In French, adverbs are usually formed by adding -ment to an adjective (similar to -ly in English). However, a small group of common adjectives can be used directly as adverbs to describe specific actions.
When an adjective acts as an adverb, it describes the verb, not a noun. Because of this, it is completely invariable—it never changes its form to match gender or number.
Travailler dur and Parler fort
Use dur (hard) to describe the intensity of working, and fort (strong/loud) to describe the volume of speaking, singing, or playing music.
| The drummer works hard for this recording. | Le batteur travaille dur pour cet enregistrement. |
| The drummer was speaking loud when the recording clipped. | Le batteur parlait fort quand l'enregistrement a saturé. |
| You sing loudly, but the frequency of the echo is bad. | Tu chantes fort, mais la fréquence de l'écho est mauvaise. |
Coûter cher and Sentir bon
Similarly, use cher (dear/expensive) with verbs about costing, and bon (good) with the verb sentir to describe how something smells.
| The mixing is expensive, so lower the volume for fear of clipping. | Le mixage coûte cher, alors baissez le volume de peur de saturer. |
| The coffee smells good while we finish the mixing. | Le café sent bon pendant que nous finissons le mixage. |
These expressions are very common, and you will often hear them together in everyday situations.
| The coffee is expensive, but it smells good. | Le café coûte cher, mais il sent bon. |
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