Elementary 📐 Grammar · #55 of 305

Adjective or Adverb?

Adjectives describe nouns; adverbs describe verbs.

Examples

  • She is quick.
  • She runs quickly.

Key rules

  • Adjectives describe nouns: a quick answer
  • Adverbs describe verbs, adjectives or other adverbs: She answered quickly
  • After be and sense verbs (look, feel, sound) use an adjective
  • Some words are the same: fast, hard, late

Common mistakes

  • He drives careful → He drives carefully
  • She looks happily → She looks happy
💡 Tip: Ask: am I describing a thing or an action?
Practise this topic in the appPractise Elementary quiz
← Adverbs of MannerMuch, Many, A Lot Of →

Related Elementary topics

See all Elementary grammar lessons →

Past Simple: Regular Verbs

Add -ed to finish actions in the past.

Past Simple: Irregular Verbs

Many common verbs have special past forms.

Past Simple: Negatives and Questions

Use did/didn't + base verb.

Was and Were

Past forms of be.

Past Continuous

was/were + -ing for actions in progress in the past.

Past Simple vs Past Continuous

Use continuous for background; simple for interrupting events.