Ministry of Education andScience of Ukraine
Department of EnglishPhilology
Diploma paper
Syntagmatic and paradigmaticpeculiarities of adverbs in English
Lviv — 2010
Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1. The adverb in English theoretical grammar
1.1 Categorialmeaning of the adverb
1.2 Formalcharacteristics of the adverb
1.3 Syntacticfunctions and positional characteristics of the adverb
Chapter 2. Paradigmatics of adverbs
2.1 Semantic classification of adverbs
2.2 Lexico-grammatical subdivision of adverbs
Chapter 3. Syntagmatic valency of adverbs and its actualizationin speech
3.1 Syntactic valency and combinability patterns ofadverbs
3.2 Semantic and syntactic properties of adverbs of degree
3.3 The use of adverbs ofdegree with gradable and non-gradable adjectives
3.4 Semantic preferencesof amplifiers
Conclusion
Summary
List of References
Appendix
Introduction
The diplomapaper sets out to explore paradigmatic and syntagmatic relations of adverbs inmodern English. The work considers such branches of grammar as morphology andsyntax and is concerned with the two levels of word relations.
A word as apart of the language system is considered on two levels:
1) the syntagmatic level;
2) the paradigmatic level.
On theparadigmatic level it is the relationship with other words in the vocabularysystem. On the syntagmatic level the semantic structure of a word is analyzedin its linear relationships with neighbouring words.
Thedifferentiation between paradigmatics and syntagmatics is based on recognitionof the linguistic planes: 1 – the plane of language; 2 – the plane of speech.Language is a system of means of expression while speech should be understoodas the manifestation of the system of language in the process of communication.Language planes are structured paradigmatically, speech planes –syntagmatically.
Paradigmaticrelations are relations of contrast. They exist only in the potential and neverin an instance. From the viewpoint of the text analyst, they express a contrastbetween the meaning (and so the form) that was chosen for use in the text andthe one or more meanings (and so forms) that might have been chosen (but werenot). In other words, paradigmatic relations exist only in the language that isused to produce a text-sentence and not in the sentence itself [23, 134].
Syntagmaticrelations are based on the linear character of speech. They enable language tofunction as a means of communication. When they are brought into play,linguistic elements combine to form information-carrying utterances. They aretherefore the functional relations of language [32, 60].
The presentresearch is aimed at investigating the salient features of adverbs inEnglish. The major research focus in the field of syntagmatics is on adverbs ofdegree as the most syntagmatically active class.
Most of theinvestigations in the field of morphology deal with other parts of speech, mainlyverbs, nouns or adjectives. The adverb due to its ontological status and thecategorical meaning defined as that of secondary property, has unjustly fallenout of research focus. The textbooks on theoretical grammar provide only scantyinformation about adverbs. However, the adverb is liable to present us with awhole bundle of problems. Firstly, there are a lot of borderline cases oftransition between adverbs, on the one hand, and prepositions, particles andconjunctions, on the other. Though, a number of fairly plausible viewpoints onthe issue have been expressed and the objective criteria have been suggested,they do not yield clear results and, a fully convincing solution to the problemhas not been found yet [4; 5; 8; 9]. This calls for the need to consider thesecases of grammatical homonymy at some length. Secondly, wrong use of adverbsand adverbial collocations appears to be one of the major errors notoriouslycommon with the students. This determines the topicality of theresearch, its theoretical and practical value.
The objectof investigation is the adverb, including simple, derived, compound andcomposite. The subject of research is the paradigmatic correlation andsyntagmatic peculiarities of adverbs, their combinability patterns. Such methodsof investigation, as structural-semantic, distributional and the elementsof the quantitative analysis are used in this paper.
The tasksof the diploma paper are:
– todetermine the categorial meaning of the adverb and its formal characteristics;
– tocarry out the analysis of syntactic functions of the adverb;
– toanalyze the main classes of adverbs;
– tocompare paradigmaticallyrelevant classifications of the adverb;
– toexplore syntactic valency and combinability patterns of adverbs;
– toexamine the use of adverbs of degree and to determine their semanticpreferences.
According tothe spheres of concern the work falls into an Introduction, three chapters,conclusions and the list of references which together with the appendixcomprises __ pages. Chapter 1 deals with the analysis of the adverb in accordwith the 3-criteriaprinciple of the lexico-grammatical word classification. Chapter 2 is concernedwith the paradigmatic relations of adverbs, providing the semantic andlexico-grammatical classifications of the adverb. In Chapter 3 semantic and syntacticvalencies of adverbs and their realization in speech are described. Most of theexamples presented in this diploma paper are taken form modern Englishdictionaries.
