes, often | |
place | here, there | manner | carefully, slowly | |
degree | very, fairly | relative time | already, soon | |
quantity | much, little | focusing, attitude markers | even, also, only, particularly, apparently, fortunately |
THE PLACE OF AN ADVERB IN A SENTENCE
Adverbs can have different places in a sentence. It can have the initial position:
Nowadays, it doesn't matter so much.
It can come before a verb:
We never saw him do it.
It can come before a notional verb and after an auxiliary verb or a modal verb:
We have never seen him. You can never do it.
It can come at the end of a sentence:
She pronounces every word distinctly.
An adverb can precede an adjective:
It is a very good decision.
It can precede another adverb:
Thank you very much.
We can vary the position of adverbs according to what we want to emphasize:
She put the cup on the table carefully. Carefully, she put the cup on the table.
She sometimes gets up early. Sometimes she gets up early.
I already know it. I know it already.
The adverbs of quantity usually come at the end of a sentence:
She didn't say much.
Note: Already is usually used in affirmative statements and yet is used in negative statements and questions.
Little / a little is used in affirmative statements, while much is mostly used in negative statements and questions. A lot can be used both in affirmative and negative statements and in questions.
DEGREES OF COMPARISON
Adverbs can have degrees of comparison.
1. Adverbs form degrees of comparison in the synthetic way by means of inflections -er, -est in the following cases:
- if an adverb is a monosyllabic word:
Hard - harder – hardest
fast - faster - fastest;
- if it is a word of two syllables but identical in form with the adjective:
early - earlier – earliest
funny - funnier - funniest.
2. Other adverbs of two syllables and polysyllabic adverbs form the degrees of comparison in the analytical way:
quickly - more quickly - most quickly
slowly - more slowly - most slowly.
3. The adverbs well and badly have suppletive forms of the degrees of comparison:
Well - better – best
badly - worse - worst.
4. The following adverbs have irregular forms of the degrees of comparison:
Much/many - more – most
Little - less – least
Far – farther/further – farthest/furthest.
THE VERB
GENERAL NOTION
The verb denotes actions, existence, mental condition, states and processes.
There are transitive and intransitive verbs.
Transitive verbs can take a direct object: Read the letter.
Intransitive verbs cannot take a direct object: Come here.
Morphologically verbs can be divided into
- simple, e.g. come, read;
- derivative, e.g. reconstruct;
- compound, e.g. daydream;
- composite, e.g. give up, put on, take off. These verbs are also called ‘phrasal verbs’.
The verb has four basic forms.
THE INFINITIVE | PARTICIPLE I | THE PAST INDEFINITE | THE PAST PARTICIPLE / PARTICIPLE II |
to write to work | writing working | wrote worked | written worked |
According to their basic forms verbs are divided into regular, irregular and mixed. Regular verbs form the Past Indefinite and Participle II by adding -ed/-d to the stem, e.g. walk - walked, love - loved.
Irregular verbs change their root vowel, add suffix - en, change the final consonant, have homonymous or suppletive forms, e.g. run - ran - run, take - took - taken, send - sent - sent, put - put -put go - went - gone.
Mixed verbs have the regular form of the Past Indefinite and the irregular form of Participle II, e.g. show - showed - shown.