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An adverb is a single word that modifies a verb, adjective or another adverb:
I sing badly. (Badly is an adverb that modifies the verb sing)
I sing really badly. (Badly is still an adverb, but now really is as well, modifying the adverb badly)
My voice is incredibly awful. (Incredibly is an adverb, modifying the adjective awful).
An adverbial is when a group of words does the job of an adverb. That group of words can contain nouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, prepositions, or whatever, and can be as complex as you want.
Am I right?
Hello,
I would like to ask if the following is correct
When there is a house that also has a garden can we say
1.It is a house with a big garden around it.
Around it, suits well in the sentence?
Thank you in advance
Hello,
I would like to ask if the following are correct.
1.They will help you learn fast ot they will help you learning fast? (maths, French etc)
2.They will help you learn quickly?
3.It is the top part of the story. (does this sentence make sense? Is it correct?)
Thank you in advance
You can say 'help you learn' or 'help you to learn'. There is no difference in meaning.
'Help you learning' is not correct. You could say 'help you with your learning'.
We wouldn't say 'the top part of the story'. I'm not sure what you mean, but perhaps we would say 'the first part of the story' or 'the first paragraph of the story', or 'the beginning of the story'.
We were taught at school that 'every day' is a noun phrase which functions adverbially in a sentence but many grammar books say it is an adverbial phrase. I wanted to know what kind of phrase it is -- noun phrase or adverbial phrase.
It can be both. A noun phrase can be used adverbially -- this is another way of saying that the noun phrase functions as an adverb in a sentence (in this case, for example, it can tell you more about the frequency of an action) -- and in that sense it is also an adverbial phrase.
I'm not sure what you mean by 'analyse' here. Is this a sentence which you've written and would like to know if it is correct, or a sentence you have found somewhere and which you don't understand?
If the sentence is yours, then we would need to know what you want to say in order to tell you if the sentence is OK or not. If the sentence is from somewhere else, then we would need to know the context before we comment on it.
Hi !
I am confused about the part of speech "much" belongs to.
"I didn't do much ."
What is "much" here?
Is it an adverbial qualifying 'do' or an object being indefinite pronoun?
Hello Kisa Batool,
The sentence can be interpreted in several ways but I would say that 'much' here is a pronoun which is the object of the verb 'do'.
You can see a similar example on this page under 'pronoun, noun':
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/much
~
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Rafaela1
Adverbials of manner like 'angrily' (https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/english-grammar/adverbials-manner) almost always come after the verb and not before. Putting one before the verb is not exactly wrong, but it's so unusual that it would sound strange for you to use it in a normal situation.
If you were writing a poem -- you've shared many very nice poems here on LearnEnglish and we are grateful! -- then it could be appropriate, but otherwise I'd recommend you use the first word order.
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello amirfd
The first one is correct. The words 'closer', the comparative form of the adjective 'close', and the adverb 'together' are collocates here -- see number 5 on https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/together .
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi
Is it okay to say "They are ill from yesterday" to mean "They have been ill since yesterday"?
What are the differential usages of 'for' in this particular sense?
Regards
Hello Adya's
That sounds strange to me. Perhaps in some varieties of English or in some specific situation people would say it, but I don't think I ever would.
I'm sorry, but I don't understand your question about 'for' -- I don't see the word 'for' in the phrases you ask about.
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
I have a question on that sentence,>>>> "Although we've only just met, I feel like I've known you all my life."
>>>>>>>>
Why couldn't we say, "I feel as though/as if" instead of, "I feel like" ?? & thanks in advance. When I made it "as though", it's considered wrong in the exercise in here https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/intermediate-grammar/and
Hi Kirk
Thank you for your prompt reply regarding 'compound nouns' I also referred
to Cambridge Dictionary. It was very useful but I have a question regarding
Noun + Noun e.g. shopkeeper, website , 'car park' - this also noun + noun
we don't write it together like the two other two I have mentioned e.g. carpark' and many other e.g. like adjectice + noun blackberry, blackboard,
but 'black belt' , not 'blackbelt'
My question: Is there any rule or way to learn whether to write compound
nouns together or seperately e.g. 'black belt' blackberry, website, car park?
