Adverbs in Spanish are used very widely both in colloquial Spanish and in writing. Adverbs in Spanish are quite heterogeneous both in function and in structure and method of formation, so let's consider this part of speech in more detail.
An adverb in Spanish is a part of speech that denotes a sign of action and characterizes a verb, adjective or other adverb.
All adverbs in Spanish are divided into 3 large groups according to their functions: qualitative, adverbial and modal. According to the structure, adverbs in Spanish are divided into simple (consisting of one word) and complex (consisting of several words).
Qualitative adverbs in Spanish
Qualitative adverbs in Spanish include adverbs of mode of action (the largest group of adverbs) and quantitative adverbs.
Adverbs of the mode of action characterize the action itself in terms of the quality and method of its implementation:
Don Corleone sabía perfectamente quiénes eran - Don Corleone knew perfectly well who they were
The most common adverbs of manner in Spanish are: alto - high, loud
bajo - low, quiet
bien - good
mal - bad
despacio - slowly
pronto - quickly
In addition to the above adverbs in Spanish, this group includes many stable turns, which we will consider below.
Quantitative adverbs in Spanish characterize the degree of action and answer the question "how much?", "how much?". The most common quantitative adverbs in Spanish:
algo - a little
casi - almost
bastante - enough
demasiado - too
mas - more
menos - less
muy - very
mucho - a lot
tan - so much
Adverbs in Spanish
The main function of adverbs in Spanish lies in the name itself - they express the circumstances under which the action takes place. This group includes all adverbs of place and time in Spanish.
Adverbs of place in Spanish indicate the place or direction of action and answer the question “where?”, “Where?”, “From where?”
The main adverbs of place in Spanish are:
abajo - below
arriba - above
delante - before
detras - behind
cerca - near, near
lejos - far away
aqui - here
dentro - inside
fuera - outside, outside
enfrente - opposite
Adverbs of time in Spanish indicate the time during which the action takes place and answer the questions “when?”, “Since when?” and “until when?”.
The most common adverbs of time in Spanish are:
ahora - now
antes - before
luego - then, then
después - after
ayer - yesterday
hoy - today
mañana - tomorrow
en fin - at last
por fin - at last
en seguida - now
mientras - meanwhile
temprano - early
tarde - late
siempre - always
todavia - more
Modal adverbs in Spanish
Modal adverbs in Spanish express the possibility or likelihood of an action. In addition, these Spanish adverbs can affirm or negate an action.
The main modal adverbs in Spanish are as follows:
quizá (quizás) - maybe
tal vez - possibly
acaso - possibly
al seguro - right
ciertamente - of course
tambien - also
nunca - never
jamas - never
tampoco - also not
Note: the use of a combination of 2 negative adverbs nunca and jamás strengthens the negation:
Nunca jamás lo hare - I will never do this in my life
Ways of forming adverbs in Spanish
There are several ways to form adverbs in Spanish:
Direct conversion (transition from another part of speech without change):
alto, bajo, etc. Since in this case the form of the adverb and the adjective is the same, they must be distinguished by function: an adverb characterizes a verb, adjective or other adverb, while an adjective similar in spelling characterizes a noun and agrees with it in gender and number.
Forming an adverb from another adverb using an affix:
debajo, anteayer, etc.;
The formation of adverbs in Spanish from adjectives using the suffix -mente: tranquilamente - calmly, efectivamente - really, etc. In this way, quite a lot of adverbs are formed in Spanish, but among them there are no adverbs of place and time;
Formation of compound adverbs in Spanish. Complex adverbs include stable adverbial phrases, consisting of a preposition and another part of speech:
a diestro at siniestro - randomly
de prisa - hastily
de repente - all of a sudden
de pronto - all of a sudden
en effecto - indeed
por desgracia - unfortunately, etc.
Degrees of comparison of adverbs in Spanish
Qualitative adverbs in Spanish can form 3 degrees of comparison: positive, comparative and superlative (similar to the degrees of comparison of adjectives in Spanish).
1. Positive degree of comparison- this is the basic form of the adverb, from which the other degrees of adverbs are formed.
