Adverbs modify adjectives, verbs, other adverbs, and even entire sentences, describing how something is done or how something is the way it is. Previously, we have looked at adverbs of frequency, which denote how often something occurs. Today, we'll look at adverbs of manner, which help us express how an action occurs. Most adverbs of manner end in "-ly" or "-ily."

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The adjectives "quick," "desperate," and "accurate" may be familiar to you. But here, what is being described is not a person or thing, but instead the verbs "to clear," "to try," and "to represent."

And the skies above the canyon quickly clear again.

Caption 34, America's National Parks: Grand Canyon

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The royal couple tried desperately to wake her.

Caption 39, Fairy Tales: Sleeping Beauty

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Did you know that according to a survey, over sixty percent of employers don't think CVs represent applicants accurately?

Captions 47-49, Business Life: Curriculum Vitae

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You may have noticed that adjectives that end with an "-e" simply get the "-ly" tacked onto the end anyway. This is also the case with adjectives that end in "-ful" or "-less."

English speakers like to greet each other by cheerfully stating the time of day.

Captions 14-15, English with Annette O'Neil: Ways to Say Hello

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As you can see, it's very beautifully decorated.

Caption 8, Christmas in London: Places

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It can walk on almost every terrain effortlessly.

Caption 8, Evolution: On Land

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Seasons moving endlessly.

Caption 25, Justin James: A Beautiful Life

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When an adjective ends with a "-y," like "happy" or "easy," it's customary to replace it with "-ily" in the adverb form. Let's have a look: 

Rapunzel happily accepted this handsome prince's proposal.

Caption 34, Fairy Tales: Rapunzel

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This red deer is not red at all, and will be easily singled out by predators.

Caption 50, BBC Planet: Wild Alien Animals

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Further Learning
You can find many adverbs on Yabla English to see them used in a variety of different contexts. You can also write a list of ten adjectives and look up their related adverb.

A lot of the things we used to take for granted are now seeming very special, such as when meeting up with friends again as the coronavirus lockdown starts loosening up and we begin returning to work and school. I realize this may not be happening quite yet where you live, but it will hopefully start in the coming weeks or by mid-summer at latest. 

There are a lot of English slang words and idioms commonly used in informal speech, so let's take a look at a few of those today. Let's start with a phrase I used in the first sentence of this lesson: 

Again, this assuming your opponent plays perfectly, but we'll take that for granted.

Caption 20, Numberphile - Connect Four

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"To take something for granted" means that you presume something automatically, without really thinking about it. When that something is not as you expected, you are surprised.

Let's start with some different ways that people greet each other besides the standard "hello," "good morning," "good afternoon," and "good evening." 

What's up?

Caption 29, English with Annette O'Neil - Ways To Say Hello

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How's it going?

Caption 30, English with Annette O'Neil - Ways To Say Hello

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What's happening?

Caption 31, English with Annette O'Neil - Ways To Say Hello

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All of the above questions are rhetorical, which means that people are usually not expecting you to tell them your life story or about real problems you might be having! Usually you just answer "fine," or "not much," or "I have been busy" or something simple like that. Note too that sometimes "what's up" is slurred into "'Sup," "what up," and similar variations.

Howdy.

Caption 46, English with Annette O'Neil - Ways To Say Hello

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"Howdy" is just a colloquial or casual way of saying "hello" that originally came from the more formal question "how do you do?". You can see from the bold letters where the word came from!

If you haven't seen each other in a long time, you might say something like "it seems like forever" or the odd-sounding "long time no see!" This last phrase, meaning "we have not seen each other for a long time," is thought to have come from the basic English first spoken by immigrants to North America over 100 years ago.

When meeting up with your friends for the first time in a long time, please remember to keep safe according the local rules of where you live. But also remember to enjoy yourself as we begin to have more social interactions again into summer!

Further Learning
Watch the entire conversational video series on Yabla English by Annette O'Neil and test your comprehension using the Yabla Flash Card Game.