Adverbials of manner

Adverbs of manner are usually formed from adjectives by adding –ly:

bad > badly

quiet > quietly

sudden > suddenly

but sometimes there are changes in spelling:

easy > easily

gentle > gently

careful > carefully

The adverb formed from good is well:

You speak English very well.

Adverbs of manner normally come after the verb:

He spoke angrily.

or after the object:

He opened the door quietly.

If an adjective already ends in -ly, we use the phrase in a …. way to express manner:

silly: He behaved in a silly way.
friendly: She spoke in a friendly way.

A few adverbs of manner have the same form as the adjective:

They all worked hard.
She usually arrives late/early.
I hate driving fast.

Be careful!

hardly and lately have different meanings from hard and late:  He could hardly walk. = It was difficult for him to walk.  I haven't seen John lately. = I haven't seen John recently.

We often use phrases with like as adverbials of manner:

She slept like a baby.
He ran like a rabbit.

Adverbials of manner and link verbs

We very often use adverbials with like after link verbs:

Her hands felt like ice.
It smells like fresh bread.

Be careful!

We do not use adverbs of manner after link verbs. We use adjectives instead: They looked happy. (NOT happily) That bread smells delicious. (NOT deliciously)