2. comparative adverbs in Spanish are formed using the quantitative adverb más, menos or tan and the main adverb:
mas tranquilamente - more relaxed
menos claramente - less clear
In most cases, que or como is added to this construct:
El vive tan pobremente como los otros - he lives as poor as the others
Some adverbs in Spanish have their own comparative forms:
bien - good, mejor - better
mal - bad, peor - worse
mucho - a lot, más - more
poco - little, menos - less
3. Superlative Comparison adverbs in Spanish has several ways of formation:
Adverb muy + main adverb: muy bien
Main adverb + ísimo: mucho – muchísimo
The neuter article lo + the comparative degree of the adverb: lo mas alto
Note: this way of education superlatives Comparisons in Spanish are more often used with the adjective posible:
lo mas pronto posible - as soon as possible
Exceptions: The Spanish adverbs bien and mal have the superlative forms óptimamente and pésimamente, respectively.
In the last section, in all examples and exercises, only one preposition was used - en , which is translated by Russian prepositions into or into:
El libro está en la mesa - The book is on the table
Madrid está en España - Madrid is located in Spain
The preposition en in such sentences can be replaced with other prepositions or adverbs - for example: under, over, near, far and others - and in this way we will change the position of one object in relation to another.
Now we will simply list various prepositions and adverbs indicating the place, accompanying them with examples of sentences with them, plus we will make small comments in those cases that require it. Try to remember everything well.
debajo de - under
El libro está debajo de la mesa— The book is under the table
Debajo de is an adverb in Spanish and is used with the preposition de before a noun. Unlike the simple preposition en, this combination is double, where the preposition de indicates the case (not "Book under the table", but "Book under the table"). We will meet a sufficient number of similar cases in this topic.
Don't say: El libro está debajo la mesa
More examples:
¿Dónde está el gato? - Where is a cat?
El gato está debajo de la silla— The cat is under the chair
¿Está el periodico debajo de la tele? Is there a newspaper under the TV?
Say it yourself:
The phone is under the bed
The pencil lies under the magazine
delante de - before
El coche está delante de la casa— The car is in front of the house
La cortina está delante de la ventana— The curtain hangs in front of the window
Say it yourself:
Senor Gonzalez stands in front of the store
Is the sofa in front of the TV?
detras de - behind, behind
La chaqueta está detras de la puerta- The jacket is behind the door
¿Está el bolso detras de la silla?— The bag behind the chair?
Say it yourself:
The garden is behind the house
a la derecha de - to the right of
El dormitorio está a la derecha de la cocina- The bedroom is located to the right of the kitchen
Paula está a la derecha de Ricardo– Paula is to the right of Ricardo
The adverb a la derecha de consists of more elements than all the previous adverbs, but the principle of use remains the same.
Say it yourself:
The painting hangs to the right of the window.
Is the table to the right of the refrigerator?
a la izquierda de - to the left of
Las tiendas están a la izquierda de la escuela– Shops are located to the left of the school
El baño está a la izquierda de la puerta- The toilet is located to the left of the door
Say it yourself:
Where is the cafe located?
The cafe is located to the left of the beach
Silvia is to the left of Manuel
Note that in all of the above examples, we positioned objects in relation to objects. female:detras de la puerta, debajo de la mesa etc. This is not accidental, because the preposition de has one peculiarity. If the preposition de comes before the article el, then they merge, and it turns out del. Such a merger occurs only with the article el. The rest of the articles do not undergo a similar change.
De + el = del
El perro está debajo del sillón— The dog is under the seat
Las fotos estan a la derecha del reloj- Photos are to the right of the clock
Now you know this rule, and we can continue to list prepositions and adverbs of place, including in relation to the masculine gender.
Say it yourself:
boy standing behind a tree
The painting is to the left of the shelf
cerca de - close to, from
La casa está cerca del río - The house is close to the river
Portugal está cerca de España Portugal is close to Spain
Say it yourself:
The forest is close to the city
Miguel's work is close to home
lejos de - far from
La playa está lejos del hotel– The beach is far from the hotel
Francia está lejos de Rusia - France is far from Russia
Say it yourself:
Malaga is far from Barcelona
The plant is far from the city
Are the shops far from the hotel?
encima de - above
El sol está encima de la montana- The sun is above the mountain
Say it yourself:
The chandelier is above the chair
Moon in the sky over the city
There are also adverbs and prepositions that are somewhat similar in meaning to some of the above. We will now analyze the difference between them.
sobre - on
This preposition is used when the object is on some kind of horizontal surface. Most often it is a table.
El álbum está sobre la mesa - The album is on the table
Wherein this offer will be equivalent in meaning to the phrase El álbum está en la mesa. Both options will be correct. However, if the object is not on a horizontal surface, but, for example, on a wall, then the preposition sobre is no longer suitable.
