What is an adverb?

• A. A word that modifies a noun only.
• B. A word that always ends with -ly.
• C. A word that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.
• D. A word that conveys negation.

Answer: (C)

An adverb is a word that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. This means it tells you how something happens, when it happens, where it happens, or to what extent. For example, in “she runs quickly,” quickly describes how she runs (modifies the verb). In “the very tall building,” very modifies tall (an adjective). In “she spoke almost softly,” almost modifies softly (an adverb). While some adverbs end in -ly, not all do, and some words that look like adjectives can function as adverbs. And adverbs aren’t defined by negation alone—negation is just one possible use of certain adverbs.