Chapter 1. The adverb inEnglish theoretical grammar
1.1 Categorialmeaning of the adverb
In accord withthe 3-criteria principle of the lexico-grammatical word classification(semantic, formal and functional) [35], parts of speech are discriminated onthe basis of:
1) common categorial meaning;
2) common paradigm(morphological form and specific forms of derivation);
3) common syntactic function.
Thecategorical meaning of the adverb is secondary property which impliesqualitative, quantitative, or circumstantial characteristics of actions,states, qualities.
The adverb isusually defined as a word expressing either property of an action, or propertyof another property, or circumstances in which an action occurs [22, 146]. From this definition it isdifficult to define adverbs as a class, because they comprise a mostheterogeneous group of words, and there is considerable overlap between theclass and other word classes. They have many kinds of form, meaning andfunction.
Alongside suchundoubtful adverbs as here, now, often, seldom, always, there are many otherswhich also function as words of other classes. Such words which are differentin their lexical meaning and also in their grammatical category (part ofspeech) but identical in their form are interparadigmatic homonyms(lexical-grammatical) [17, 118]. Thus, adverbs like dead (dead tired), clear(to get clear away), clean (I’ve clean forgotten), slow, easy (he would saythat slow and easy) coincide with corresponding adjectives (a dead body, clearwaters, clean hands). Adverbs like past, above, in, up, down, about, since,before, over are homonymous with prepositions. There is also a special group ofpronominal adverbs when, where, how, why used either as interrogative words oras connectives to introduce subordinate clauses [3, 87]:
Where would you like to go? (aninterrogative pronominal adverb)
We’ll go whereyou want. (a conjunctive pronominal adverb)
Some adverbsmay be used rather like a verb, as in “Up. Jenkins! Down, Peter!”, where thefirst word is like an imperative [25, 92].
There arethree adverbs connected with numerals: once, twice, and thrice (the latterbeing archaic). They denote measure or frequency:
She went thereonce a week [41].
I saw him twicelast month [41].
Twice is alsoused in the structure twice as long, etc. [22, 92].
He is twiceas tall as his brother [40].
She is twiceas clever [40].
Beginning withthree the idea of frequency or repetition is expressed by the phrases threetimes, four times [25, 92]:
He went there fourtimes.
He is fourtimes as bigger.
She is tentimes cleverer. [25, 92]
In many casesthe border-line between adverbs and words of the other classes is definedsyntactically:
I called outto him as he ran past [38]. (adverb)
I called outto him as he ran past the house [38]. (preposition)
We were lockedin [41]. (adverb)
We were lockedin the warehouse [41]. (preposition)
He dideverything slowly but surely [38]. (adverb)
Surely you know him [38]. (modalword)
The definitionof adverb presented above, though certainly informative and instructive, alsofails to directly point out the relation between the adverb and the adjectiveas the primary qualifying part of speech.
In an attemptto overcome this drawback, M. Y. Blokh defines the adverb as a notional wordexpressing a non-substantive property, that is, a property of a non-substantivereferent [13, 221]. This formula immediately shows the actual correlationbetween the adverb and the adjective, since the adjective is a word expressinga substantive property.
Properties maybe of a more particular, «organic» order and, a more general anddetached, «inorganic» order [13, 221]. Of the organic properties, theadverb denotes those characterising processes and other properties. Of theinorganic properties, the adverb denotes various circumstantial characteristicsof processes or whole situations built around processes.
The abovedefinition, approaching the adverb as a word of the secondary qualifying order,presents the entire class of adverbial words as the least self-dependent of allthe four notional parts of speech. Indeed, the truly complete nominative valueis inherent only in the noun, which is the name of substances [15]. The verbcomes next in its self-dependent nominative force, expressing processes as dynamicrelations of substances, i.e. their dynamic relational properties in the broadsense. After that follow qualifying parts of speech — first the adjective denotingqualifications of substances, and then the adverb denoting qualifications ofnon-substantive phenomena which find themselves within the range of notionalsignification.
The adverb ischaracterised by its own, specific nominative value, providing for itsinalienable status in the system of the parts of speech. Hence, the complaintsof some linguists that the adverb is not rigorously defined and in fact presentssomething like a «dump» for those words which have been rejected byother parts of speech can hardly be taken as fully justified [13, 221]. On theother hand, since the adverb does denote qualifications of the second order,not of the first one like the adjective, it includes a great number of semanticallyweakened words which are in fact intermediate between notional and functionallexemes by their status and often display features of pronominal nature.
1.2 Formal characteristicsof the adverb
In terms ofthe formal criterion the adverb is characterized by the following features [13,39]:
1) the forms of the degreesof comparison for qualitative adverbs;
2) the specific suffixalforms of derivation.
