French Grammar: French Adverbs Formation

In French, as in English, most adverbs are derived from adjectives. In most cases, this is done by adding the suffix -ment ("-ly") to the adjective's feminine singular form. For example, the feminine singular form of lent ("slow") is lente, so the corresponding adverb is lentement ("slowly"); similarly, heureux » heureusement ("happy" » "happily").

As in English, however, the adjective stem is sometimes modified to accommodate the suffix:

• If the adjective ends in an i, then -ment is added to the masculine singular (default) form, rather than to the feminine singular form:

vrai » vraiment
("real" » "really")

poli » poliment
("polite" » "politely")

• If the adjective ends in -ant or -ent, then the corresponding adverb ends in -amment or -emment, respectively:

constant » constamment
("constant" » "constantly")

récent » récemment
("recent" » "recently")

• Some adjectives make other changes:

précis » précisément
("precise" » "precisely")

gentil » gentiment
("nice" » "nicely")

Some adverbs are derived from adjectives in completely irregular fashions, not even using the suffix -ment:

bon » bien
("good" » "well")

mauvais » mal
("bad" » "badly")

meilleur » mieux
("better"-adjective » "better"-adverb)

traditionally, pire » pis
("worse"-adjective » "worse"-adverb)

nowadays commonly, pire » pire
("worse"-adjective » "worse"-adverb)

And, as in English, many common adverbs are not derived from adjectives at all:

ainsi ("thus" or "thusly")
vite ("quickly")

Examples in French:

When the adverb is modifying a verb, it is placed after the verb.

Nous avons bien mangé.
We ate well.

Je regarde souvent la télé le soir.
I watch TV often in the evening.
I often watch TV in the evening.
Often, I watch TV in the evening.

When the adverb is modifying an adjective or another adverb, is is placed in front of the word it is modifying.

Nous avons très bien mangé.
We ate very well.

Je suis profondément ému.
I am deeply moved.