Adverbs in Spanish (place, time). Adverbs in Spanish Superlative comparisons
Adverbs are used to define verbs, adjectives and other adverbs:
Caminan lentamente. — They walk slowly (not in a hurry).
Estoy leyendo una novela muy interesante. — I’m 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). Adverbs do not change.
Simple adverbs include such common ones as: más - more, ya - narrower.
Ahora están ocupados. - They are busy now.
Derivative 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 an adverb is formed from an adjective with asento, asento is preserved in the adverb, but the actual (main) falls on -mente:
Rápido - rápidamente
Cortés - cortésmente
If a sentence uses two (or more) adverbs referring to the same word, 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 modifies a verb, it is placed after the verb:
Comieron demasiado. - They ate too much.
If an adverb modifies an adjective or other 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 an adverb and the information it conveys, the adverb is placed at the beginning of the sentence.
Pronto viajaremos a España. — We'll go to Spain soon.
Adverbs that express doubt are placed before the verb:
Probablemente está en casa. - He's probably at home.
Features of using muy/mucho, tan/tanto
Muy is used before adjectives or adverbs. Mucho is used with verbs. Although there are exceptions: comparative adjectives mejor, peor, menor, mayor and adverbs más, menos, antes and después.
Penélope es muy bonita. — Penelope is very beautiful.
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), deficiency (menos + adverb + que).
Pablo corre tan rapido como Antonio. — Pablo runs as fast as Antonio.
Pablo corre más rapido que Antonio. — Pablo runs faster than Antonio.
Pablo corre menos rapido que Antonio. — Pablo runs slower than Antonio.
Irregular forms of comparative adverbs:
Bien - mejor (good - better)
Mal - peor (bad - worse)
Poco - menos (little - less)
Mucho - más (much - more)
The superlative absolute degree of comparison is formed by adding -ísimamente to the base of the adjective.
Escriben lentísimamente. — They write extremely slowly.
However, instead of this form, the construction muy + adverb ending in -mente is more often used.
Escriben muy lentamente.
In the last section, in all examples and exercises, only one preposition was used - en, which is translated by Russian prepositions on or in:
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, above, next to, far and others - and thus we will change the position of one object in relation to another.
Now we will simply list various prepositions and adverbs indicating a place, accompanied by example 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 case (not “The book under the table”, but “The book under the table”). We will come across a sufficient number of similar cases in this topic.
Don't say: El libro está debajo la mesa
More examples:
What do you think?
- Where is a cat? El gato está debajo de la silla
— The cat is under the chair¿Está el periódico debajo de la tele?
— Is the 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 parked in front of the house La cortina está delante de la ventana
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
— The curtain hangs in front of the window
Señor Gonzalez stands in front of the store
Is the sofa in front of the TV?
detrás de - behind, behind La chaqueta está detrás de la puerta
— The jacket is behind the door¿Está el bolso detrás de la silla?
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
— The bag behind the chair?
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 to the right of the kitchen Paula está a la derecha de Ricardo
— Paula is to the right of Ricardo
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
The adverb a la derecha de consists of more elements than all previous ones, but the principle of use remains the same.
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
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
— The toilet is to the left of the door
Where is the cafe?
The cafe is located to the left of the beach
Silvia is to the left of Manuel Please note that in all of the above examples we placed objects in relation to feminine objects: detrás 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 get del. This merger occurs only with the article el. The remaining articles do not undergo such changes.
De + el = del El perro está debajo del sillón
— The dog is under the chair Las fotos están a la derecha del reloj
— Photos are to the right of the clock
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
Now you know this rule, and we can continue to list prepositions and adverbs of place, including in relation to the masculine gender.
A boy stands behind a tree
The painting is to the left of the shelf
cerca de - close to, from
Portugal está cerca de España— Portugal is close to Spain
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
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
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
Malaga is far from Barcelona
The plant is located far from the city
Are the shops far from the hotel?
encima de - above
El sol está encima de la montaña— The sun is above the mountain
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
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 look at the difference between them.
sobre - on
This preposition is used when an object is on some horizontal surface. Most often this is a table.