The onlypattern of morphological change for adverbs is the same as for adjectives, thedegrees of comparison [25, 94]. With regard to the category of the degrees ofcomparison adverbs (like adjectives) fall into comparables and non-comparables.The number of non-comparables is much greater among adverbs than amongadjectives. Only adverbs of manner and certain adverbs of time and place canform degrees of comparison. The three grades are calledpositive,comparative, andsuperlative degrees.
Adverbs thatare identical in form with adjectives take inflections following the samespelling and phonetic rules as for adjectives:
hard —harder — hardest
soon —sooner — soonest
early —earlier — earliest
Severaladverbs ending in-ly (quickly, loudly) form comparatives according tothe same pattern, dropping their adverb-forming suffix. These adverbs acquiredthe form in-ly only recently and retained the older forms of thecomparative and superlative:
quickly –quicker – quickest
loudly –louder – loudest
However mostdisyllabic adverbs in-ly and all polysyllabic ones form the comparativeand superlative analytically, by means ofmore andmost:
beautifully — more beautifully —most beautifully
cleverly — morecleverly — most cleverly
As with adjectives, thereis a small group of adverbs with comparatives and superlatives formed fromdifferent stems(suppletive forms). These comparatives andsuperlatives are identical with those for the corresponding adjectives and canbe differentiated from the latter only syntactically:
well — better —best
badly — worse —worst
much — more —most
little — less —least
All theproblems connected with the adjectival degrees of comparison retain their forcefor the adverbial degrees of comparison. Some grammarians do not admit formslike more quickly, most quickly to be analytical degrees of comparison [9].They distinguish only two types of degrees of comparison in adverbs:
· thesuffix type (quickly – quicker – quickest)
· thesuppletive type (well — better — best)
Adverbs varyin their structure. In accord with their word-building structure adverbs may be simple,derived, compound and composite [25].
Simpleadverbsare rather few, and nearly all of them display functional semantics, mostly ofpronominal character: here, there, now, then, so, quite, why, how, where, when.
Derived adverbs may be classified inseveral groups [30, 164]. The two largest groups are those formed from adjectives and participles by adding the suffix -ly,e. g.: hopefully, physically, strangely, falsely, occasionally, lately, immediately,constantly, purely, slowly, charmingly, etc.
There has beena marked discrepancy of opinion concerning deadjectival adverbs in terms of twomutually exclusive types of morphological derivation – inflection andword-formation [5]. Two views have been put forward, according to which adverbsare treated as either the inflectional paradigmatic form of a parent adjectiveor its derivative [6]. The former view can be refuted if we proceed from thenotion of symmetry/asymmetry of the semantic structures. The structures are consideredsymmetric if they are characterized by both quantitative and qualitativeconvergence of their sense components; conversely, the parent and the resultantsemantic structures are considered asymmetric if they diverge either in thenumber or in the character of the meanings conveyed [5].
According toGaripova N.D., adjectival and adverbial forms are asymmetric; the process ofderiving adverbs from adjectives involves the semantic shift that yields twopossibilities: the adverb may develop new meanings, or, more often, thesemantic structure of the motivated adverb turns out to be more simplified andnarrower in comparison with that of the motivating adjective [2]. For example,the adverb roughly retains only 3 meanings out of 17, inherent in the semanticstructure of the adjective rough. All this leads to conclude that adverbscannot be regarded as inflectional forms of adjectives.
The thirdgroup consists of those that are formed by means of the derivational prefix -a(phonemically [э]) to nouns, adjectives or verbs. Ofabout sixty of them in more or less common use nearly half are formed fromnouns: aboard, aside, away, ahead, apart, across etc. The rest are about equally dividedamong those formed from verbs, e. g.: amiss, astir; from adjectives — anew, abroad.
In traditionalgrammars such words are generally classed as both adjectives and adverbs andthey are so listed in most dictionaries, which seems hardly justified sincefrom the structural point of view none of them can fit the basic adjective positionbetween determiner and noun (We cannot say the aloud voice or the adrift boat)[30, 164].
The fourthgroup of derived adverbs originally very small, but in present-day Englishexhibiting signs of rapid growth includes those formed by adding the derivationalsuffix -wise to nouns. A few adverbs of this type are well-established words like clockwise,otherwise, likewise; others are recent coinages or nonce-words like crabwiseand actor-wise. In American English the suffix -wise is most active and can bemore freely attached to many nouns to create adverbs like personnel-wise. Suchforms are recognised in writing by the use of the hyphen.
Then comes asmaller group of adverbs formed by the addition of the derivational suffix -ward(s)to a limited group of nouns; home- ward(s), forward(s), backward(s). Mostadverbs of this group have two forms, one with the final -s and one without, variouslydistributed. The forms without -s are homonymous with adjectives: the backward child, he looked backward.
