Basics of adverbs. 45 questions on adverbs of manner, time, place, and frequency.
What this test covers
- Manner & Time
- Place & Frequency
- Forming Adverbs
Answer the 45 questions below. Each answer is checked straight away, with an explanation. Press Submit at the end to get your score and save it to your dashboard. Answers are not kept if you leave before submitting.
All 45 questions with answers
Pick an answer for each question to see if you are right, with the explanation. Submit when you are done; you can submit before answering them all.
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Q1He speaks very ___.
Answer: C. softly
We use 'softly' to describe how someone speaks. Many words that describe actions end in '-ly'. For example: 'She walks slowly.'
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Q2The adverb form of 'happy' is ___.
Answer: A. happily
When a word ends in 'y' like 'happy', we change the 'y' to 'i' and then add '-ly' to make 'happily'.
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Q3She ___ drinks coffee before bed because she is sensitive to caffeine and needs to sleep well.
Answer: D. never
If she is sensitive to caffeine and needs to sleep, she does it zero times. 'Never' means zero times.
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Q4He plays tennis very ___.
Answer: C. well
To describe how someone plays, we use 'well'. We don't say 'goodly' or 'good' to describe an action. For example: 'You cook well.'
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Q5I ___ soccer on Saturdays.
Answer: B. often play
Words like 'often', 'always', or 'never' usually go before the main action word in standard English. The correct mid-position is 'often play'. 'Playly' and 'often playing' are not correct forms.
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Q6Please drive ___ in the rain.
Answer: A. carefully
'Carefully' describes how you should drive. Words ending in '-ly' often tell us more about an action.
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Q7Put the books ___ — not on the floor.
Answer: C. there
'There' tells us the place where the books should go, which directly answers the instruction 'not on the floor.' 'Slowly' describes how, 'often' describes how frequently, and 'soon' describes when — none of these indicate a place.
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Q8The taxi is here, so we will leave ___.
Answer: C. soon
'Soon' means in a short time from now. Since the taxi is already here, we are going to leave in a short time.
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Q9Do you ___ go to the gym on weekends?
Answer: D. ever
We use 'ever' in questions to mean 'at any time'. We are asking if you go to the gym at least once or sometimes.
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Q10The adverb form of 'bad' is ___.
Answer: C. badly
To turn 'bad' into a word that describes an action, we add '-ly'. For example: 'He sings badly.'
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Q11She works ___ at her job, so she rarely takes breaks.
Answer: B. hard
'Hard' is used to show someone is putting in a lot of effort. Be careful: 'hardly' is a different word that means 'almost not'.
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Q12He ___ late for work, even though he leaves early.
Answer: C. is often
With the verb 'be' (am, is, are), we put the frequency word after it. So, 'is often' is correct.
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Q13Have you ___ finished your homework?
Answer: A. already
We use 'already' to show that something is finished now or happened sooner than expected.
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Q14Please sit ___; your legs must be tired.
Answer: A. down
'Sit down' is a common phrase. 'Down' tells us the direction of the action.
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Q15She sings ___.
Answer: C. beautifully
'Beautifully' describes her singing. Most words that describe how we do something end in '-ly'.
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Q16The adverb form of 'quick' is ___.
Answer: A. quickly
To describe a fast action, we add '-ly' to 'quick' to get 'quickly'.
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Q17We ___ see them anymore because they moved away.
Answer: A. rarely
'Rarely' means almost never. If someone moves away, you see them very few times.
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Q18He speaks English quite ___.
Answer: A. well
To describe how someone speaks a language, we use 'well'. We don't use 'good' or 'goodly' for actions.
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Q19They ___ on time for the meeting.
Answer: C. are always
Words like 'always' or 'often' come after the verb 'are'. For example: 'They are always hungry.'
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Q20Walk ___ across the street.
Answer: A. slowly
'Slowly' describes how to walk. We usually add '-ly' to words like 'slow' to describe an action.
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Q21I have ___ seen that movie, so I don't want to watch it again.
