1 Adverbs with verbs
- In English, adverbs can come in different places in a sentence.
- I’m never coming back.
- See you soon!
- Suddenly the phone rang.
- I’d really like to come.
- In French, the rules are more fixed. When an adverb goes with a verb that consists of just one word, such as a verb in the present tense or the imperfect tense, it generally goes AFTER that verb.
| Il neige toujours en janvier. | It always snows in January. |
| Je pensais souvent à toi. | I often used to think about you. |
- When an adverb goes with a verb that consists of more than one word, such as a verb in the perfect tense, it generally comes BETWEEN the part of the verb that comes from avoir or être and the past participle.
| Il a trop mangé. | He’s eaten too much. |
| Ils sont déjà partis. | They’ve already gone. |
- The rule above covers most adverbs that tell you about quantity or time (apart from a few listed later), and some very common ones telling you how something is done.
| beaucoup | a lot, much |
| bien | well |
| bientôt | soon |
| déjà | already, before |
| encore | still, even, again |
| enfin | at last |
| mal | badly |
| mieux | better |
| peu | not much, not very |
| rarement | rarely |
| souvent | often |
| toujours | always, still |
| trop | too much, too |
| vraiment | really |
- Some adverbs FOLLOW the past participle of verbs that consist of more than one word. This rule covers most adverbs that tell you how or where something is done, and a few adverbs that tell you about time.
| aujourd’hui | today |
| demain | tomorrow |
| hier | yesterday |
| loin | far, far off, a long time ago |
| longtemps | a long time |
| partout | everywhere |
| quelquefois | sometimes |
| tôt | early |
| tard | late |
| vite | quick, fast, soon |
| On les a vus partout. | We saw them everywhere. |
| Elle est revenue hier. | She came back yesterday. |
2 Adverbs with adjectives and other adverbs
- When an adverb goes with an adjective, it generally comes just BEFORE that adjective.
| Ils ont une très belle maison. | They have a very nice house. |
| une femme bien habillée | a well-dressed woman |
- When an adverb goes with another adverb, it generally comes just BEFORE that adverb.
| C’est trop tard. | It’s too late. |
| Fatima travaille beaucoup plus vite. | Fatima works much faster. |
Key points
- Adverbs follow verbs that consist of just one word.
- They generally go before the past participle of verbs that consist of two words when they relate to quantity or time.
- They generally go after the past participle of verbs that consist of two words when they relate to how or where something is done.
- When used with an adjective or another adverb, they generally come just before it.