The lesscommon suffixes are the following:
-fold
-like
-most
-way(s)
twofold, manifold
warlike
innermost, outermost
longways, sideways
Compoundadverbsare formed of two stems: sometimes, somewhere, somehow, someplace, nowhere, everywhere, anyway, downstairs, etc. There are fewer thantwenty of these in common use.
Compositephrasal adverbs consist of two or more word-forms, as a great deal, a little bit, farenough, now and then, from time to time, sort of, kind of, a hell of, a lot of,a great deal of, at least, at most, at last, to and fro, upside down. Such adverbs are lexically and grammaticallyindivisible and form a single idea.
Considered intheir structure, composite phrasal adverbs may be classified as follows [30,164]:
1) preposition+ noun: at hand, at home, byheart, on horseback, on foot, in turn, to date;
2) noun+ preposition + noun: arm in arm, day by day,day after day, day to day, face to face, word for word, year by year;
3) preposition+ substantivised adjective: at last, at first, atlarge, in large, in full, in quiet, in short, in vain, of late, of old;
4) preposition+ verbal noun made through conversion:at a guess, at a run, in a rush, on the move, on the run;
5) preposition+ numeral: at first, at once, at one,by twos;
6) coordinateadverbs: byand by, on and off (= offand on), on and on;
7) pronoun+ adjective (or participle):allright, all told, O. K.(all correct);
8) preposition+ pronoun: after all, in all, at all.
In point offact most adverbs of that kind may be reasonably referred to as grammaticalidioms [30, 165]. This can be seen, for instance, in the unusual absence of thearticle before their noun components and specialised use of the noun in its singular formonly: on foot (but not on the foot, or on feet which may occur in freeprepositional word-groups), in fact (but not in the fact), at first (but not atthe first), etc.
There is a miscellaneousclass of adverbs that have no formal signals at all to distinguish them inisolation; we know them as adverbs because of their positions in utterances, inwhich the other parts of speech are clearly identifiable. Many adverbs in thisgroup are fairly frequent in occurrence: always, now, then, here, there, often,seldom, still, even. Others in this group are words which may also appear asother parts of speech, such as: downstairs, home, late, little, fast, stow,early, far, hard, near:
My friend isthe world’s fastest runner [38]. (adjective)
The water wasrising very fast [38]. (adverb)
It is hardto believe that she’s only nine [40]. (adjective)
He was stillbreathing hard after his run [40]. (adverb)
Formations ofthe type fromoutside, till now, before then, etc. cannot be included in the word-buildingsets of adverbs [13, 223]. It is not difficult to see that such formationsdiffer in principle from the ones cited above. The difference consists in thefact that their parts are semantically not blended into an indivisible lexemicunity and present combinations of a preposition with a peculiar adverbialsubstantive —a word occupyingan intermediary lexico-grammatical status between the noun and the adverb. Thisis most clearly seen on ready examples liberally offered by English texts ofevery stylistic standing:
The pale moonlooked at me from above [13, 223].
By now Sophie must have receivedthe letter and very soon we shall hear from her [13, 223].
The departureof the delegation is planned for later this week [41].
The freelyconverted adverbial substantives in prepositional collocations belong to one ofthe idiomatic characteristics of English, and may be likened, with duealteration of details, to partially substantivised adjectives of the adjectividtype. On this analogy theadverbial substantives in question may be called «adverbids» [13,223].
Furthermore,there are in English some other peculiar structural types of adverbs which arederivationally connected with the words of non-adverbial lexemic classes byconversion [13, 223]. Conversion consist in making a new word from someexisting word by changing the category of a part of speech, the morphemic shapeof the original word remaining unchanged [17, 118]. To adverbs coined byconversion belong both adverbs of full notional value and adverbs ofhalf-notional value.
A peculiar setof converted notional adverbs is formed by adjective-stem conversives, such asfast, late, hard, high, close, loud, tight, etc. The peculiar feature of theseadverbs consists in the fact that practically all of them have a parallel formin -ly, the two component units of each pair often differentiated in meaning orconnotation: to work hard — hardly to work at all; to fall flat into the water — to refuse flatly; to speak loud — to criticise loudly; to fly high overthe lake — to raise a highlytheoretical question.
Among theadjective-stem converted adverbs there are a few words with the non-specific-ly originally in-built in the adjective (daily, weekly, lively, timely):
Invoices aresigned on a daily basis [38]. (adjective)
The machinesare inspected twice daily [38]. (adverb)
The purelypositional nature of the conversion in question, i.e. its having no support inany differentiated categorial paradigms, can be reflected by the term«fluctuant conversives» [13] which is proposed to use as the name ofsuch formations.
