Adjective vs Adverb: What’s The Difference?

Adjectives are a word in the English language that modifies a noun or a pronoun. An adverb is allowed to come before the word that it is changing. These terms tend to be the source of common errors for ESL learners or even high school English students. 

Example

  • I have never seen such a cute baby!
  • It is not common to see such calm people here. 

 

Adverbs are words in the English language that can modify a verb, adjective, or even other adverbs. If you want to know if a word is an adverb, you can see if that word asks how, when, where, why, to what extent, how often, or how much as a linking verb.

Example

  • As he gets older, he sees poorly
  • Let’s go inside; it looks like it is beginning to rain.

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What Is the Definition of the Word Adjective?

Noun

  • “Any member of a class of words that modify nouns and pronouns, primarily by describing a particular quality of the word they are modifying, as wise in a wise grandmother, or perfect in a perfect score, or handsome in He is extremely handsome. Other terms, as numbers (one cup; twelve months), certain demonstrative pronouns (this magazine; those questions), and terms that impose limits (each person; no mercy) can also function adjectivally, as can some nouns that are found chiefly in fixed phrases where they immediately precede the noun they modify, as bottle in bottle cap and bus in bus station.” – Dictionary.com

Adjective

  • pertaining to or functioning as an adjective; adjectival:
  • the adjective use of a noun.
  • Law. Concerning methods of enforcement of legal rights, as pleading and practice (opposed to substantive).
  • (of dye colors) requiring a mordant or the like to render them permanent (opposed to substantive).
  • Archaic. not able to stand alone; dependent:
  • Women were seen by some (by some men, that is) as adjective creatures, needing to be cared for and protected from the vicissitudes of life.

What Is the Definition of the Word Adverb?

Noun

  • “any member of a class of words that function as modifiers of verbs or clauses, and in some languages, as Latin and English, as modifiers of adjectives, other adverbs, or adverbial phrases, as very in very nice, much in much more impressive, and tomorrow in She’ll write to you tomorrow. They relate to what they modify by indicating place (I promise to be there), time (Do your homework now!), manner (She sings beautifully), circumstance (He accidentally dropped the glass when the bell rang), positive degree (I’m very happy to see you), or cause (I draw, although badly).” – Dictionary.com

Following Sentences of the Word Adverb in Context

Following Examples of the Word Adjective in Context

Summary

You are now very well informed on the difference between these two parts of speech. You should be able to identify them in sentences and take away some other useful information about both adjectives and adverbs.

Sources:

  1. https://www.dictionary.com/browse/adjective?s=t
  2. https://www.dictionary.com/browse/adverb?s=t
  3. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/06/24/the-cia-spook-turned-comic-book-scribe-robin-grabs-a-gun-in-grayson.html?source=dictionary
  4. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/45814/45814-h/45814-h.htm
  5. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/45814/45814-h/45814-h.htm
  6. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/40550/40550-h/40550-h.htm
  7. https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/09/25/1008921/ai-allen-institute-generates-images-from-captions/
  8. https://www.popsci.com/story/environment/hurricane-risk-communication/
  9. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/11/06/in-press-conference-obama-turns-conciliatory-mostly.html?source=dictionary
  10. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/23/the-stacks-pete-dexter-s-indelible-portrait-of-author-norman-maclean.html?source=dictionary
  11. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/22/yes-women-can-make-great-wine.html?source=dictionary
  12. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/09/lena-dunham-on-snl-review-very-funny-very-dunham-y.html?source=dictionary
  13. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/02/whoever-wins-what-watch-out-for-minnelli.html?source=dictionary
  14. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/17594/17594-h/17594-h.htm
  15. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/45814/45814-h/45814-h.htm
  16. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/48099/48099-h/48099-h.htm
  17. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/46228/46228-h/46228-h.htm
  18. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19819/19819-h/19819-h.htm 
  19. https://thewordcounter.com/began-vs-begun/
  20. https://thewordcounter.com/may-vs-might/