El álbum está sobre la mesa - The album is on the table
In this case, this sentence 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 will no longer be suitable.
El cuadro está en la pared – The painting is on the wall
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
Cups are on the table
enfrente de - opposite
La fuente está enfrente del museo— The fountain is located opposite the museum
There are people who confuse delante (in front) and enfrente (opposite). The meanings of these adverbs are indeed very similar, and you can often use any of them in a sentence according to their meaning.
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
The store is located opposite the house
The sofa is in front of the TV
al lado de - next to
The difference between al lado (near) and cerca (close) can also be easily seen through the translation into Russian. Their meanings overlap, but there are still cases when they are somewhat different. For example: Jose sitting next to Sofia is not quite the same as Jose sitting close to Sofia.
José está al lado de Sofía
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
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
The factory is located next to the river
The museum is located next to the hotel
Note: The preposition de is added to an adverb only to link it to 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
— Is the newspaper under the TV?
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 practice them in the exercises.
Palabras nuevas
New words
un periódico - newspaper
un baño - bathroom, toilet
un río - river
un hotel - hotel
una araña - chandelier; spider
un album - album
un cuadro - picture
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 with opposite meanings
encima
a la izquierda
detrás
cerca
lejos
delante
debajo
a la derecha
Ejercicio 3
Make one sentence with each adverb and preposition of place, 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 detrás 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 is under the bed; 3. The chair is opposite the desk; 4. The clock hangs above the door; 5. The wardrobe is located to the right of the sofa; 6. The river is far from the forest; 7. Children are close to their parents; 8. Museums are located 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 located to the right of the bridge.
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In Spanish, prepositions express cases. In addition, many verbs are used only in combination with certain prepositions.
Basic prepositions:
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V; on (when indicating the direction of movement, answering the question: where?) |
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with (who? what?) |
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indicates the ownership of an object or person, answering the questions: whose? whose? from - when designating a place as the starting point of movement; o - when designating a person, object, phenomenon that represents the object of conversation, reflection (to talk about something - hablar de algo) |
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s, from... (when indicating time and distance) |
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in, on (to indicate a place, answering the question: where?) |
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until (to indicate a limit of time or space) |
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for (who? what?) |
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by, through |
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on (who? what?) |
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after; behind (what? who?) |
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Merging articles and prepositions In the Spanish language there is such a thing as the merging of masculine definite articles and prepositions. This rule is correct only for definite articles and for prepositions a And de: definite article el+ preposition A = al Definite article el+ preposition de = del Vuelven al trabajo a la una de la tarde. - They return to work at one o'clock in the afternoon. |
The preposition a is translated into Russian as “in, at, to, for, by” depending on the sentence and is used:
- After verbs of motion:
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go, go somewhere |
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to come, to arrive somewhere |
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to come, to arrive somewhere |
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travel somewhere |
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go, go somewhere |
Hoy vamos al cine. – Today we are going to the cinema.
Cada año viajo a Spain. – Every year I travel to Spain.
Vengo a Casa a las 11 de la mañana. – I come home at 11 am.
- When indicating time: when, what time:
Cada jueves cenamos a las 22 de la noche. – Every Thursday we have dinner at 10 pm.
Tengo clase a las 15 de la tarde. – I have classes at 3 pm.
- Placed before animate nouns when answering the question “Who?”, “To whom?”:
¿Invito a los chicos? – Should I invite the guys?
Veo a Pili todos los días. – I meet Pili every day.
¿Le doy el libro a Maria? – I give the book to Maria.
Debo contestar a Todos los usuarios. – I must respond to all users.
- When answering the questions “For what?”, “For what purpose?”:
Vengo a hablar de tu comportamiento. - I come (for what?) to talk about your behavior.
- In stable combinations that answer the question “How?”:
No soporto las citas a ciegas. – I can’t stand blind dates.
¿Vamos a casa a pie? - Shall we walk home?
Este chisme está hecho al tuntun. – This thing was made at random (at random).
