Lesson 8
Adverbials of degree
Adverbials of degree broadly answer the question ‘To what extent?’ They can modify adjectives, verbs and adverbs. In this lesson we will explain and illustrate the use of adverbs of degree which modify intransitive verbs and adverbs.
Quite: I quite agree with you.
(I agree with you to a certain extent)
I quite forgot to post your letter.
(I completely forgot to post your letter)
Absolutely: I absolutely disagree with you.
(The adverb emphasizes the meaning of the verb)
Completely: I completely agree with you.
(The adverb emphasizes the meaning of the verb.)
Simply: He simply disappeared.
Just: She has just arrived.
Very: He drives very carefully.
(The adverb ‘very’ modifies the adverb carefully’)
Almost: I almost (nearly) forgot to lock the door.
Really: Things have changed really dramatically.
(The adverb ‘really’ modifies the adverb ‘dramatically’)
Fairly: He lectured fairly well.
(‘Fairly’ suggests ‘less than the highest degree’. It modifies ‘well’.)
Rather: He did rather badly in the exam.
(‘Rather’ suggests ‘to some degree’. It modifies ‘badly’)
Too: He arrived at the station too late. (‘Too’ modifies ‘late’.)
(He missed the train.)
A little: He speaks a little slowly. (‘A little’ modifies ‘slowly’.)
Enough: He did not arrive at the station early enough. (He missed the train.)
Hardly: He hardly plays.
Barely: He plays barely well enough.
Scarcely: He scarcely comes to visit us.
(Hardly, barely and scarcely are negative words and do not combine with not or never. They can be replaced by almost never)
I almost never go to Dhaka.
There are some special adverbs of degree. They are used in negative sentences. They include the following.
much: My home town, Satkhira, has not developed much.
These grammar books do not help much.
The comparative adverbs ‘better’ and ‘worse’ can be used as adverbs of degree:
Better: She is doing better these days.
worse: It is the country which suffers worse.
‘Most’ and least’ can also be used as adverbs of degree:
This is what I want to do most.
This is the least I can do for you.
The noun phrases ‘a bit, ‘a great deal’ ‘a little’ and ‘a lot’ are also used as adverbs of degree.
He hesitated a bit in taking decision about the matter.
The situation has changed a great deal since the last elections.
The law and order situation in the country has improved a little.
He thinks a lot about the country.
‘More’ or ‘less’ can be used as comparative adverbs of degree.
A house heats up more when there are no trees around it.
A house heats up less when there are trees around it.
Position of adverbs of degree
We rarely use an adverb at the beginning of a sentence. For example, we do not say: ‘Quite I agree with you’. A few adverbs of degree are nearly always used in front of the main verb. These adverbs are:
almost largely nearly really virtually
We usually say:
: He almost got there.
Not: He got there almost
He largely depends on his father.
Not: He depends on his father largely.
He nearly drowned.
Not: He drowned nearly.
The man is really starving.
Not The man is starving really.
With the death of his father, Hamid virtually broke down.
Not: With the death of his father, Hamid broke down virtually.
Some adverbs are almost always used after the main verb. They include:
altogether hard somewhat well
enormously outright tremendously
Bengali sentence structures differ altogether from English sentence structures.
He works very hard to do well in the exam.
He exaggerated somewhat in praising his wife’s beauty.
She has done well in the exam.
The prices of vegetables vary enormously from place to place.
Neither candidate won outright.
They played tremendously well.
Exercise
1. Fill in the blanks with appropriate adverbs of degree.
a. He failed in the exam because he did not work—–.
b. She spoke —–at the meeting.
c. I —— forgot to bring my umbrella.
d. He—–comes late.
e. A university differs—–from a college.
f. He did—–in the competition.
g. He walks——slowly.
h. He arrived at the meeting——late.
i. I—–go to the cinema.
2. The adverbials of degree have been wrongly placed in the following sentences. Put them in the correct place.
a. He utterly failed to answer the questions
b. I agree absolutely
c. I altogether differ from you.
d. He died nearly last night.
e. He depends largely on his wife’s income.
3. Make your own sentences with the following adverbials of degree, using as far as possible, intransitive verbs.
always nearly almost hardly barely scarcely somewhat tremendously enormously outright
completely absolutely hard really virtually
a great deal a little a bit fairly rather
well
Sadruddin Ahmed