As for thefluctuant conversives of weakened pronominal semantics, very characteristic ofEnglish are the adverbs that positionally interchange with prepositions andconjunctive words (before, after, round, within): never before — never before our meeting; somewhereround — round the corner; not tobe found within — withina minute.
Among thevarious types of adverbs, those formed from adjectives by means of the suffix-ly not only occupy the most representative place but also pose a specialproblem.
The problem isintroduced by the very regularity of their derivation, the rule of which can beformulated quite simply: each qualitative adjective has a parallel adverb in–ly [13, 226]: silent — silently, slow — slowly, tolerable — tolerably, pious — piously, sufficient — sufficiently, tired — tiredly, explosive — explosively, etc.
Thisregularity of formation accompanied by the general qualitative character ofsemantics gave cause to A. I. Smirnitsky to advance the view that both sets ofwords belong to the same part of speech, the qualitative adverbs in -ly beingin fact adjectives of specific combinability [9, 174-175].
The strongpoint of the adjectival interpretation of qualitative adverbs in -ly is thedemonstration of the actual similarity between the two lexemic sets in theirbroader evaluative function, which fact provides for the near-identity of theadjectival and adverbial grammatical categories of comparison. On the whole,however, the theory in question is hardly acceptable for the mere reason thatderivative relations in general are not at all relations of lexico-grammaticalidentity; for that matter, they are rather relations of non-identity, sincethey actually constitute a system of production of one type of lexical unitsfrom another type of lexical units [13, 227]. As for the types of unitsbelonging to the same or different lexemic classes, this is a question of theiractual status in the system of lexicon, i. e. in the lexemic paradigm ofnomination reflecting the fundamental correlations between the lexemic sets oflanguage. Since the English lexicondoes distinguish adjectives and adverbs; since adjectives aresubstantive-qualifying words in distinction to adverbs, which arenon-substantive qualifying words; since, finally, adverbs in -ly do preservethis fundamental nonsubstantive-qualification character — there can’t be any question of theirbeing «adjectives» in any rationally conceivable way. As for theregularity or irregularity of derivation, it is absolutely irrelevant to theidentification of their class-lexemic nature [13, 228].
Thus, thewhole problem is not a problem of part-of-speech identity; it is a problem ofinter-class connections, in particular, of inter-class systemic division offunctions, and, certainly, of the correlative status of the compared units inthe lexical paradigm of nomination.
But worthy ofattention is the relation of the adverbs in question to adverbs of other typesand varieties, i. e. their intra-class correlations. As a matter of fact, thederivational features of other adverbs, in sharp contrast to the ly-adverbs, aredevoid of uniformity to such an extent that practically all of them fall into amultitude of minor non-productive derivational groups [7]. Besides, the bulk ofnotional qualitative adverbs of other than ly-derivation have ly-correlatives(both of similar and dissimilar meanings and connotations). These facts cannotbut show that adverbs in -ly should be looked upon as the standard type of theEnglish adverb as a whole [13, 229].
1.3 Syntactic functionsand positional characteristics of the adverb
Adverbs mayperform different functions, modifying different types of words, phrases,sentences. Some adverbs are restricted in their combinability whereas othersmay modify different words, for instance enough, which may be used in to workenough, not quickly enough, quick enough. The most typical function of theadverb is that of adverbial modifier [8].
Adverbs mayfunction asadverbial modifiers of manner, place, time, degree to afinite or non-finite form of the verb:
He started hiscareer in St Petersburg — or Leningrad as it then was [41].
(time)
The south should remain dry, but everywhere else willhave heavy rain.
[41]. (place)
Adam obviouslyadored his wife [40]. (manner)
I rathersuspect we’re making a mistake [38]. (degree)
Some adverbsof time though synonymous, are used in different syntactic patterns. Thus,already is used in affirmative sentences, and yet — in interrogative andnegative sentences:
Tim has alreadycome back from his trip [40].
I haven’tfinished my report yet [38].
Have youfinished yet [38]?
However,already may occur in interrogative and negative sentences when there is anelement of surprise or the question is suggestive, that is the speaker expectsan affirmative answer:
Have theyfinished already [35]?
Adverbs mayfunction asadverbial modifiers to an adjective or another adverb [19].Usually the modifying adverb is an intensifier (very, rather, awfully, so,terribly, extremely, most, utterly, unusually, delightfully, unbelievably,amazingly, strikingly, highly, that, etc.) The same applies to compositeadverbs, such as (kind of, sort of, a good bit of, a lot of, a hell of, a greatdeal of, etc.):
It is terriblyimportant for parents to be consistent [38].
This newprogram is unbelievably good [41].
It made mefeel kind of awkward [41].
Some adverbs — still, yet, far, much, any combine with comparative adjectives (much worse, notany better, still greater, etc.)
