How to Use the Positive Form of an Adverb in a Sentence

In English use, adverbs take on one of three forms: positive, comparative, or superlative. In the comparative and superlative forms, the adverb expresses a quality in comparison to something else. However, the positive form of an adverb expresses a quality without comparison. For example, to express the quality of goodness, the comparative adverb "better" can be used, which expresses goodness in relation to something else. If instead the positive adverb "well" is used, the quality of goodness will be expressed solely in the context of the word being modified by the adverb.

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Instructions

    • 1

      Form the part of the sentence leading up to the positive adverb in the same way that you would when using a comparative or superlative adverb. The positive form of an adverb does not require any special modification to the adjective, verb, or adverb that it modifies.

    • 2

      Ensure that the positive form of the adverb is properly suited for the information you wish to convey. For example, in the sentence, "He is doing badly," the positive adverb "badly" expresses a negative situation for the subject succinctly. In comparison, the comparative adverb "worse" expresses the situation as continuing on from an earlier state, or in comparison to a related situation, as in the sentence, "He is doing worse than the others." Finally, the superlative adverb "worst" expresses the situation as the most extreme case amongst all related cases, as in the sentence, "He is doing the worst."

    • 3

      End the sentence with a period after the positive adverb, if you wish. Unlike the comparative form, which often require you to relate the adverb to a separate subject by using a "than" statement, positive adverbs can stand on their own to express a quality. If you wish to convey additional information with the sentence, place a comma after the positive adverb and continue the sentence with a subordinate clause. For example, in the sentence, "We have very little, but we have enough," there are two clauses. The main clause, "We have very little," makes a grammatically correct sentence on its own. However, any number of subordinate clauses can be placed after the positive adverb to convey additional information.

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