The preposition de is translated into Russian as “from, with, in, from, about, by, because of” depending on the sentence and is used:
- When answering the questions “Who?”, “What?”, “Whose?”:
Tengo la guitarra de Pedro. – I have a guitar (who?) Pedro.
Son las cosas de Juan. – These are the things of (who?) Juan.
- When you want to indicate that a thing is made of something:
He comprado una nueva mesa de madera. – I bought a new wooden table (a table made of wood).
¿Me puedes dar aquella caja de plastic? -Can you give me that plastic box over there?
- Designation of the starting point of movement ("from", "where from?"):
Venimos de casa. - We come from home.
Salgo de Moscú manana. – I’m leaving Moscow tomorrow.
And with other verbs meaning “from”:
Soy de Madrid. - I'm from Madrid.
- The preposition de is often translated into Russian as “o”, i.e. talk about something, etc.:
Hablamos de nuestras aventuras. – We are talking about our adventures.
Estoy leyendo un libro de filosofía. – I’m reading a book about philosophy.
The preposition con is usually translated into Russian as “with”:
Vivo con mis amigos. – I live with my friends.
Hablamos con el director. - We are talking with the director.
Traigame, por favor, un café con helado. – Bring me some coffee and ice cream, please.
In phrases answering the question “How?”, “In what way?”, “With what?”:
Te ayudaré con placer. - I will help you with pleasure.
¿Siempre comes con apetito? – Do you always eat with appetite?
The preposition en is translated as “in, on, by, at” and is used:
1. When designating a place:
Mi amigo trabaja en la oficina. – My friend works in an office.
Quedamos en la cafetería de al lado. – We’ll meet at a cafe nearby.
2. When indicating time:
En dos horas estamos en casa. - We'll be home in two hours.
En agosto me voy a Italia a ver a mi novio. – In August I will go to Italy to visit my boyfriend.
3. When designating a vehicle:
Siempre viajo en avión porque los trenes me dan miedo. – I always travel by plane because I am afraid of trains.
¿Vamos en coche? - Shall we go by car?
The preposition hacia is translated as “to, around” and indicates approaching some place or time:
Siempre sale y va hacia el centro. “He always comes out and walks towards the center.
¿Nos vemos hacia las tres? – Meet around three?
The preposition sin is translated into Russian as “without”:
¿Esperamos un poco o vamos sin tus amigos? – Shall we wait a little or go without your friends?
Parece que viene sin ganas. “It seems like he came reluctantly.”
In phrases with an infinitive it is translated into Russian as a negative participial phrase:
Trabajo todo el día sin comer. – I work all day without eating.
Se ha ido sin mirarme siquiera. “He left without even looking at me.”
The preposition sobre is translated as “on, above, about, about.”
1. Indicates the location - on or above any surface:
Las llaves están sobre la mesa. - The keys are on the table.
Estamos volando sobre Spain. - We are flying over Spain.
2. Indicates an approximate number, amount, measure of something:
Tellamo sobre las 7 de la tarde, ¿vale? – I’ll call you around 7 pm, okay?
Ghana sobre dos mil euros al mes. – He receives about 2 thousand euros a month.
3. Indicates what or regarding what we are talking about and is equal to the Russian “o”:
¿Me compras algún libro sobre economy? – Will you buy me some book about economics?
Cuentame algo sobre tu vida. – Tell me something about your life.
Translated as “until some place or time”:
La tienda está abierta hasta las 21 de la tarde. – The store is open until 9 pm.
¿Caminemos hasta la plaza? - Let's walk to the square?
Takes on the role of an intensifying particle and is translated into Russian by the word “even”:
Hasta Yo no aguanto tanta presión. “Even I can’t stand that kind of pressure.”
Hasta El Corte Inglés está cerrado hoy. – Even el Corte Inglés is closed today.
The preposition desde is translated as “from, from, with.”
1. Indicates the circumstance of the place:
Me saluda desde el train. – He greets me from the train.