Please let me know.
Thank you.
Regards
Lal
I'm afraid there is no way to tell this in advance. You simply have to memorise each item. Compound nouns can change their spelling over time as well, so an item may begin as two separate words but over time (many years) may become one word.
Hello Sir
Please help me to understand this e.g. courtship, courtyard, courtroom etc.
We call this compound nouns . I am I correct? Addition of two nouns but not
all some nouns are not-- they are seperated. e.g. crash helmet, credit card,
credit note, but 'cowboy' why is this difference? Or tell me how can I know when to add the nouns and when not as mentioned above in my examples.
Thank you.
Lal
'courtship' is not a compound noun, since '-ship' is a suffix rather than a noun in this case, but the others you mention could be considered compound nouns. Please see this Cambridge Dictionary page for an introduction to this topic. If you have any specific questions after that, please let us know.
Could you help me, please?
Which preposition should I use, "of" or "about" or both of them are correct?
What is the difference in meaning?
I often think ....... the time we spent in Rome that I can't forget.
Thank you.
Generally, we use 'think of' to mean 'imagine' or 'dream of' and 'think about' to mean 'consider'. Both can be used when we are remembering something in a nostalgic way, and I think in your example both forms are possible.
Hi Kirk,
I benefitted from competitons that have been organized by this club over the years.
I benefitted from competitons that which organized by this club over the years.
The superlative usually has a definite article before it unless there is a possessive adjective (my/your etc).
There are some cases in which the article is optional and some in which it should not be used.
When the superlative comes before a noun, the article is needed:
He is the best player.
not
He is best player.
When a superlative adjective is in the predicative position, meaning it comes after rather than before the noun and follows a verb, it can be omitted, especially in informal use:
Dark chocolate is the best.
or
Dark chocolate is best.
The same is true of superlative adverbs:
He worked the hardest.
or
He worked hardest.
When the superlative is in the predicative position and you are compare the same thing in different situations you should not use an article:
He works hardest in the morning when he is fresh.
not
He works the hardest in the morning when he is fresh.
Hi Kirk
Actually I was busy with lots of things happening around me
Actually I was busy with lots of things were happening around me
Which one is correct
Hi,
What is the correct way to use *last* in this sentence?
1.The police are seaching for Liza Morgan. She was last seen on Monday, 22 July.
Or
2. The police are seaching for Liza Morgan. Last time, she was seen on Monday, 22 July.
Hello,
'much',as an adverb, is used with past participle
The sentence -
"She is very tired after a day's work."
Is the above sentence correct?
Can we use much instead of very?
Much as an adverb is most often used before comparative adjectives: much better, much easier.
It can be used with superlative adjectives: much the best, much the easiest.
With past participles it is used quite rarely. It tends to be seen in more formal texts and usually only in certain expresssions: much loved, much needed, much changed. It cannot be used in place of very in most expressions.
The second one is correct. If you changed the first one to 'I just woke up', it would be correct, though more natural in American English than in British English.
hello Sir,
can you help me to clear my doubt how to use might have/could have..
I might have been hit by a car, but luckily I just managed to get out of the way.
I could have been hit by a car, but luckily I just managed to get out of the way.
Which one is right w.r.t might have/could have.
Hello quds001
Well done, that's a great (and correct) summary!
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello agie,
That is fine, yes.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello agie,
You can say 'help you learn' or 'help you to learn'. There is no difference in meaning.
