Types of Adverbs
Just as in English, an adverb is used to tell how something is done. It modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. In English, we can recognize adverbs because most end in -ly and in French we can recognize adverbs because most will end in -ment. Also, adverbs show no gender agreement.
To form most adverbs in French, add -ment to the feminine form of the adjective.
| Masculine Adjective | Feminine Adjective | Adverb |
|---|---|---|
| final | finale | finalement |
| cruel | cruelle | cruellement |
| premier | première | premièrement |
| curieux | curieuse | curieusement |
| actif | active | activement |
| long | longue | longuement |
| rapide | rapide | rapidement |
Certain exceptions to the regular formation of adverbs are summarized as follows.
| Adjective Ending | Irregularity | Adjective | Adverb |
|---|---|---|---|
| -i | no e added | vrai | vraiment |
| -u | no e added | absolu | absolument |
| -ant | -amment | brillant | brillammant |
| constant | constammant | ||
| -ent | -emment | évident | évidemment |
| patient | patiemment | ||
| fréquent | fréquemment |
A few adverbs have completely irregular stems.
| Masculine Adjective | Feminine Adjective | Adverb |
|---|---|---|
| bref | brève | brièvement |
| gentil | gentille | gentiment |
A few adverbs are completely different from their corresponding adjectives.
| Adjective | Adverb |
|---|---|
| bon | bien |
| mauvais | mal |
| meilleur | mieux |
| petit | peu |
Here are some commonly used adverbs.
| Time | Place | Frequency | Quantity |
|---|---|---|---|
| aujourd'hui | ici | déjà | assez |
| demain | là | enfin | beaucoup |
| hier | là-bas | jamais | peu |
| maintenant | nulle part | quelquefois | trop |
| tard | partout | souvent | |
| tôt | quelque part | toujours | |
| vite |
Position of Adverbs
The usual position for adverbs used with simple tenses is directly following the conjugate verb.
Examples:
Il finit facilement ses devoirs. He easily finishes his work.
Elles répondent bien aux questions. They answer the questions well.
Nous revenons quelquefois à 22 heures. We return sometimes at 10:00 pm.
Many adverbs of time, place, frequency, and manner may also be placed at the beginning or the end of a sentence.
Demain, nous allons à la plage. Tomorrow, we will go to the beach.
Nous allons à la plage demain. We will go to the beach tomorrow.
Any adverb that depends on the verb for its meaning, such as adverbs of quantity, must be placed directly after the verb.
Elle mange beaucoup du poulet. She eats a lot of chicken.
Vous mangez trop du gâteau. You eat too much cake.
Je fais mieux la cuisine. I cook the best.
If an adverb is modifying a negated verb, it should be placed after the negation.
Elle ne travaille pas trop à sa boulangerie. She doesn't work too much at her bakery.
Paul ne court pas rapidement parce qu'il est tombée hier. Paul isn't running quickly because he fell yesterday.