El cuadro está en la pared - The painting is on the wall
Say it yourself:
Cups are on the table
enfrente de - opposite
La fuente está enfrente del museo– The fountain is opposite the museum
There are people who confuse delante (in front) and enfrente (opposite). The meanings of these adverbs are really very similar, and you can often use any of them in a sentence according to the meaning.
Say it yourself:
The shop is in front of the house.
The sofa is in front of the TV
al lado de - next to
The difference between al lado (nearby) and cerca (close) is also easily traced through the translation into Russian. Their meanings intersect, but still there are cases when they are somewhat different. For example: José sitting next to Sophia is not exactly the same as José sitting close to Sophia.
Jose está al lado de Sofia
Although in most cases you can use either of the two options.
El trabajo está cerca de la casa = El trabajo está al lado de la casa
Say it yourself:
The plant is located next to the river
The museum is next to the hotel
Note: The preposition de is added to an adverb only to connect it with the following noun. If there is no noun, then the preposition de is not needed.
El baño está a la derecha - Toilet to the right
El río está cerca - The river is close
El museo está detrás - The museum behind
Say it yourself:
Kitchen on the left
The beach is nearby
Shops are opposite
Don't say: El baño está a la derecha de
Be sure to learn all the adverbs and prepositions of place presented in this topic and fix them in the exercises.
Palabras nuevas
New words
un periodico - newspaper
un baño - bathroom, toilet
un rio - river
un hotel - hotel
una araña - chandelier; spider
unalbum - album
un cuadro - painting
una fuente - fountain
una estrella - star
el metro - metro
los padres - parents
un puente - bridge
Ejercicios
Exercises
Ejercicio 1
translate into spanish
on, under, close to, to the left of, in front of, to the right of, behind, in, opposite, next to, above
Ejercicio 2
Combine adverbs that are opposite in meaning
encima
a la izquierda
detras
cerca
lejos
delante
debajo
a la derecha
Ejercicio 3
With each adverb and preposition of place, make up one sentence describing the position of objects around you.
Ejercicio 4
Give negative answers to the questions, specifying at your discretion where the object is located
¿Está el libro sobre la mesa? No, el libro no está sobre la mesa. El libro está debajo de la cama
1. ¿Está la flor en el jarrón? 2. ¿Está el jardín delante de la casa? 3. ¿Está el telefono debajo de la toalla? 4. ¿Está Marcos detras del árbol? 5. ¿Está el profesor al lado de la pizarra? 6. ¿Está Italia cerca de Rusia? 7. ¿Están las estrellas encima de las montañas? 8. ¿Están las habitaciones a la derecha de la sala? 9. ¿Están las señoras en el parque? 10. ¿Están las tiendas lejos del metro?
Ejercicio 5
translate into spanish
1. The lamp is on the table; 2. The book lies under the bed; 3. The chair is opposite the desk; 4. The clock hangs over the door; 5. The wardrobe is to the right of the sofa; 6. The river is far from the forest; 7. Children are next to their parents; 8. Museums are far from the city center; 9. Where is Plaza Catalunya? – Plaza Catalunya is close to La Rambla; 10. Is the fountain to the left of the bridge? — No, the fountain is not to the left of the bridge. The fountain is to the right of the bridge.
Adverbs are used to define verbs, adjectives and other adverbs:
Caminan lentamente. - They walk slowly (slowly).
Estoy leyendo una novela muy interesante. I am reading a very interesting novel.
Vivo bastante lejos de la ciudad. — I live quite far from the city.
Adverbs are divided in terms of meaning into
- adverbs of time: ayer - yesterday, ahora - now, luego - later, nunca - never, siempre - always, jamás - never, pronto - soon;
- adverbs of place: arriba - up, abajo - down, enfrente - opposite, detrás - behind, delante - in front, fuera - outside;
— adverbs of manner: bien - good, mal - bad, mejor - better, peor - worse, tan - so (strongly), así - so (in this way);
— adverbs of quantity: demasiado - too much, mucho - a lot, menos - less, casi - almost, nada - nothing, bastante - enough;
— adverbs of affirmation, negation: sin embargo - nevertheless, no obstante - despite;
— adverbs of opposition, consequence: claro - of course, también - also yes, tampoco - also no, quizá(s) - maybe.
In Spanish, adverbs differ in form into simple and derivative (adverbs in - mente). The adverbs do not change.
