Forming adverbs of manner
Adverbs of manner describe how an action is performed. They are the French equivalent of English words ending in "-ly" (like quickly or seriously).
To form a regular adverb in French, you take the feminine singular form of an adjective and add -ment.
| Masculine adjective | Feminine adjective | Adverb (-ment) |
|---|---|---|
| parfait | parfaite | parfaitement |
| sérieux | sérieuse | sérieusement |
| actif | active | activement |
| The team is playing perfectly today. | L'équipe joue parfaitement aujourd'hui. |
| They study the technique seriously. | Ils étudient sérieusement la technique. |
| We are actively looking for a good result. | Nous cherchons activement un bon résultat. |
If the masculine adjective already ends in an -e (meaning its masculine and feminine forms are exactly the same), you simply add -ment directly to the word.
- rapide -> rapidement
- facile -> facilement
| The team starts the match quickly. | L'équipe commence rapidement le match. |
| We win the match easily. | Nous gagnons facilement le match. |
Adverb placement
In English, we often place adverbs at the end of a sentence (e.g., "He receives the pass easily"). In French, an adverb is typically placed immediately after the conjugated verb.
Notice how the adverb sits directly between the verb and the object in these examples:
| She understands the technique perfectly. | Elle comprend parfaitement la technique. |
| He receives the pass easily. | Il reçoit facilement la passe. |
| They bravely accept the bad result. | Ils acceptent courageusement le mauvais résultat. |
Your questions are stored by us to improve Elon.io