Adverbs ofdegree can modify certain kinds of prepositional phrases:
They lived nearlyon the top of the hill [40].
His remarkswere not quite to the point [40].
Comparativeadverbs are used inclauses of proportional agreement, that is, parallelclauses in which qualities or actions denoted in them increase or decrease atan equal rate [25, 177]:
The longer I think about it theless I understand your reasons [41].
To express theidea that a quality or action decreases or increases at an even rate thecomparative may be repeated, the two identical forms being connected by and:
He cried louderand louder [25, 177].
There are someadverbs which may modify nouns or words of nominal character, functioning asattribute, as in: the way ahead, the trip abroad, the journey home, hisreturn home, the sentence above (below), the day before. A few adverbs can premodifynouns without losing their adverbial character: the then president, in afteryears, the above sentence, the now generation.
As adverbsmodify words of different classes, they accordingly occupy different positionsin the sentence. In comparison with other words, adverbs may be considered asthe most movable words. However, adverbs are not identical in their ability to be moved toanother position in the structure. There are generally four possible positionsfor adverbs in the sentence [18, 397]:
1) at thehead of the sentence;
2) betweenthe subject and predicate or, if the predicate is a complicated form, theadverb appears after the first auxiliary verb, link-verb or a modal verb;
3) beforethe word the adverb modifies;
4) at theend of the sentence.
Differentsemantic groups of adverbs tend to appear in different positions. Thus, manyadverbs of time and frequency prefer Position 2:
A good strongcup of coffee is just what I need right now [41].
He is alwaysin time for meals [38].
They sometimesstay up all night [41].
However, someof time adverbs appear in Position 4:
He came eventually[40].
The telephonerang, and he answered it immediately [40].
She hasn’tfinished her breakfast yet [38].
Ifany adverbs of time and frequency are found in positions other than thosecharacteristic of them, it means that these adverbs are intended for specialemphasis [21, 399]:
They usually are very punctual. (common)
Usually they are very punctual. (emphatic)
Adverbs of place and direction usually occur in Position 4:
I looked for it everywhere [38].
The youngpeople were enjoying themselves outside [38].
Adverbs ofmanner commonly appear in Position 4, after the predicate verb:
He gave herthe money reluctantly [41].
She looked atme suspiciously [41].
Some adverbsof manner may occasionally be found in Position 2:
She carefullypicked up all the bits of broken glass [40].
They secretlydecided to leave the town [40].
Occasionally adverbs of manner may be found in Position 1. In that casethe adverb does not only modify the predicative verb, but also the subject:
Angrily he denied that he had stolen the documents [41]. (= he wasangry when he denied that he had stolen the documents)
Adverbs of degree (or intensifiers) are usually placed in Position 3,before the word they modify:
It’s absolutely the best museum in the country [38].
I definitely saw him crossing the street [38].
The adverb enough, when it modifies an adjective or an adverb, isplaced in post-position to them:
You can go to school when you’re old enough [40].
He didn’t work quickly enough [40].
However, adverbs of degree (intensifiers), if they modify verbs, may alsobe found in Position 4, at the end of the sentence:
The only way Glass could overcome this irreconcilable difference was bydoing away with the bar lines completely [41].
But if the plea can be supported by a finding of guilt alone, a defendantmight escape punishment altogether [40].
When occupying the initial position in the sentence, altogether is usedparenthetically as a conjunctive adverb (= on the whole):
Latin America is a world where primitive ways of life exist nearultra-modern cities. Altogether, it is a continent full of vitality[40].
Chapter 2. Paradigmaticsof adverbs
2.1 Semanticclassification of adverbs
The adverb inEnglish undergoes two paradigmatically relevant classifications:
1) semantic;
2) lexico-grammatical.
Semanticclassification is based on the meaning of adverbs. According to their meaning,adverbs fall into the following groups [18, 393]:
1. Adverbsof time: afterwards,already, at once, eventually,
immediately, lately, now, presently, soon, suddenly, then, when, yesterday,yet, etc.:
Our class isgoing to London tomorrow[36, 55].
It’s been twoweeks now since she called home [38].
2. Adverbsof frequency: always, constantly, hardly ever, never, occasionally, often, seldom,sometimes, three times, twice, etc.:
There is alwayssomebody at home in the evenings [40].
They sometimesstay up all night [40].
3. Adverbsof place or direction: abroad, ashore, backwards, below, downstairs, everywhere,far, here, inside, outside, seaward(s), there, to and fro, where, etc.:
We’llhaveto eat here – everywhere else is full [36, 54].
He was famous,both at home and abroad [38].
A dog began tobark somewhere inside [38].
I was now farbehind the others and I knew I couldn’t catch up [40].
