🏃Adverbs of manner
How the action happens: well, badly, fast, slowly, together, alone.
19 concepts
Columns follow the languages switched on at the top. Gender after the word (m/f/n); IPA beneath; notes, alternatives and origins underneath — nothing is hidden.
| Concept | English | Français | Español |
|---|---|---|---|
well adverb | well Adjective is good: he plays well, not 'he plays good' (though speech does it). | bien Adjective is bon. Très bien = very good/well. | bien Adjective is bueno. Está bien = it's fine / okay. |
badly adverb | badly | mal Pas mal = not bad — which usually means 'pretty good'. | mal Adjective is malo, adverb mal: canta mal. Menos mal = thank goodness. |
fast / quickly adverb | fast also: quickly Same form as the adjective — never 'fastly'. | vite Vite is the adverb, rapide the adjective: il conduit vite, une voiture rapide. | rápido also: rápidamente, deprisa Word-initial r is the trilled /r/. |
slowly adverb | slowly | lentement -ment adverbs build on the feminine: lente + -ment. | despacio also: lentamente Más despacio, por favor — the phrase every learner needs first. |
together adverb | together | ensemble Also the noun 'ensemble' — a whole, an outfit. | juntos Agrees: juntas for an all-female group. |
alone adverb | alone also: on my own, by myself | seul Agrees: seule, seuls, seules. Tout seul = all alone / all by oneself. | solo Agrees: sola. Same word as 'only' — the adverb used to be written sólo. |
carefully adverb | carefully | prudemment also: soigneusement (with care), attentivement -emment is pronounced -amment. Fais attention ! = be careful! | con cuidado also: cuidadosamente ¡Cuidado! alone = watch out! |
loudly adverb | loudly also: out loud | fort Parler fort = to speak loudly. Also 'strong'. À voix haute = out loud. | alto Hablar alto. Also 'tall/high'. En voz alta = out loud. |
quietly adverb | quietly Quiet ≠ quite — one letter, different word. | doucement also: à voix basse (in a low voice) From doux 'soft' — also 'gently' and 'slowly': doucement ! | en voz baja also: bajito, tranquilamente |
suddenly adverb | suddenly | tout à coup also: soudain, tout d'un coup Liaison glues it into one word: /tutaku/. | de repente also: de pronto |
again adverb | again Also /əˈɡeɪn/ for many speakers — both fine. | encore also: de nouveau, à nouveau Same word as 'still' and 'more' — context decides. Encore une fois = one more time. | otra vez also: de nuevo Or volver a + infinitive: vuelvo a empezar = I start again. |
like this / this way adverb | like this also: this way, like that | comme ça Comme ci comme ça = so-so. C'est comme ça = that's how it is. | así Así así = so-so. Así es = that's right. |
on purpose / deliberately adverb · manner | on purpose Deliberately is the formal one. 'Purposely' and 'purposefully' mean different things and are constantly swapped. | exprès Final s silent. Not the same word as express — that is exprès with a different stress and meaning. | a propósito Also means 'by the way' when it opens a sentence. |
patiently adverb · manner | patiently The -ly suffix is English's only productive adverb-maker. | patiemment Spelled -emment, said /amɑ̃/. Adjectives in -ent take -emment, those in -ant take -amment, and both sound identical. | pacientemente -mente on the FEMININE adjective. It keeps the adjective's own stress, so these words have two. |
fortunately / luckily adverb · manner | fortunately Comments on the whole sentence rather than on the verb — a different job from 'patiently'. | heureusement From heureux 'happy'. The opposite is malheureusement, which is much longer and much more used. | afortunadamente Por suerte is the short everyday one. |
keenly / eagerly adverb · manner | keenly Sharply, eagerly. English has no single word covering the French idiom below. | vivement From vif 'lively'. And it has a second life as an exclamation: vivement les vacances ! — 'roll on the holidays'. | vivamente |
warmly / in a friendly way adverb · manner | warmly 'Kind regards' is what you write; warmly is what you do. | amicalement From ami. It is also the standard sign-off on a letter to a friend — one notch warmer than cordialement, several below affectueusement. | cordialmente From the Latin for 'heart', like English cordial. |
kindly adverb · manner | kindly Careful — 'kindly do X' is not kind at all; it is a rebuke. | gentiment IRREGULAR. gentil should give gentillement and does not — it gives gentiment. One of a tiny handful of exceptions. | amablemente -mente on the feminine adjective, entirely regular. |
obviously / clearly adverb · manner | obviously Watch the tone: it can mean 'as anyone can see' or 'as you evidently cannot'. | évidemment -emment, said /amɑ̃/ — exactly like patiemment. Adjectives in -ent take -emment, those in -ant take -amment, and the two are pronounced identically. | evidentemente Obviamente and claro que sí are the everyday ones. |