Desde la ventana se ve el arcoiris. - You can see a rainbow from the window.
2. Used in combination with the preposition hasta and indicates a time period or distance:
Desde las 8 de la mañana hasta las 3 de la tarde estoy en la oficina. – From 8 am to 3 pm I am in the office.
Desde El mar hasta las montañas no hay nada. – There is nothing from the sea to the mountains.
3. In combination, desde hace indicates the duration of an action:
Vivo aquí desde hace un año. - I've been living here for a year.
Trabajo en esta empresa desde hace dos años. – I have been working in this company for 2 years.
The preposition ante translates as “before, opposite” and indicates the location of something in front of something or someone:
Debes comparer ante tu jefe. “You must appear before your superior.”
Estamos ante la puerta. - We are in front of the door (opposite the door).
Spanish lessons for beginners.
Lesson 9 - Talking about habitual actions.
This lesson covers the following topics:
- reflexive verbs;
- adverbs ending in -mente;
- adverbs of frequency (denoting how often an action occurs);
- the preposition “a” in various constructions;
- soler + infinitive;
- acostumbrar + infinitive.
EXAMPLES
A: ¿Qué haces los domingos/ fines de semana? — What do you do on Sundays/weekends?
B: Leo./ Escucho música. — I’m reading/listening to music.
Siempre/ Nunca llega a la hora. — He always comes / never comes on time.
A veces/ De vez en cuando nos invitan. - Sometimes / From time to time they invite us.
¿Viene Vd. aquí a menudo/ siempre? — Do you often/always come here?
¿Cuántas veces por semana/ mes la ves? — How many times a week/month do you see her?
¿A qué hora cenas/ te acuestas? — When do you have dinner/go to bed?
Ceno/ Me acuesto a las 10.00. — I have dinner/go to bed at 10.00.
GRAMMAR
Reflexive verbs.
- In reflexive verbs, as a rule, the infinitive is added -se, For example, levantarse (get up, rise) lavarse (to wash).
- Reflexive pronouns are used together with reflexive verbs me , te, se ,nos , os, which are placed before the verb.
Examples.
me levanto - I get up
te levantas - you get up
se levanta - You (polite form) get up, he/she gets up
nos levantamos - we rise
os levantáis - you (plural) get up
se levantan - they get up, you (polite form) get up
Los sábados siempre me levanto tarde. — On Saturdays I always get up late.
Se levanta y se va al trabajo. — He/she gets up and goes to work.
- As can be seen from the examples above, reflexive pronouns usually come before the verb, but they are attached to the ending of the infinitive, gerund (see) and imperative mood (see).
Antes de acostar se lee un rato. — He/she reads a little before bed.
Afeitando se, se corto. — He cut himself while shaving.
Levanta te, es tarde. - Get up, it's late.
- In designs main verb + infinitive/gerund The reflexive pronoun can either come before the main verb, or attach to the infinitive or gerund.
Me voy a duchar./ Voy a ducharme. - I am going to take a shower.
Nos tenemos que ir./ Tenemos que irnos. - We need to leave.
Below you can find a list of the most commonly used Spanish reflexive verbs. The notation (ie), (ue) or (i) next to a verb indicates a change in the vowel stem in the present tense (see ).
acostarse (ue) - go to bed
acordarse (ue) - remember, recall
afeitarse - to shave
alegrarse - to rejoice
bañarse - to swim
casarse - to get married, to get married
cortarse - to cut yourself
despertarse (ie) - to wake up
dormirse (ue) - to fall asleep
equivocarse - to make a mistake
hallarse - to be, to be
irse - to leave
lavarse - to wash oneself
levantarse - to get up
marcharse - to leave
morirse (ue) - to die
moverse (ue) - move
olvidarse - forget
pararse - to stop
peinarse - to comb
probarse (ue) - try on
reírse (i) - laugh
sentarse (ie) - to sit down
sentirse (ie) - to feel
Adverbs ending in -mente
In Spanish, many adverbs are formed by adding -mente to an adjective in the feminine gender.
rápida → rápida mente(fast)
lenta → lenta mente(slowly)
Please note that if an adjective has an accent (´), then it is also preserved in an adverb.
