Adverbs in Spanish (los adverbios)

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the adverbs (Adverbs) are invariable words used to modify the meanings of verbs, adjectives or other adverbs.

Adverbs can indicate affirmation, intensity, doubt, place, mode, denial, order and time.

you work a lot. (You work a lot.)

Note that in the sentence above, the adverb a lot modify the verb work (work) adding to it a sense of intensity.

The example sentence not only expresses that Pablo has work, but that he has a lot of work.

Check out the main types of adverbs in Spanish below.

Adverbs of affirmation (adverbs of affirmation)

As the name already indicates, the affirmation adverbs are used to assert something.

Below is a list of affirmation adverbs in Spanish.

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Affirmation adverb in Spanish	Translation	Example
yes	yea	Yes, you have to do something. (Yes, you have to do something.)
clear	clear	“Will Maria come with you?” “¡Of course!” (“Is Maria coming with you?” “Of course!”)
surely	Certainly; clear; certainly	“Are you safe?” “Surely!” (“Are you sure?” “Of course!”)
sure	certainly	Sure, no sé. (Of course, I don't know.)
also	also	His hijo is a liar and he is también. (His son is a liar and so is he.)
ya	already	Ya see that it's not good. (You can see he's not okay.)
exact	exactly	The question if Juan llegaría el Miércoles and tell me: “Exactly”. (I asked him if Juan would be arriving on Wednesday and he said, “Exactly”.

Also know some adverbial phrases (adverbial phrases) that indicate affirmation.

since luego (Certainly; certainly)
presumably (naturally; Certainly; certainly)
sin duda (no doubt)
in effect (in fact; effectively; really)
of course (Certainly; certainly)

Cantidad adverbs (intensity/quantity adverbs)

You adverbs of membership are used to indicate the intensity at which something happens.

Below is a list of quantity/intensity adverbs in Spanish.

Quantity/intensity adverb in Spanish	Translation	Example
besides	other than that	No voy al estadio because I'm tired and, besides, I don't like fútbol. (I don't go to the stadium because I'm tired and besides, I don't like football.)
quite	quite	we have eaten a lot. (We ate a lot)
casi	almost	casi has forgotten you. (You almost forget.)
but	more	I'm taller than my priest. (I am taller than my father.)
any less	any less	speak less and more. (Talk less and do more.)
a lot¹	much	I want you so much. (I like you very much.)
very²	much	Ella is very sad. (She is very sad.)
pit	little	the child eats little. (The boy eats little).
tan	So	Why do you want a big tan coach? (Why do you want such a big car?)
so much	so much	Hello so much. (I cried so much.)

^1. used before nouns and after verbs.

^2. used before adjectives and adverbs.

Also know some adverbial phrases (adverbial phrases) that indicate intensity.

no more no less (no more, no less)
more or less (so-so)
at least (at least)
very little (very little)
very bad (a lot more)
tan solo (only)

but — *But* it is a *adverb of intensity.*

Adverbs of duda (adverbs of doubt)

You adverbs of duda are used to indicate uncertainty, hesitation.

Below is a list of doubt adverbs in Spanish.

adverb of doubt in spanish	Translation	Example
chance	1. by chance; 2. perhaps	1. ¿Habrán lost the key of the coach? (Did they by any chance have lost their car keys?) 2. I might go a la fiesta. (Maybe I will go to the party.)
maybe	perhaps	Maybe travel to Spain. (Perhaps I will travel to Spain.)
probably	probably	Probably will go to playa mañana. (I'll probably go to the beach tomorrow.)
possibly	possibly	Possibly, this is the best universidad de la ciudad. (This is possibly the best university in town.)

Also know some adverbial phrases (adverbial phrases) that indicate doubt.

perhaps (perhaps)
the better (possibly)
I love you (perhaps)

Adverbs of place (adverbs of place)

You adverbs of place are used to indicate the place where something happens.

Below is a list of place adverbs in Spanish.

adverb of place in spanish	Translation	Example
down	bellow	We sailed río abajo. (We sailed downriver.)
there	Ouch	The perro was there. (The dog was there.)
there	there	We used to live there. (We used to live there.)
on here	on here	will wait for you here. (I'll wait for you here.)
surrounding	around	We looked around but found no restaurant. (We looked around but found no restaurants.)
fence	close	La school is around my house. (The school is close to my house.)
delante	against	The truth is before your eyes. (The truth is before your eyes.)
behind	back	The shoes are behind the door. (Shoes are behind the door.)
lejos	far away	Yo vivo lejos de mis padres. (I live far from my parents.)

Also know some adverbial phrases (adverbial phrases) that indicate place.

since lejos (by far; at a distance)
a lo lejos (far away)
up high (top)
behind (in his absence, behind his back)
of fence (closely)

Adverbs of Mood (Adverbs of Mood)

Mode adverbs are used to indicate the way something happens.