'
Help you learning' is not correct. You could say 'help you with your learning'.We wouldn't say 'the top part of the story'. I'm not sure what you mean, but perhaps we would say 'the first part of the story' or 'the first paragraph of the story', or 'the beginning of the story'.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Prap
It can be both. A noun phrase can be used adverbially -- this is another way of saying that the noun phrase functions as an adverb in a sentence (in this case, for example, it can tell you more about the frequency of an action) -- and in that sense it is also an adverbial phrase.
I hope that helps you make sense of it.
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Rafaela1
Strictly speaking, 'well' is the correct form here, but people often use 'good' instead of 'well' in informal speech in a sentence like this.
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Bonne,
I'm not sure what you mean by 'analyse' here. Is this a sentence which you've written and would like to know if it is correct, or a sentence you have found somewhere and which you don't understand?
If the sentence is yours, then we would need to know what you want to say in order to tell you if the sentence is OK or not. If the sentence is from somewhere else, then we would need to know the context before we comment on it.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello briskmusk,
Both 'as though' and 'as if' are possible here and have the same meaning as 'like'.
The exercise asks for either 'as' or 'like', however, not a two-word answer.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Lal,
I'm afraid there is no way to tell this in advance. You simply have to memorise each item. Compound nouns can change their spelling over time as well, so an item may begin as two separate words but over time (many years) may become one word.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Lal,
'courtship' is not a compound noun, since '-ship' is a suffix rather than a noun in this case, but the others you mention could be considered compound nouns. Please see this Cambridge Dictionary page for an introduction to this topic. If you have any specific questions after that, please let us know.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Ahmed,
Yes, 'breathe' means to draw in air through your mouth or nose. If we stop doing this for any more than a short time we die!
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Ahmed Imam,
Generally, we use 'think of' to mean 'imagine' or 'dream of' and 'think about' to mean 'consider'. Both can be used when we are remembering something in a nostalgic way, and I think in your example both forms are possible.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Nisala Jayasuriya,
I can see the two sentences but I don't see a question! What would you like to ask us?
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello amol,
The superlative usually has a definite article before it unless there is a possessive adjective (my/your etc).
There are some cases in which the article is optional and some in which it should not be used.
When the superlative comes before a noun, the article is needed:
not
When a superlative adjective is in the predicative position, meaning it comes after rather than before the noun and follows a verb, it can be omitted, especially in informal use:
or
The same is true of superlative adverbs:
or
When the superlative is in the predicative position and you are compare the same thing in different situations you should not use an article:
not
I hope that helps to clarify it for you.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello amol,
We would use 'very' in this sentence.
We use 'much' to modify verbs in negatives and questions, so you could say these:
Were the police criticised much?
I don't think the police were criticised much.
'Much' usually comes after the verb rather than before it.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello amol,
The correct word here is 'very'. We use 'much' to modify comparative adjectives (much bigger, much more beautiful) but not to modify adjectives.
There are two exceptions is in a certain type of informal/slang question:
Person A yawns.
Person B: Tired much?
As I said, this is a non-standard use.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Nisala Jayasuriya,
The first sentence is correct; the second is not.
The first sentence uses the -ing form as part of a participle clause. You can read more about these on this page.
The second sentence is not correct. You could add a relative pronoun ('which' or 'that'):
Actually I was busy with lots of things which were happening around me
Alternatively you could have two sentences:
Actually I was busy. Lots of things were happening around me.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Nisala,
That works, though please note that 'fielding' is misspelt and that some kind of article (either 'a' or 'the') should be used before 'muddy surface'.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Goncharush,
The first sentence is correct and is the best option stylistically, in my view.
If you wanted to use 'last time' then you could say:
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello amol,
Much as an adverb is most often used before comparative adjectives: much better, much easier.
It can be used with superlative adjectives: much the best, much the easiest.
With past participles it is used quite rarely. It tends to be seen in more formal texts and usually only in certain expresssions: much loved, much needed, much changed. It cannot be used in place of very in most expressions.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi David,
The second one is correct. If you changed the first one to 'I just woke up', it would be correct, though more natural in American English than in British English.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team