Simple adverbs include such common ones as: más - more, ya - narrower.
Ahora estan ocupados. They are busy now.
Derived adverbs are formed by adding -mente to the feminine form of an adjective, for example,
Perfecto - perfecta - perfectamente - excellent
Adjectives ending in a consonant or -e:
Veloz - velozmente - quickly
If the adverb is formed from an adjective with asento, asento is preserved in the adverb, but the actual (basic) falls on -mente:
Rapido - rapidamente
Cortes - cortesmente
If two (or more) adverbs referring to the same word are used in a sentence, only the last one has the ending -mente, another adverb acts as an adjective in the feminine form, for example,
Los niños dibujaron lenta y pacientemente. The children drew slowly and patiently.
If an adverb defines a verb, then it is placed after the verb:
Comieron demasiado. - They ate too much.
If an adverb defines an adjective or another adverb, it is placed before them:
Su abuela está bastante enferma. Her grandmother is very unwell.
Miguel vive muy lejos del centro. Miguel lives very far from the center.
If it is necessary to emphasize the adverb and the information it conveys, the adverb is placed at the beginning of the sentence.
Pronto viajaremos a España. We'll be going to Spain soon.
Adverbs that express doubt are placed before the verb:
Probablemente está en casa. He's probably at home.
Peculiarities of using muy/mucho, tan/tanto
Muy is used before adjectives or adverbs. Mucho is used with verbs. Although there are exceptions: the comparative adjectives mejor, peor, menor, mayor and the adverbs más, menos, antes and después.
Penelope es muy bonita. Penelope is very pretty.
Tengo mucha sed. - I want to drink very much.
Tan is placed before an adjective or adverb. Tanto is used with a verb.
¡Estoy tan preocupada! - I'm so worried!
¡No fumes tanto! Don't smoke so much!
Degrees of comparison of adverbs
Adverbs have a comparative degree of equality (tan + adverb + como), superiority (más + adverb + que), lack (menos + adverb + que).
Pablo corre tan rapido como Antonio. Pablo runs as fast as Antonio.
Pablo corre ma s rapido que Antonio. Pablo runs faster than Antonio.
Pablo corre menos rapido que Antonio. Pablo runs slower than Antonio.
Irregular forms of the comparative degree of adverbs:
Bien - mejor (good - better)
Mal - peor (bad - worse)
Poco - menos (little - less)
Mucho - más (many - more)
The superlative absolute degree of comparison is formed by adding -isimamente to the base of the adjective.
Escriben lentisimamente. They write extremely slowly.
However, instead of this form, the construction muy + adverb -mente is more often used.
Escriben muy lentamente.
You will spend 30 minutes on this lesson. To listen to the word, please click on the Audio icon . If you have any questions regarding this course, please contact me by email: Learn Spanish.
Here is a short explanation: Adverbs
Adverbs are used very often, there are 4 types of adverbs: adverbs of time (today, yesterday...), adverbs of place (here, there...), adverbs of manner (quick, easy...), and adverbs of frequency (usually, always, never...).
Below is a list of the most commonly used words, the scope of which is: Adverbs. The table below has 3 columns (Russian, Spanish and pronunciation). Try to repeat the words after listening. This will help you improve your pronunciation and also help you remember the word better.
List of adjectives
| Russian language | Adverbs | Audio |
|---|---|---|
| already | ya | |
| immediately | mediatamente | |
| last night | anoche | |
| later | mas tarde | |
| next week | semana proxima | |
| now | ahora | |
| soon | pronto | |
| still | aun | |
| this morning | esta manana | |
| today | hoy | |
| tomorrow | mayana | |
| tonight | esta night | |
| yesterday | ayer | |
| still, nevertheless | todavia | |
| everywhere | dondequiera | |
| everywhere | en todas partes | |
| here | aqui | |
| there | ahi | |
| almost | case | |
| by oneself | solo | |
| carefully, cautiously | con cuidado | |
| fast | rapidamente | |
| in fact | de verdad | |
| slowly | despacio / lentamente | |
| together | juntos | |
| very | muy | |
| always | Siempre | |
| never | nunca | |
| rarely | rara vez | |
| sometimes | a veces |
Here is a list of sentences containing several vocabulary items shown above topic about: Adverbs. Sentences are added to help you understand how the structure of the entire sentence can affect the function and meaning of individual words.
Animals vocabulary
This is a list of animal vocabulary. If you learn the following words by heart, it will make your conversation with the natives much easier and more enjoyable.
