Adjectives vs. Adverbs
Quick answer
Adjectives describe nouns or pronouns. Adverbs usually describe verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.
Adjective and adverb comparison
| Sentence | Word | Role |
|---|---|---|
| The quick runner smiled. | quick | Adjective describing runner |
| The runner moved quickly. | quickly | Adverb describing moved |
| She gave a careful answer. | careful | Adjective describing answer |
| She answered carefully. | carefully | Adverb describing answered |
Clear explanation
Ask what the word is describing. If it describes a noun, it is probably an adjective. If it describes an action, it is probably an adverb.
Some words can be tricky because they do not end in -ly, and some -ly words are adjectives.
Common mistakes
- Do not assume every -ly word is an adverb.
- Do not use an adverb after linking verbs when you need an adjective: say 'I feel bad', not 'I feel badly', when you mean your state.
- Look at the job the word is doing in the sentence.
Mini quiz
- In 'The slow car stopped', slow is an adjective.
- In 'The car stopped slowly', slowly is an adverb.
- In 'The happy child sang', happy is an adjective.
The fastest test
To choose between an adjective and an adverb, ask what the word describes. If it describes a noun or pronoun, use an adjective. If it describes a verb, adjective, or another adverb, use an adverb.
This test works better than looking for -ly because not every adverb ends in -ly and not every -ly word is an adverb.
| Question | Answer | Use |
|---|---|---|
| What kind of answer? | a careful answer | Adjective |
| How did she answer? | answered carefully | Adverb |
| What kind of child? | a happy child | Adjective |
| How did the child sing? | sang happily | Adverb |
Linking verbs can be tricky
After linking verbs such as be, seem, feel, look, and become, you often need an adjective because the word describes the subject. 'The soup smells good' uses good as an adjective describing soup. 'She looked sad' uses sad as an adjective describing she.
Use an adverb when the word describes the action itself: 'She looked carefully at the map.' In that sentence, carefully describes how she looked.
Final summary
Adjectives and adverbs both add detail, but they attach to different things. Adjectives describe nouns and pronouns. Adverbs usually describe actions, qualities, or other adverbs. The simplest way to decide is to ask what word is being described.
If the detail belongs to a person, place, thing, or idea, you probably need an adjective. If the detail belongs to an action or degree, you probably need an adverb.