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10.7. Les adverbes

Uses and Forms of Adverbs

10.7.1. The Main Idea

Adverbs add detail to a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.

Il parle lentement.	He speaks slowly.
Elle chante bien.	She sings well.
C’est très important.	It is very important.
Il travaille assez souvent.	He works quite often.

Adverbs can describe how, when, where, how often, or how much something happens.

10.7.2. Common Adverbs

bien	well
mal	badly / poorly
vite	quickly / fast
lentement	slowly
souvent	often
toujours	always
parfois	sometimes
rarement	rarely
maintenant	now
hier	yesterday
ici	here
là	there
beaucoup	a lot
très	very
assez	quite / enough
trop	too much / too

10.7.3. Adverbs of Manner

Adverbs of manner describe how someone does something.

Il parle lentement.	He speaks slowly.
Elle répond rapidement.	She answers quickly.
Nous travaillons sérieusement.	We work seriously.
Vous expliquez clairement.	You explain clearly.
Ils mangent vite.	They eat quickly.

10.7.4. Forming Adverbs with -ment

Many French adverbs are formed from the feminine form of an adjective + -ment.

lent	lente	lentement
slow, masculine	slow, feminine	slowly

sérieux	sérieuse	sérieusement
serious, masculine	serious, feminine	seriously

clair	claire	clairement
clear, masculine	clear, feminine	clearly

10.7.5. More -ment Examples

rapide | rapidement | quickly

facile | facilement | easily

difficile | difficilement | with difficulty

normal | normalement | normally

naturel | naturellement | naturally

heureux | heureusement | fortunately / happily

vrai | vraiment | really / truly

Some adjectives already end in -e, so you usually add -ment directly.

rapide	rapidement
facile	facilement

10.7.6. Adverbs of Frequency

Adverbs of frequency say how often something happens.

toujours	always
souvent	often
parfois	sometimes
rarement	rarely
jamais	never

Examples:

Je travaille souvent.	I often work.
Je fais parfois du sport.	I sometimes exercise.
Je mange rarement le matin.	I rarely eat in the morning.
Je ne bois jamais de café.	I never drink coffee.

10.7.7. Adverbs of Time and Place

Adverbs of time say when something happens.

aujourd’hui	today
maintenant	now
demain	tomorrow
hier	yesterday
bientôt	soon
déjà	already

Adverbs of place say where something happens.

ici	here
là	there
partout	everywhere
ailleurs	elsewhere

10.7.8. Adverbs of Quantity and Intensity

These adverbs show degree or amount.

très	very
assez	quite / enough
trop	too / too much
beaucoup	a lot
un peu	a little
plus	more
moins	less

Examples:

C’est très intéressant.	It is very interesting.
La maison est assez grande.	The house is quite big.
Ce café est trop cher.	This café is too expensive.
J’aime beaucoup cette chanson.	I like this song a lot.
Je parle un peu français.	I speak a little French.

10.7.9. Position of Adverbs

With a simple verb, many adverbs go after the verb.

Je parle lentement.	I speak slowly.
Elle travaille bien.	She works well.
Nous mangeons souvent au restaurant.	We often eat at the restaurant.

With an adjective, adverbs go before the adjective.

C’est très bon.	It is very good.
C’est assez difficile.	It is quite difficult.
Il est vraiment gentil.	He is really kind.

10.7.10. Adverbs in the Passé Composé

Many common adverbs go between the auxiliary and the past participle.

J’ai bien dormi.	I slept well.
J’ai beaucoup étudié.	I studied a lot.
J’ai déjà mangé.	I already ate.
Je n’ai jamais visité Paris.	I have never visited Paris.

Longer adverbs can also go after the past participle.

Il a parlé lentement.	He spoke slowly.
Elle a répondu rapidement.	She answered quickly.

10.7.11. Common Contrast

bon	good, adjective
bien	well, adverb
mauvais	bad, adjective
mal	badly / poorly, adverb

Examples:

C’est un bon café.	It is good coffee.
Il chante bien.	He sings well.
C’est un mauvais film.	It is a bad movie.
Elle dort mal.	She sleeps badly.

10.7.12. Core Patterns

verb + adverb	Il parle lentement.
adverb + adjective	C’est très important.
feminine adjective + -ment	lente → lentement
auxiliary + adverb + past participle	J’ai bien dormi.
ne + verb + jamais	Je ne bois jamais de café.

10.7.13. Practice

He speaks slowly. |

She answers quickly. |

I often work. |

I never drink coffee. |

It is very important. |

This café is too expensive. |

I speak a little French. |

I slept well. |

I already ate. |

10.7.14. Answers

He speaks slowly.	Il parle lentement.
She answers quickly.	Elle répond rapidement.
I often work.	Je travaille souvent.
I never drink coffee.	Je ne bois jamais de café.
It is very important.	C’est très important.
This café is too expensive.	Ce café est trop cher.
I speak a little French.	Je parle un peu français.
I slept well.	J’ai bien dormi.
I already ate.	J’ai déjà mangé.

10.7.15. Short Dialogue

A : Tu parles français souvent ?	A: Do you speak French often?
B : Oui, je parle souvent français, mais je parle lentement.	B: Yes, I often speak French, but I speak slowly.
A : Tu comprends bien ?	A: Do you understand well?
B : Oui, je comprends assez bien.	B: Yes, I understand quite well.

10.7.16. Checkpoint

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to recognize common adverbs, form many adverbs with -ment, use adverbs to describe how, when, where, how often, or how much something happens, and place common adverbs correctly with simple verbs, adjectives, and the passé composé.

10.7.17. Try It Out

Try saying this in French:

I speak French slowly.

I understand quite well.

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Possible answer:

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