Adverbs of degree

ADVERBS OF DEGREE

Adverbs of degree usually modify verbs.
Some adverbs of degree can modify adjectives, other adverbs, or clauses.

1. We use adverbs of degree to modify verbs. They makethe verb stronger or weaker.
I totally disagree.
I can nearly swim.

2. Some adverbs can come in front of a main verb, after a main verb, or after the object if there is one.
badly
completelygreatly
seriously strongly
totally

Mr Brooke strongly criticized the Bank of England.
I disagree completely with John Taylor.
That argument doesn't convince me totally.
Some adverbs are mostlyused in front of the verb.

almost largely nearly really quite

He almost crashed into a lorry.
Note that ‘really’ is used at the beginning of a clause to express surprise, and at the end of aclause as an adverb of manner.

Really, I didn't know that!
He wanted it really, but he was too shy to ask.
‘A lot’ and ‘very much’ come after the main verb if there is no object, or after the object.She helped a lot.
We liked him very much.
‘Very much’ can come after the subject and in front of verbs like ‘want’, ‘prefer’, and ‘enjoy’.
I very much wanted to take it with me.

3. Some adverbsof degree go in front of adjectives or other adverbs and modify them.

awfully
extremely fairly
pretty quite
rather really
very

...a fairly large office, with filing space.
Note that we canuse ‘rather’ before or after ‘a’ or ‘an’ followed by an adjective and a noun.
Seaford is rather a pleasant town.
He told me a rather long and complicated story.

When ‘quite’ means ‘fairly’, youput it in front of ‘a’ or ‘an’ followed by an adjective and a noun.
My father gave me quite a large sum of money.
However, when ‘quite’ means ‘extremely’, you can put it after ‘a’. You can say ‘aquite enormous sum’.

4. We use some adverbs of degree to modify clauses and prepositional phrases.

entirely just largely mainly partly simply

Are you saying that simply because I am here?
I...