Adverbs define a verb or a whole sentence. Adverbs are uninflected words that typically express manner, place, time, amount, cause or degree of certainty:
Él habla español perfectamente.
He speaks Spanish perfectly.Â
Siempre desayuno temprano.
I always eat breakfast early.
El perro bebe mucha agua.
The dog drinks a lot of water.
Adverbs that define nouns can also be classified as indefinite pronouns, which are inflected according to the gender and number of the noun:
Hay muchos libros en la biblioteca.
There are many books in the library.
You can read more on indefinite pronouns in chapter 1.6.
Adverb Formation
Typically, adverbs are formed from the feminine form of adjectives by adding the suffix –mente after the adjective.
| Masculine | Feminine | Adverb | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| rápido → | rápida → | rápidamente | quickly |
| sistemático → | sistemática → | sistemáticamente | systematically |
| fácil_ → | fácil_ → | fácilmente | easily |
Los niños corren rápidamente.
The children run quickly.
La empresa quiere que los empleados trabajen sistemáticamente.
The company wants employees to work systematically.
Adverbs can be divided into the following categories:
- Time adverbs
-
- generalmente = usually
- frecuentemente = frequently
- actualmente = currently
Generalmente como pan con mantequilla en el desayuno.
I usually eat bread and butter for breakfast.
- Manner adverbs
-
- fácilmente = easily
- rápidamente = quickly
- tranquilamente = peacefully
El bebé duerme tranquilamente en su cuna.
The baby sleeps peacefully in his cot.
- Place adverbs
-
- dentro = in(side)
- lejos = far
- cerca = near
Las llaves están dentro del bolso.
The keys are inside the bag.
- Amount adverbs
-
- mucho = much, a lot
- más = more
- demasiado = too (much)
Hace demasiado calor para salir.
It’s too hot to go out.
- Sentence adverbs
-
- probablemente = probably
- desafortunadamente = unfortunately
- afortunadamente = fortunately, luckily
Probablemente llueva mañana.
It will probably rain tomorrow.
Adverbs can also define an adjective or another adverb:
El libro es muy interesante.
The book is very interesting.
El profesor habla muy claramente.
The teacher speaks very clearly.
| Place adverbs | |
|---|---|
| aquĂ | here |
| ahĂ | there (nearby) |
| allĂ | there (farther away) |
| cerca | nearby, close |
| lejos | far |
| delante | in front |
| adelante | forward, ahead |
| detrás | behind |
| atrás | backward |
| enfrente | opposite, across (from) |
| alrededor | around |
| encima | on (top) |
| debajo | under |
| abajo | down, below |
| arriba | up, above |
| dentro | inside |
| adentro | inward in Spain, inside in LatAm |
| fuera | outside |
| afuera | out in Spain, outside in LatAm |
| Time adverbs | |
|---|---|
| ahora | now |
| hoy | today |
| mañana | tomorrow |
| ayer | yesterday |
| anteayer | the day before yesterday |
| siempre | always |
| frecuentemente | frequently, often |
| raramente | rarely |
| nunca | never |
| ya | already |
| todavĂa | yet, still |
| temprano | early |
| tarde | late |
| luego | later, then, next |
| después | after(ward), then |
| antes | before, earlier |
| pronto | soon |