An adverb (avverbio) is a word that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another
adverb. An adverb can be compared to an adjective but instead it says something
about a verb or an adjective instead of a noun.
- Luciano agisce lentamentes »
Luciano acts slowly.
- Leonardo viene tardi » Leonardo
comes late.
- Usciamo adesso » We're leaving
now.
- Ci andiamo a giugno » We are going there in June.
In English, adverbs are often formed by adding the suffix -ly to adjectives: slowly, softly, surely.
Adverbs often answer the question: come? (how?), quando? (when?), or dove? (where?)
In Italian, many adverbs are formed by adding the ending -mente (which
corresponds to the suffix -ly) to the feminine form of the adjective:
| Adjective (masc.) |
Adjective (fem.) |
Adverb |
|
| felice (happy) |
felice (happy) |
felicemente (happily) |
| vero (true) |
vera (true) |
veramente (truly) |
| lento (slow) |
lenta (slow) |
lentamente (slowly) |
| stanco (tired) |
stanca (tired) |
stancamente (tiredly) |
Examples:
- Lui corre rapidamente »
He runs fast
- Parlo lentamente » I
speak slowly
- Parla Italiano fluentemente
» He/She/It speaks Italian fluently
If the adjective ends in -le or -re, the final vowel e is dropped before
adding the suffix -mente:
| Adjective (m. or f.) |
Adjectival root |
Adverb |
|
| esemplare(exemplary) |
esemplari- |
esemplarmente(exemplarily) |
| gentile (kind) |
gentil- |
gentilmente(kindly) |
| speciale(special) |
special- |
specialmente(especially) |
| generale (general) |
general- |
generalmente(generally) |
| regolare (regular) |
regolar- |
regolarmente(regularly) |
Not all Italian adverbs are formed from adjectives. Below we have a list of
those adverbs.
| ITALIAN |
ENGLISH |
|
ITALIAN |
ENGLISH |
|
|
|
| ancora |
still |
|
già |
already |
| attorno |
around, about |
|
inoltre |
moreover |
| bene |
well |
|
insieme |
together |
| contro |
against |
|
male |
badly |
| dentro |
in, inside |
|
(non)...mai |
never |
| dietro |
behind of |
|
(non)...più |
not anymore |
| dopo |
then, afterwards |
|
oltre |
beyond |
| fuori |
outside |
|
sempre |
always |
Examples:
- Beve sempre la birra » He
always drinks beer.
- Sono arrivato tardi al museo » I arrived late
at the museum.
- Non ci sei più andata » You don't go
there anymore.
- Enzo è sempre venuto in orario » Enzo always
came on time.
- Non ho ancora finito i miei compiti » I still
hadn't finished my homework.
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