Differences between adjectives and adverbs

The vase was full of beautiful flowers.

Adjectives tell us something about a noun. They are usually used before nouns.

The intelligent student passed the examination.

The vase was full of beautiful flowers.

Thuvan is a careful driver.

Amanda is a quiet girl.

Sometimes, the adjective is placed after a ‘be’ verb. (Eg. am, is, was, were, be, being, been)

The atmosphere was quiet after the storm.

The students were happy over the results.

The adjective is used after certain verbs.

You look happy today.

I feel miserable after mother’s death.

Your explanation sounds credible.

You can make adverbs from certain adjectives by adding “ly”.

The troops returned to the camp quickly after some time. (from the adjective quick)

Some passengers were seriously injured when the bus went down a precipice. (from the adjective serious)

The old woman crossed the road carefully. (from the adjective careful)

Shyama walked into her room quietly. (adjective: quiet)

It is raining heavily. (adjective: heavy)

Lal wrote his essay so badly that the teacher could not read it. (adjective: bad)

However, some words ending in “ly” remain adjectives.

A friendly police officer helped me to trace my missing parcels.

Madara is a lively fun-loving child.

An elderly nurse stood by the patient.

She led a lonely and unhappy life after retirement.

You are making silly mistakes!

You are making silly mistakes!

Don’t you think it’s a lovely day?

While adjectives tell us something about a noun, adverbs tell us about a verb.

Sirimal drove his car carefully along the narrow street.

We cannot play cricket because it is raining heavily.

Lalani spoke quietly for some time and began to cry.

I think I did some subjects badly in the final examination.

Some adverbs can be used before adjectives and other adverbs.

We stayed in a reasonably cheap hotel in Chennai, but the room service was extremely bad.

She was terribly sorry for scolding the child.

Shehan picked up his work incredibly quickly.

The sum was surprisingly easy.

Adverbs can be used before past participles.

The child was seriously injured when he fell from the tree.

The sports meet was badly organised.

Kanthi was well dressed for the party.

English is poorly taught in certain schools.

Note that good is an adjective, but well is an adverb.

Neela’s handwriting is good (adjective)

Neela writes well. (adverb)

There are certain words which are both adjectives and adverbs.

Susanthika is a fast runner (adjective)

Susanthika can run very fast. (adverb)

Jayakody is a hard worker. (adjective)

Jayakody works hard. (adverb)

Ruhunu Kumari was late yesterday. (adjective)

Ruhunu Kumari runs late everyday. (adverb)

Hard and hardly have different meanings.

Hard is a positive word meaning putting in a lot of effort or energy into an activity.

An elderly nurse stood by the patient.

Nayana is a hard worker.

Hardly has a negative meaning: barely.

I hardly know him. (adverb)

We can hardly afford to buy a car. (adverb)

Hardly can be placed in two positions.

The patient ate hardly anything today.

The patient hardly ate anything today.

If you use hardly ever, it simply means almost never.

We hardly ever speak to our enemies.