If an adverb ends in a consonant, then you just need to add -mente .
fácil → fácil mente(easily)
Note.
Instead of adverbs -mente, we can also use the design de manner/forma + adjective.
de manera extraña - strange
de forma muy profesional - very professional
Adverbs of frequency
Below you can find a list of adverbs and adverbial constructions that are often used to indicate how often an action occurs.
frecuentemente - often
generalmente - usually, in general
normalmente - usually, normally
usualmente - usually
a menudo - often
a veces - sometimes
de vez en cuando - from time to time
una vez/ dos veces por semana – once/twice a week
siempre - always
nunca, jamás - never
todos los días/meses/años - every day/month/year
cada día/ mes/ año - every day/ month/ year
Notes
- Please note that in the plural of the noun vez consonant z changes to c: vez - vec es.
- jamas more emotionally charged than nunca.
- If nunca stands after the verb, then a double negative is used. Compare:
Nunca me llama. / No me llama nunca. - She never calls me.
The preposition "a" in some constructions
Note the use of the preposition a in expressions ¿a qué hora?, a las...
¿A qué hora sales de la oficina? — What time do you leave the office?
Salgo a las 8.00. — I leave at 8.00.
Note.
You can find a list of words and expressions on this topic in the article ““.
Soler + infinitive
When we talk about habitual actions, we can use the construction soler (o→ue) + infinitive , which is most often translated using the adverb “usually”.
A: ¿Qué suele hacer Vd. en el verano? — What do you usually do in the summer?
B: Suelo salir de vacaciones. — I usually go on vacation.
A: ¿Dónde sueles comer? —Where do you usually eat?
B: Suelo comer en casa. — I usually eat at home.
Solemos trabajar hasta muy tarde. — We usually work until late.
Acostumbrar + infinitive
Design acostumbrar + infinitive has the meaning of “usually doing something”, “having the habit of doing something”.
Ana acostumbra levantarse tarde. — Anna usually gets up late / is used to getting up late.
Acostumbro comprar el periódico todos los días. — I usually buy a newspaper every day.
The design is used much less frequently than soler + infinitive, and is more typical for written speech.
Note.
About use soler And acostumbrar in phrases like solía/ acostumbraba trabajar mucho read in.
EXERCISES
1. Put the verb in brackets into the correct form.
1. Antes de... a veces leo un rato. Feneralmente me duermo a eso de las 11.00. (dormirse)
2. Normalmente (yo) … a las 10.00, pero mi marido no … nunca antes de la medianoche. Los chicos… a las 9.30. (acostarse)
3. (Yo) … (despertarse) todos los días bastante tarde, … (afeitarse), … (bañarse) rápidamente y … (salir) al trabajo.
4. Ana siempre… a la oficina sobre las 8.00. Normalmente (elle)… en el coche. (irse, ir)
5. Fernando... (alegrarse) cuando sus padres... (venir) a visitarle.
According to their meaning, adverbs are divided into five groups: adverbs of place, adverbs of time, adverbs of manner, quantitative adverbs and modal adverbs, which can be divided into three subgroups: adverbs of affirmation, negation and doubt.
Adverbs of place
Adverbs of place adverbios de lugar. Point out where the action is taking place and answer the question. What? Where? with verbs of location. Adverbs on -mente do not belong to this type of adverbs.
- abajo at the bottom
- adelante ahead
- ahi here there
- aquí Here
- alli there
- arriba upstairs
- cerca close
- dentro inside
- detrás behind
- donde Where
- de donde where
- encima above
- lejos far
- atras behind, behind
- debajo below, under
- fuera outside
- junto near
- enfrente against and etc.
- El muchacho que va detrás, es mi amigo. - The young man walking behind is my friend.
- Los vecinos que viven arriba siempre hacen mucho ruido y me molestan. - The neighbors who live upstairs are always very noisy and disturb me.
