72. Adverbs Without an -ly Ending

Adverbs modify verbs. Adverbs often have an -ly ending and tell us how or in what way the action is happening.
Today we will talk about adverbs that do not end in –ly. These adverbs often tell when something is happening.

Here are adverbs that modify a verb by telling when something happens:
soon
often
seldom
never
always
today
tomorrow
tonight
yesterday
now
later
sometimes

These words aren’t easily recognized as adverbs because they do not have an –ly ending.
However, these words modify the verb and tell when something is happening, so these words are adverbs.

When do you eat breakfast?
I seldom eat breakfast.
I often eat breakfast.
I always eat breakfast.
I never eat breakfast.

When will the train arrive?
The train will arrive later.
The train will arrive soon.
The train will arrive now.
The train will arrive tomorrow.

Not all adverbs end in –ly. You know a word is an adverb if it tells more about the verb. An adverb may tell how something happens, when something happens, or in what way something happens.

  • It’s your turn. Find the adverb in each of these sentences below. We are having pizza for dinner tonight. I sometimes wish I could live at the beach. Did you choose tonight and sometimes? Then you can recognize adverbs.