Answer: C. already
'Already' means something happened before now. Since the person saw the movie in the past, they don't want to see it again.
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Q22Is your house ___?
Answer: C. nearby
'Nearby' means 'close' or 'not far away'. It describes the location of the house.
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Q23She ___ goes to the park when the weather is nice.
Answer: A. sometimes
'Sometimes' tells us how often she goes. Words like 'here', 'well', or 'ever' don't fit the meaning of the sentence.
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Q24The adverb form of 'easy' is ___.
Answer: B. easily
For words ending in 'y' like 'easy', change 'y' to 'i' and add '-ly' to get 'easily'.
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Q25He answered the question ___.
Answer: B. correctly
We use 'correctly' to describe how he gave the answer. Adding '-ly' to the word 'correct' describes the action.
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Q26Don't work too ___ or you will get exhausted.
Answer: D. hard
'Hard' is a special word. It is the same when describing a person (a hard worker) and when describing an action (work hard). Do not use 'hardly' because that means 'almost not'.
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Q27I will call you ___ to discuss the plans.
Answer: D. tomorrow
'Tomorrow' tells us when the action will happen.
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Q28They ___ eat out because they prefer cooking at home.
Answer: A. seldom
'Seldom' means 'not very often'. If they prefer cooking at home, they don't go to restaurants many times. Note: We don't say 'seldomly'.
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Q29She ___ books every evening.
Answer: B. often reads
We put 'often' before the action word 'reads'. For example: 'I often study at night.'
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Q30The sun is shining ___ today.
Answer: B. brightly
'Brightly' describes how the sun is shining. We add '-ly' to 'bright' to describe the action.
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Q31The adverb form of 'angry' is ___.
Answer: B. angrily
For words ending in 'y' like 'angry', we change 'y' to 'i' and add '-ly'.
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Q32The team played ___ yesterday.
Answer: B. well
To describe how someone plays a game, use 'well'. We don't use 'good' or 'goodly' for actions.
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Q33Come ___ please, I need to talk to you.
Answer: D. here
'Here' tells the person the place to go.
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Q34I ___ eat meat; I am a strict vegetarian.
Answer: A. never
A vegetarian does not eat meat. 'Never' means zero times.
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Q35See you ___.
Answer: D. later
'Later' is a common word used to say goodbye when you will see someone again in the future.
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Q36He laughed ___ at the joke.
Answer: D. happily
'Happily' describes how he laughed. We add '-ly' to 'happy' to describe the action.
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Q37The adverb form of 'safe' is ___.
Answer: C. safely
To describe doing something in a safe way, we add '-ly' to get 'safely'.
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Q38The train goes very ___.
Answer: C. fast
'Fast' is a special word. It stays the same for both descriptions and actions. We say 'a fast train' and 'the train goes fast'. 'Fastly' is not a real word.
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Q39He ___ breakfast at 7 AM.
Answer: C. usually eats
Words like 'usually' go before the action word (eats). For example: 'I usually drink milk.'
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Q40___ I like to be alone to read, but other times I enjoy company.
Answer: C. Sometimes
'Sometimes' is the best choice. 'Always' and 'Never' are contradicted by the phrase 'other times'. 'Seldom' would mean the speaker rarely likes solitude, which contradicts the balance implied by 'other times'.
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Q41The bus will arrive ___.
Answer: B. soon
'Soon' tells us when the bus will arrive (in a short time).
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Q42Is the station ___?
Answer: C. nearby
'Nearby' means 'close by'. We use it to ask about the location of the station.
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Q43They worked ___ in the library.
Answer: C. quietly
'Quietly' describes how they worked. Most words that describe actions end in '-ly'.
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Q44You did the job ___.
Answer: A. well
We use 'well' to describe how a job was done. We don't use 'good' or 'goodly' for actions.
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Q45The adverb form of 'loud' is ___.
Answer: B. loudly
We add '-ly' to 'loud' to describe how someone speaks or makes a noise. For example: 'He spoke loudly.'
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