Some adverbial phrases with the meaning of adverbs of place:
- a la derecha right
- a la izquierda left
- en todas partes everywhere
- en ninguna parte nowhere and etc.
- El estanco está a la derecha, tiene usted que doblar la esquina. - The kiosk is on the right, you need to turn the corner.
- En ninguna parte puedo encontrar libro que necesito mucho. - I can't find the book I really need anywhere.
Adverbs aquí, ahí, allí have a certain lexical connection with demonstrative pronouns (see “ Demonstrative pronouns”):
- aquí Here points to a place next to the speaker: en este lugar
- ahi here there points to a place closer to the interlocutor: en ese lugar
- alli there indicates a place distant from both speakers: en aquel lugar
- Aquellas sillas están allí, en el jardín, aquí está solo está. - Those chairs are there in the garden, only this chair is here.
Adverbs of time
Adverbs of time Adverbios de tiempo. Indicate when an action occurred and answer questions What? When? ¿desde cuándo? From what time? ¿hasta cuándo? until what time? Adverbs on -mente are very rare in this group.
The most common simple adverbs of this group are:
- Ahora Now
- antaño before
- antes earlier
- aun more
- ayer yesterday
- cuando When
- después/luego Then
- hogaño currently
- hoy Today
- mañana Tomorrow
- mientras meanwhile
- nunca never
- recien just now
- siempre Always
- tarde late
- temprano early
- todavia more
- ya already and etc.
- El entrenador de nuestro equipo es siempre muy estricto con sus discípulos. - The coach of our team is always very strict with his players.
- ¿Hasta cuándo vas a estar en Valencia? - Hasta mañana. - Until what day will you be in Valencia? - Till tomorrow.
- Vive cerca de su oficina y por eso se levanta por la mañana bastante tarde. - He lives close to his office and therefore gets up quite late in the morning.
Adverb recien used in Spanish only with the past participle:
- Los recién llegados pueden sentarse. - Those who just arrived can sit down.
Some adverbial phrases and expressions with the meaning of adverbs of time:
- a menudo often
- de día during the day
- de noche at night
- de vez en cuando/a veces Sometimes
- en seguida now
- pasado mañana day after tomorrow and etc.
- Me gusta trabajar de noche. - I love working at night.
- ¿Vas al teatro a menudo? - No, de vez en cuando, si tengo tiempo. - Do you often go to the theater? - No, sometimes, if I have time.
Adverbial turn en seguida now enseguida
- Te prepararé el desayuno enseguida. - I'll cook breakfast for you right away.
- El camarero dice que nos servirá enseguida. - The waiter says he will serve us right away.
Adverbs of manner
Adverbs of manner Adverbios de modo. They indicate how the action occurred, what its quality is and answer the question What? How? These include all adverbs in -mente.
The most commonly used simple adverbs are:
- adrade on purpose
- alto loud
- asi So
- bien Fine
- bajo quiet, low
- despacio slowly
- duro hard, with difficulty
- claro It's clear
- como/cual How
- mal Badly
- pronto/rapido soon, quickly
- salvo except, except
All adverbial phrases indicated at the end of the page “Formation of adverbs” refer to adverbs of manner of action.
- ¿Por qué hablas tan alto? Te oigo muy bien. - Why are you talking so loud? I can hear you very well.
- Lo ha hecho a propósito, para burlarse de mí. - He did this on purpose to make fun of me.
- De repente se oyó un ruido extraño. - Suddenly a strange noise was heard.
- ¿Por qué nos acompañas de mala gana? - Why are you so reluctant to come with us?
- Miraba a su amigo atentamente (con atención). - He looked at his friend carefully.
Some grammarians classify the word as an adverb of manner tal such(see “Demonstrative pronouns” for more details). It indicates quality, can only be combined with nouns, and has a plural form. tales:
- Tales novelas como “Cien años de soledad” de Gabriel García Marquéz enriquecen la literatura universal. - Novels such as One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez enrich world literature.