The use of somewhere,anywhere and nowhere indifferent kinds of sentences is similar to theuse of the corresponding indefinite pronouns some, any and no.
4. Adverbsof manner: badly, clearly, deeply, fast, how, quickly, sideways, sincerely, somehow,well, willingly, etc.:
His campaignwas not going well [41].
The economiccrisis reflects badly on the government’s policies [41].
We are sincerelygrateful for your help [40].
Adverbs ofmanner saying how an action is performed can freely occur with dynamic verbs,but not with stative verbs:
He lookedinto the problem carefully [38].
He walkedupstairs quietly [38].
The boy blushedviolently [36, 52].
5. Adverbsof degree or intensifiers can be used before adjectives, verbs, or other adverbs togive information about the extent or level of something: completely, enough,extremely, highly, muck, nearly, perfectly, pretty, quite, rather, really, so,somewhat, terribly, too, unusually, very, etc.:
Sometimes theUK seems completely isolated from the main stream of European culture[40].
The ambassadormade a brief statement, saying that the talks had been very productive [38].
Myerssaidthat two year prison sentence for rape was totally unacceptable andinadequate [38].
Adverbs ofdegree or intensifiers may be subdivided into three semantic groups:
1) emphasizers(emphasizingthe truth of the communication): actually, at all, clearly, definitely, indeed,just, literally, plainly, really, simply, etc.:
What do you reallythink about it [41]?
When I toldyou to ‘get lost’ I didn’t expect to be taken literally [41].
Fameisoftensimply a matter of being in the right place at the right time
[40].
I just can’tunderstand it[36, 60].
You haven’tdone it well at all [38].
2) amplifiers(expressinga high degree): absolutely, altogether, badly, bitterly, completely, deeply,downright, entirely, extremely, (by) far, fully, greatly, heartily, much,perfectly, pointblank, quite, terribly, thoroughly, utterly, very, etc.:
Each panelmember should ensure that he or she thoroughly tests the case presentedfor project approval [40].
Artists are terriblydifficult people for us ordinary mortals to deal with [40].
Because of thelanguage barrier and culture shock, such insights are far too rare[41].
I told Fred pointblankthat he had made a mistake [41].
He said thediesel costs £16,600, which is downright preposterous [38].
Localresidents are deeply concerned about the threat to health posed by thepower station [38].
For manyyears, the benefits of the expensive system greatly outweighed the disadvantages[40].
3) downtoners(loweringthe effect): a bit, almost, barely, enough, hardly, kind of, (a) little,moderately, more or less, nearly, partly, quite, rather, scarcely, slightly,somewhat, sort of, sufficiently, etc.:
We took a slightlymore direct root [38].
He was only partlyresponsible for the accident [38].
I kind ofdisapprove of such methods [40].
I think you’re a bit too young tobe watching this[36, 62].
Almost nothing was done toimprove the situation [40].
6. Focusing adverbs drawattentionto the most important part of utterance. They can be of two kinds:
1) restrictive:alone,exactly, just, merely, only, precisely, purely, simply, especially, etc.:
Some studentslose marks simply because they don’t read the question properly [41].
It’s importantto write these goals down, rather than merely think about them [41].
2) additive:again,also, either, equally, even, too, etc.
She stayed andnursed him back to health again [38].
You must havea good education, but practical training is equally important [38].
7. Viewpointadverbs areused to make clear what viewpoint the speaker is speaking from; that is,identifying what features of something are being talked about(economically, morally,politically, scientifically, weather-wise, financially, ideologically,industrially, environmentally, logically, medically, outwardly, technically,visually, etc.):
Financially,theaccident has been a disaster for the owners of the tunnel [21, 156].
Geographicallyand linguistically,these islands are closer to the mainland than to the neighboring islands[21, 156].
Economically,theproject is bound to fail [40].
The brothersmay be alike physically, but they have very different personalities[40].
A number ofphrases are used in a similar way (politically speaking, in political terms, interms of politics, from a political point of view, as far as politics areconcerned):
Politically/Inpolitical terms, this summer is a crucial time for the government [21, 156].
Financially/Froma financial point of view, it is a good investment [21, 156].
8. Attitudinaladverbs whichexpress the speaker’s comment on the content of what he is saying. Such adverbscan be of two kinds:
1) adverbsexpressing a comment on the truth-value of what is
being said, indicating the extent to which the speaker believes
what he is saying is true: admittedly, allegedly, apparently, certainly,decidedly, definitely, doubtless, maybe, obviously, perhaps, possibly,presumably, probably, quite likely, supposedly, surely, undoubtedly, etc.:
Few women, presumably,would want to return to the assumptions on which the old system was based [40].
