Adverbs of Intensity

Adverbs: Order of Intensity;
Regular & Irregular

​ Adverbs of Degree

Adverbs of degree are words that describe the intensity or degree to which an action, adjective, or another adverb is applied. They can specify the extent or the level of an action's occurrence.

Examples:

She is very fast. (The adverb 'very' intensifies the adjective 'fast')

He ran quite quickly. (The adverb 'quite' modifies the adverb 'quickly' to express the degree of speed)

Ordering Adverbs of Degree by Intensity

Adverbs of degree can be ordered or ranked by their intensity, from least to most intense.
Understanding this order helps us choose the right adverb to accurately express the degree of an action or quality.

​Example: least intense to most intense

slightly

somewhat

very

extremely

utterly

Ordering Adverbs of Degree by Intensity

Let us look at examples of how changing the adverb of degree in a sentence can alter the intensity of the expression.

Sentence examples with increasing intensity:

• She is slightly annoyed. (lowest intensity)

• She is somewhat annoyed.

• She is very annoyed.

• She is extremely annoyed.

• She is utterly annoyed. (highest intensity)

Multiple Choice

Fill in the blank by choosing the apt option, to make the following sentence complete, as an example of Adverb of Degree:

The student looked __________ upset on seeing his grade card.

• terribly

• terror

• terrible

• terrify

Match

1. Fill in the blank with the appropriate adverb of degree to match the indicated level of intensity.
   1. He was ________ surprised by the news. (least intense)

2. 2. The test was _________ difficult.

3. 3. She spoke _______ softly during the presentation.

4. 4. They were ______ happy with the outcome.

5. 5. The movie was _________ entertaining. (most intense)

• slightly

• moderately

• fairly

• very

• extremely

1

2

3

4

5

• 1

• 2

• 3

• 4

• 5

Multiple Choice

From the options below, choose the correct adverb of degree, to complete the given sentence:

We __________ disagreed with the Principal on his new decision.

• strongly

• just

• so

• enough

• some

Match

Match the following, by identifying the part of speech against each word of the sentence that is given:

The match was extremely disappointing.

• The

• match

• was

• extremely

• disappointing

Article/ Determiner

noun

verb

adverb

adjective

• Article/ Determiner

• noun

• verb

• adverb

• adjective

Drag and Drop

Dr​ag the correct option from the list of options, to complete the sentence:
We found the book ​ ​

Placeholder

interesting.

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

well

incredibly

enough

Regular and Irregular Adverbs

Regular adverbs are made by adding 'ly' to adjectives.
Example: quick (adjective) becomes quickly (adverb)


Irregular adverbs do not follow a specific pattern and can vary in their formation. They often look the same as the adjective form.

Example: straight (adjective) remains straight (adverb)

​Regular and Irregular Adverbs

Multiple Choice

From the following choices, choose the correct word to make a complete sentence with a regular adverb:

The boys were________ making plans for the college event.

• secretly

• secretive

• secreted

• secret

Dropdown

From the choices given, drag the correct word to make a sentence with a regular adverb:





We climbed the Himalayas ​

Select answer

Reorder

Reorder the following words to create a sentence with an irregular adverb:

We worked hard for our exam.

• we

• worked

• hard

• for

• our exam.

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

Fill in the Blank

Fill in the blank to create a sentence with an irregular adverb, the adjective form is in the bracket.

Wendy reached the venue ________ (early)

Multiple Choice

Fill in the blank in the below sentence from the options, making an irregular adverb out of the adjective in the bracket:

The students of grade 12 were happy that they had written the examinations ________ (good).

• well

• best

• good

• goodly

Summary

Adverbs of intensity, like adverbs of degree, make the feeling or action in a sentence stronger.
We use them with verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs to show how intense something is.

There are two types of adverbs: regular and irregular.

Regular adverbs are made by adding 'ly' to an adjective, like 'quick' to 'quickly'.
Irregular adverbs don't follow this rule, and their forms can vary, such as 'good' changing to 'well'.