See below for a list of adverbs so in Spanish.

adverb so in spanish	Translation	Example
there	thus	I've always been there. (I've always been like this.)
bien	good	Has hecho every bien. (You did everything well.)
space	slowly	Can you talk more about space, please? (Can you speak slower please?
quickly	quickly	Caminaba takes the time to miss the autobus. (He walked quickly so as not to miss the bus.)
worse	worse	It was the president who treated us the worst. (It was the president who treated people the worst.)
better	best	You must do your work in the best possible way. (You must do your job as best you can.)
easily	easily	He learned his phone easily. (I fixed his phone easily.)

Now that you've seen phrases with adverbs of mood, get to know some of them as well. adverbial phrases (adverbial phrases) that indicate mood.

so there (So so; so-so)
in santianity (quickly)
silly and silly (disorderly)
upside down (oppositely)

Adverbs of negation (adverbs of negation)

You adverbs of negation are used to deny something.

Below is a list of denial adverbs in Spanish.

adverb of negation in spanish	Translation	Example
at the	no	I didn't like my mother. (I didn't like his mother.)
Never	Never	I have never traveled to Chile. (I have never traveled to Chile.)
ever	never; Never	I've never been to la playa. (Never went to the beach.)
tampon	neither; neither	Not yet arrived and the soundboard. (Hasn't arrived yet and hasn't called.)

Also know some adverbial phrases (adverbial phrases) that indicate negation.

ya no (no longer)
never ever (Never)

Adverbs of orden (adverbs of order)

You adverbs of order are used to indicate the order in which something happens.

See below for a list of order adverbs in Spanish.

Order adverb in Spanish	Translation	Example
posteriorly	posteriorly	We spoke with Marta and later with Paco. (We spoke with Marta and later with Paco.)
firstly	first	First we will study the grammar. (First, we will study grammar.)
successively	successively	The students entered successively. (Students entered successively.)

Time adverbs (time adverbs)

You time adverbs are used to indicate when something happens.

Below is a list of Spanish tense adverbs.

Spanish time adverb	Translation	Example
now	now	Carmen llegó now. (Carmen has now arrived.)
anoche	last night	Anoche we return to las tres de la mañana. (Yesterday we came back at three in the morning.)
before	before	Llegue before Leandro. (I arrived before Leandro.)
aun	yet	Aún no se if it is true. (I still don't know if it's true.)
ayer	yesterday	Ayer was my cumpleaños. (Yesterday was my birthday.)
after	later	Llegué after the amanecer. (I arrived after dawn.)
early	early	We could have dinner early today. (We could have an early dinner today.)
while	While	Yo study while you see the television. (I study while you watch television.)
ananoche	the night before last	Luis hizo an anteanoche concert. (Luis did a show the night before last)
today	today	Today is the cumpleaños of Miguel. (Today is Miguel's birthday.)
morning	morning	Mañana will be miserable. (Tomorrow will be Wednesday.)

Also know some adverbial phrases (adverbial phrases) that indicate time.

from when to when (On occasion)
at dawn (at dawn)
at dusk (at nightfall)
by night (at night)

Video

Watch the video below and see a very important tip about using the adverb tampon.

Learn Basic Spanish - Adverb: "también no"??

Exercises

Do jigsaw exercises to test your knowledge of adverbs and phrases adverbials.

1. (PUC-RS/2011) In _________ sports activity it is _________ important to show _________ behavior and a _________ team spirit.

a) cualesquier - muy - buen - big
b) cualquiera – mucho – good – big
c) cualquieras - muy - bueno - grand
d) cualquier – muy – good – great
e) cualquiera – mucho – good – great

See Answer

Correct alternative: d) cualquier – muy – buen – gran

The first gap is related to the word activity (activity), which is a singular feminine noun. Therefore, the following options are already eliminated:

Kualesquier/whichever ones – are plural adjectives and therefore cannot be used to refer to a singular noun as the agreement would be wrong.

whatever – is an adjective used after a noun and not before. Example: Coge a shirt with any. (Take any shirt.)

Therefore, there is only the alternative d).

2. (UNITAU-SP/2015) “Asimism, between 80,000 and 100,000 young people and teenagers every day, the majority of developed countries, become regular smokers.”

The subrayed conjunction cannot be replaced, without a change of meaning, by:

a) In the same way
b) In the same way
c) Also
d) Also
e) Likewise

See Answer

Correct alternative: c) Also

in the same way, likewise, also and equally indicate the same idea as the conjunction asimism.

The only alternative that indicates a contrary idea is the letter c). also means neither, nor, neither.

As the exercise speaks of an underlined word substitution (asimism) that causes a change in meaning, the alternative ç) is the right answer because when substituting any of the other options, the meaning will be the same.

3. (UEFS-BA/2015) The term "Quizá" has value:

a) modal.
b) causal.
c) temporal.
d) explanatory.
e) doubtful.

See Answer

Correct alternative: e) doubtful.

the adverb maybe means perhaps and indicates possibility or doubt. Maybe it is never used to indicate certainty.

Therefore, the correct option is the letter and) because the word doubtful express doubt and probability.

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