Adverbs formed from adjectives: Italian grammar lesson 74

What’s an adverb, and what’s the difference between adverbs and adjectives?

While adjectives are describing words that can modify nouns, adverbs are instead used to modify a verb.

They often answer the questions “how?”, “when?” or “where?” and provide additional information on the action of the sentence.

But how do we form adverbs from adjectives in Italian? Let’s learn it with simple rules, examples, conjugations, and exercises.

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Adverbs formed from adjectives: An introduction

Many Italian adverbs are formed from adjectives.

This happens in English as well: many adjectives can be transformed into adverbs by adding the suffix “-ly”, as in “sure” (adjective) → “surely” (adverb), “slow” (adjective) → “slowly” (adverb), etc.

Adverbs formed from adjectives: Conjugation

Forming adverbs from adjectives in Italian is pretty straightforward. There are only three rules concerning their conjugation:

  • For adjectives that end in -a/-o for their singular form:

We simply add the suffix “-mente” to the adjective feminine singular form

Examples:

  1. lento/ f. lenta (slow – adjective) → Lentamente (slowly – adverb)
  2. m. certo/ certa (sure – adjective) → certamente (surely – adverb)
  3. m. raro/ rara (rare – adjective) → raramente (rarely – adverb)
  • For adjectives that end in -e for their singular form:

We simply add the suffix “-mente” to the adjective singular form

Examples:

m./f. felice (happy – adjective) → felicemente (happily – adverb)

m./f. forte (strong – adjective) → fortemente (strongly – adverb)

m./f. veloce (fast – adjective) → velocemente (fast – adverb)

  • For adjectives that end with the syllable -le, -la, –re, or -ra:

We eliminate the last “e” and add the suffix “-mente”:

Examples:

m./f. gentile (kind – adjective) → gentilmente (kindly – adverb)

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m./f. abile (skillful – adjective) → abilmente (skillfully – adverb)

m. leggero/ leggera (light – adjective) → leggermente (lightly – adverb)

Adverbs formed from adjectives: Rules

Where are Italian adverbs positioned inside a sentence?

Let’s take a look at some examples:

Luca parla educatamente.

Luca speaks politely.

Sto mangiando lentamente perché sono quasi pieno.

I’m eating slowly because I’m almost full.

Loro vanno raramente in palestra.

They rarely go to the gym.

  • When they refer to the whole meaning of a sentence, they can go at the beginning or at the end of that sentence:

Veramente, non ti stavo ascoltando.

Frankly, I wasn’t listening to you.

Chiaramente, non hai capito niente!

Clearly, you didn’t understand anything!

Faccio esercizio fisico regolarmente.

I exercise regularly.

Practice with Quizlet

Here's a set of flashcards and quizzes to practice this grammar topic.

How to make comparisons

You can make comparisons with either names or adjectives.

Check out this lesson on how to make comparisons in Italian.

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FAQs on Adverbs formed from adjectives: Italian grammar lesson 74

How do you turn adjectives into adverbs in Italian?

To turn adjectives into adverbs in Italian you simply add the suffix “-mente” to the adjective.

What are adverbs in Italian?

Adverbs in Italian (gli avverbi) are really useful - they help to modify, clarify, qualify, and quantify the meaning of a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.

How do you use adverbs in Italian?

In Italian, adverbs usually come after the main verb. If you're dealing with a compound verb, just place the adverb in between the auxiliary and main verb!

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