He was supposedlydelivering some papers to her but I think it was just an excuse to see her[40].
The impact,occurring shortly before midnight, apparently knocked out allcommunications before warning could be given [41].
Perhaps the public does not havemuch choice in the matter [38].
Certainly, he had very little reason to fear anyone [38].
2) adverbsexpressing some attitude towards what is being
said: amazingly, cleverly, (in)correctly, curiously, foolishly,(un)fortunately, funnily enough, (un)happily, incredibly, ironically,(un)justly, (un)luckily, oddly, preferably, reasonably, regrettably,remarkably, sensibly, significantly, strangely, tragically, typically,unexpectedly, etc.:
He is wiselystaying at home tonight [38].
Naturally we were extremely annoyedwhen we received the letter [38].
Attempts todenigrate his playing simply because of his popularity are misplaced but regrettablywidespread [40].
9. Conjunctiveadverbs: aboveall, accordingly, alternatively, anyhow, anyway, as a result, at any rate,besides, by the way, consequently, finally, first(ly), for all that, forexample, further, furthermore, hence, however, incidentally, in other words, inspite of that, instead, in that case, lastly, likewise, meantime, mean while,namely, nevertheless, next, on the contrary, on the one (other) hand,otherwise, rather, secondly, similarly, so, still, that is, then, therefore,though, thus, too, yet, etc.:
I’d like youto do two things for me. First, phone the office
and tell them I’ll be late. Secondly, order a taxi to be here
in about half an hour [18, 394].
Incidentally, he left you a message.It is on your desk [41].
I didn’t likethe food there. However, I didn’t complain about it [38].
He has beenworking very hard. He looks fit, though [41].
10. Formulaicadverbs(markers of courtesy): cordially, kindly, please, etc.:
Will you kindlyhelp me with the parcel [40]?
We cordiallyinvite you to our party [40].
Let me have alook at the picture, please [38].
The adverbs when,where, how and why belonging to different semantic groups mentioned above haveone point in common — they serve to form questions and introduce somekinds of subordinate clauses [15]. In the former case, owing to their auxiliaryfunction, they are called interrogative adverbs (a). In the latter case, alsoowing to their auxiliary function, they are called conjunctive adverbs (b). Inboth cases they perform different adverbial functions in the sentence:
a) Whendid you see him last? (adverbial modifier of time)
Where are yougoing? (adverbial modifier of place)
How did youmanage it? (adverbial modifier of manner)
Why didn’t youtell me about it? (adverbial modifier of cause)
b) Sundaywas the day when he was least busy.
(adverbial modifier of time)
The thing tofind out was where he was then.
(adverbial modifier of place)
How it wasdone remains a mystery to me.
(adverbialmodifier of manner)
I wanted toknow why he had left us so abruptly.
(adverbialmodifier of cause)
As is seenfrom the above examples, the conjunctive adverbs
can introduce attributive, predicative, subject and object clauses.
The adverb how,in addition to the above functions, can also
be placed at the head of an exclamatory sentence. In this case it is
often followed by an adjective or an adverb but it may also be
used alone. This how is sometimes called the exclamatory how [18, 395]:
How unfair grown-ups are!
Oh, howthe baby cries! [18, 395]
2.2 Lexico-grammaticalsubdivision of adverbs
syntagmaticparadigmatic peculiarities adverbs english
Adverbs may bedivided into three lexico-grammatical subclasses: qualitative, quantitative,and circumstantial [13; 13].
Qualitativeadverbsshow the quality of an action or state much in the same way as a qualitativeadjective shows the quality of some substance (walks quickly and a quick walk,speaks loudly and a loud speech, etc). The connection between qualitativeadverbs and adjectives is obvious. In most cases the adverb is derived from theadjective with the help of the most productive adverb-forming suffix –ly.
Qualitativeadverbs, with or without –ly, are a subclass of adverbs with peculiarlexico-grammatical features. According to their meaning, the include adverbs ofmanner (well, badly, fast, quickly, clearly, suddenly, deeply, sincerely,willingly, sideways, somehow, how, etc.).
Qualitativeadverbs usually modify verbs or statives. As they characterize the quality ofan action or state, they are inwardly bound with a verb or stative and areusually placed as close as possible to the verb or stative they modify:
Tony and thedaughter of the Polish governor catch one glimpse of each other and are madlyaflame [16].
Table 1: Characteristicfeatures of qualitative adverbs1. Lexico-grammatical meaning Show the quality of an action or state 2. Typical stem-building affixes -ly 3. Morphological categories Subclass of adverbs 4. Typical patterns of combinability Are placed to the verb or stative they modify 5. Syntactic functions Modify verbs or statives
Here is thelist of qualitative adverbs which describe the way in which is done [16, 291]: