An adverb of manner describes how an action is performed. It answers the question how? and usually modifies a verb.
Most adverbs of manner are formed from adjectives by adding -ly, but not all of them follow this pattern.
Forming adverbs with -ly
The basic rule is straightforward: take an adjective, add -ly.
| ADJECTIVE | ADVERB |
|---|---|
| slow | slowly |
| careful | carefully |
| quick | quickly |
| soft | softly |
| loud | loudly |
This covers the majority of manner adverbs. However, several groups of adjectives need a spelling change before the ending.
Spelling rules
Adjectives ending in consonant + y
Change -y to -i, then add -ly.
| ADJECTIVE | ADVERB |
|---|---|
| happy | happily |
| easy | easily |
| angry | angrily |
| hungry | hungrily |
| lazy | lazily |
Adjectives ending in -le
Drop the final -e and add -y.
| ADJECTIVE | ADVERB |
|---|---|
| simple | simply |
| gentle | gently |
| terrible | terribly |
| comfortable | comfortably |
Adjectives ending in -ic
Add -ally, not just -ly.
| ADJECTIVE | ADVERB |
|---|---|
| basic | basically |
| dramatic | dramatically |
| automatic | automatically |
| enthusiastic | enthusiastically |
One well-known exception: public becomes publicly, not publically.
Adjectives ending in -ll
Just add -y.
full becomes fully. dull becomes dully.
Adjectives ending in -ue
Drop the final -e, then add -ly.
true becomes truly. due becomes duly.
Irregular adverbs
A small group of adverbs have the same form as their adjective. They do not take -ly at all.
| ADJECTIVE | ADVERB | EXAMPLE |
|---|---|---|
| fast | fast | She runs fast. |
| hard | hard | They worked hard all week. |
| late | late | The bus arrived late. |
| early | early | James woke up early. |
The most important irregular adverb is well, which comes from the adjective good. There is no word goodly in modern English.
Position in a sentence
Adverbs of manner usually go after the verb when there is no object.
When the verb has an object, the adverb goes after the object — never between the verb and its object.
Placing the adverb between the verb and the object is a common word-order mistake.
In some cases, placing the adverb before the verb shifts emphasis to the manner itself. This is more common in written English and sounds slightly formal.
The meaning stays the same, but the reader notices the manner more.
Adverbs that change meaning with -ly
Several common words have two adverb forms — one without -ly and one with -ly — and the two forms mean completely different things.
hard vs hardly
Hard as an adverb means "with great effort."
Hardly means "almost not" — it has nothing to do with effort.
These two sentences describe opposite situations.
late vs lately
Late means "not on time."
Lately means "recently."
near vs nearly
Near means "close in distance."
Nearly means "almost."
These pairs are a frequent source of confusion. The safest approach is to learn each one as a separate word rather than treating them as adjective-plus-ending.
Common mistakes
Using good instead of well
Putting the adverb between the verb and the object
Confusing hard and hardly
Confusing late and lately
Spelling errors with -ly