Adverbial turn de prize fast can be written either separately or together. Nowadays there is a trend of continuous writing - deprisa. However, in the literature there is often a separate spelling of this adverb:
- Iba caminando muy deprisa, no podía alcanzarle. - He walked very fast, I could not catch up with him.
- Vámonos más deprisa, el espectáculo empieza pronto. - Let's go quickly, the performance will start soon.
Quantitative adverbs
Quantitative adverbs adverbios de cantidad indicate the scope of action, the degree of its quality and answer the question What about? How many? Adverbs on -mente are rare in this category of adverbs.
The most commonly used quantitative adverbs are:
- algo a little, a few
- apenas barely
- case almost
- cuanto How many
- bastante enough
- demasiado too much
- harto enough
- poco few
- más more
- menos less
- mucho a lot of
- muy Very
- solo only
- tanto/tan so much, so much, so much
- todo All
- Nos queda poco tiempo. - We have little time left.
- ¡Cuántos monumentos interesantes se puеde ver en ese país! - How many beautiful ancient monuments can be seen in this country!
- Trabajas demasiado. No es necesario que trabajes tanto. - You work too much. You don't need to work so much.
- Regresó a casa bastante tarde. - He returned home quite late.
- Solo tú puedes entenderme. - Only you can understand me.
Adverb muy used only before adjectives and adverbs:
- La dependente es muy amable. - The saleswoman is very kind.
- Ya es muy tarde. - It's already very late.
Adverb mucho a lot of combined with adverbs major better, peor worse, más more, menos less has the meaning much:
- El enfermo se siente mucho mejor. - The patient feels much better.
- Hiciste mucho más de lo que yo esperaba. - You did much more than I expected.
Adverb tanto so much, so much defines verb:
- ¿Por qué hablas tanto? - Why are you talking so much?
This adverb is also used as an adjective, combining with a noun and agreeing with it in gender and number:
- María tiene tantos libros, que no le queda tiempo para leerlos. - Maria has so many books that she has no time to read them.
Adverb tan so, so defines adjectives and adverbs, indicates the degree of quality or quantity:
- Esta novela es tan buena, que quiero volver a leerla. - This novel is so good that I want to reread it.
- ¡Prometes tanto y haces tan poco! - You promise so much and deliver so little!
Modal adverbs (adverbios modales)
Adverbs of assertion
Adverbs of assertion adverbios de afirmación:
- si Yes
- también yeah too
- cierto right
- effectivamente really
- claro Certainly
- exactly exactly
- obvio obviously
- verdaderamente Truth
- A lo cual ellos iban contestando que sí, que sí y que sí. - To which they replied that yes, yes and yes.
- También soy hincha del equipo "Real Madrid". - I am also a fan of the Real Madrid team.
- Efectivamente compramos un coche grande y potente. - We really bought a big and powerful car.
Adverbs of negation
Adverbs of negation adverbios de negación:
- no No
- jamas never
- tampoco also no
- nunca never
- negativity negative
- de ningún modo in no case
Modal adverbs with negative meaning nunca, jamas, tampoco can come before the verb, then the negative particle no not installed. If they come after the verb, the negative particle must come before the verb. Between a verb and a negative adverb there can only be a personal pronoun in the accusative or dative case:
- Nunca me dices en lo que piensas. = No me dices nunca en lo que piensas. - You never tell me what you're thinking.
- Tampoco estuvimos en este país. = No estuvimos tampoco en este país. - We have never been to this country either.
- Más vale tarde que nunca./refran/ - Better late than never./proverb/
Adverbs of doubt
Adverbs of doubt adverbios de duda:
- quiz(s) May be
- acaso/tal vez perhaps, probably
- probablemente/posiblemente Maybe
- puede/puede ser May be
- a lo major more likely
- Quien Sabe who knows
- Quizás me diga la verdad. - Maybe he'll tell me the truth.
- Acaso se haya olvidado de ustedes. - Maybe she has forgotten you.
- A lo mejor tienes razón. - Most likely you're right.
- Tal vez ella conozca a Juan. - Perhaps she knows Juan.
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