Animals vocabulary
| Russian language | Animals | Audio |
|---|---|---|
| animal | el animal | |
| bear | el oso | |
| bird | el pajaro | |
| butterfly | la mariposa | |
| cat Kitty | el gato | |
| cow | la vaca | |
| dog | el perro | |
| donkey | el burro | |
| eagle | el aguila | |
| elephant | el elefante | |
| farm | la granja / la explotación agraria | |
| forest | el bosque | |
| goat | la cabra | |
| horse | el caballo | |
| insect | el insecto | |
| a lion | el leon | |
| monkey | el mono | |
| mosquito | el mosquito | |
| mouse | el raton | |
| rabbit | el conejo | |
| sheeps | las ovejas | |
| snake | la serpiente | |
| spider | la arana | |
| tiger | el tiger |
daily conversation
Spanish phrases
| Russian language | Spanish language | Audio |
|---|---|---|
| Do you have animals? | ¿Tienes animales? | |
| Do you sell dog food? | ¿Vendes comida para perros? | |
| I have a dog | tengo un perro | |
| Monkeys are funny | Los monos son divertidos / graciosos | |
| She loves cats | A ella le gustan los gatos | |
| Tigers are fast | Los tigres son rapidos | |
| bad, bad, bad, bad | Mal | |
| happy, happy, happy, happy | Feliz | |
| sad, sad, sad, sad | Triste | |
| Thank you! | ¡Gracias! | |
| It's my pleasure! | ¡De nada! | |
| Have a nice day! | Que pases un buen dia | |
| Goodnight! | Buena nights | |
| Have a nice trip! | ¡Buen viaje! | |
| It was a pleasure talking to you! | Me ha gustado hablar contigo |
Benefits of learning a language
Those who can speak more than one language are able to understand a number of words more quickly, especially if the word means the same thing in different languages. For example " l "amour"in French and" el amor" in Spanish.
Not all adverbs can form degrees of comparison. Basically, the degrees of comparison have adverbs of mode of action, namely, adverbs formed with the help of the suffix -mente, as well as adverbs of place and time.
Adverbial phrases do not have degrees of comparison.
Adverbs, like adjectives, have three degrees of comparison: positive, comparative and superlative. The positive degree is the basis for the formation of the other two degrees.
Comparative degree of comparison
comparative grado comparativo is formed as follows:
mas+ adverb + que more than
menos+ adverb + que less than
tan+ adverb + como as well as
- He leido este articulo más atentamente que el anterior. - I have read this article more carefully than the previous one.
- La fiesta paso menos alegremente de lo que esperamos. - The holiday was less fun than we expected.
- La nina habla tan rapido como su hermanita. - The girl speaks as fast as her sister.
Some, and the most common, adverbs have their own special form of comparative degree:
- Hoy María se siente mejor que ayer. - Maria is feeling better today than yesterday.
- Este año el deportista está preparado peor que el año pasado. - This year the athlete is worse prepared than last year.
- Él está seguro de que sabe más que sus amigos. - He is sure he knows more than his friends.
- Está usted muy agotado, tiene que trabajar menos y descansar más. - You are very exhausted, you should work less and rest more.
Superlative Comparison
Superlatives grado superlativo formed in the following ways:
muy+ positive degree of adverb:
- muy mal very bad
- muy pronto very soon
- muy alto very loud
- Has preparado muy bien la paella. - You made a very good paella.
- Habla muy bajo. - He speaks very quietly.
- Mi amiga me visita muy a menudo.- My friend visits me very often.
- Has trabajado muy efectivamente. - You have been very efficient.
2. The neuter article is added to the comparative degree of the adverb lo:
- lo peor very bad
- lo mas lejos very far
Often combined with an adjective possible possible:
- Llega, por favor, lo más pronto posible. - Please come as soon as possible.
- Hazlo lo mejor possible. - Do it the best you can.
- Lean este articulo lo más atentamente posible. - Read this article as carefully as you can.
3. For adverbs that coincide in form with adjectives, the superlative degree also coincides with the absolute superlative degree of these adjectives (see " Degrees of comparison of adjectives"):
- Me duele muchisimo el diente. - I have a very painful tooth.
- Pedro estudia malisimo. - Pedro studies very badly.
- El niño come poquisimo. - The child eats very little.
4. The ending is added to the absolute superlative degree of the feminine adjective -mente(or the ending is added to the base of the adjective -isimamente).
