副詞
Adverbs

 

定義
副詞是指修飾動詞,形容詞及其他副詞的字:

  • 動詞 (He drove slowly. -- How did he drive?)
  • 形容詞 (He drove a very fast car. -- How fast was his car?)
  • 另一副詞 (She moved quite slowly down the aisle. -- How slowly did she move?)

正如我們所見到的,副詞通常是敘述事情在何時,何地,為何或在何種情況下發生 (將發生或已發生)。副詞大多以 -ly 做字尾;然而,許多未以 -ly 做字尾的字和片語卻具有副詞的功能,而一個以 -ly 做字尾的字並不保證它一定是副詞。例如,lovely, lonely, motherly, friendly, neighborly 等字是形容詞:

  • That lovely woman lives in a friendly neighborhood.

如果一組包含一個主詞和動詞的字當做副詞用,那麼它被稱為副詞主句

  • When this class is over, we're going to the movies.

當一組不含主詞和動詞的字當做副詞用時,它就叫做副詞片語。介系詞片語通常具有副詞的功能 (表示地方和時間):

  • He went to the movies.
  • She works on holidays.

不定詞片語也可做為副詞 (通常表示原因):

  • She hurried to the mainland to see her brother.

但還有其他種類的副詞片語:

  • He calls his mother as often as possible.

副詞可以修飾形容詞,但形容詞不能修飾副詞。因此,我們可以說 "the students showed a really wonderful attitude.","the students showed a wonderfully casual attitude." 和  "my professor is really tall.",但不能說 "He ran real fast."。

跟形容詞一樣,副詞也可以使用比較級和最高級來表示程度與等級。

  • Walk faster if you want to keep up with me.
  • The student who reads fastest will finish first.

我們經常將 moremostlessleast 跟副詞一起使用來表示程度等級:

  • With sneakers on, she could move more quickly among the patients.
  • The flowers were the most beautifully arranged creations I've ever seen.
  • She worked less confidently after her accident.
  • That was the least skillfully done performance I've seen in years.

as -- as 結構可用來產生表示相同或相等的副詞:"He can't run as fast as his sister."。

若干副詞具有兩種型態,一是字尾加 -ly,另一則沒有 -ly。在某些情況中,這兩種型態的意思不同:

  • He arrived late.
  • Lately, he couldn't seem to be on time for anything.

但在大部分的情況中,字尾沒有 -ly 的型態應使用在臨時、偶然的情況:

  • She certainly drives slow in that old Buick of hers.
  • He did wrong by her.
  • He spoke sharp, quick, and to the point.

副詞在編號條列中的用法

在正常的句子走文中,我們幾乎禁止做三個或四個 (最多四個) 以上的項目的編號。對於超過這數目的項目,你最好使用數字 (1, 2, 3 等) 來做垂直條列。此外,在這種條列中,不可使用字尾有 -ly 副詞,而應使用序數 (first, second, third, fourth, fifth 等)。First (不是 firstly), it's unclear what the adverb is modifying. Second (不是 secondly), it's unnecessary. Third (不是 thirdly), after you get beyond "secondly," it really starts to sound silly. 編號條列的副詞被視為分離副詞 (disjuncts) -- 見下面的討論

可以刪除的副詞

請參考「寫出簡明的句子」以建立避免沒有加強語氣效果的副詞及虛字結構的觀念。very, extremelyreally 等一般所謂加強語氣的副詞,其實沒有任何加強語氣的效果,我們可以將之刪除來使句子變得執地有鏗鏘之聲。

副詞的種類

  • 狀態副詞
    She moved slowly and spoke quietly.
  • 地方副詞
    She has lived on the island all her life.
    She still lives there now.
  • 頻率副詞
    She takes the boat to the mainland every day.
    She often goes by herself.
  • 時間副詞
    She tries to get back before dark.
    It's starting to get dark now.
    She finished her tea first.
    She left early.
  • 目的副詞
    She drives her boat slowly to avoid hitting the rocks.
    She shops in several stores to get the best buys.

副詞的位置

副詞的註冊商標之一是它們可以在句子中四處遊走、停駐。狀態副詞在這方面尤具彈性。

  • Solemnly the minister addressed her congregation.
  • The minister solemnly addressed her congregation.
  • The minister addressed her congregation solemnly.

下列頻率副詞出現在句子中的不同位置。

  • 在主要動詞的前面:I never get up before nine o'clock.
  • 在助動詞與主要動詞之間:I have rarely written to my brother without a good reason.
  • 在動詞 used to 的前面:I always used to see him at his summer home.

不定時間副詞可以出現在動詞的前面或助動詞與主要動詞之間。

  • He finally showed up for batting practice.
  • She has recently retired.

副詞的順序

當句子中有一個以上的副詞時,副詞出現的位置有個基本的順序。這個順序類似於形容詞的順序,但它更有彈性。

動詞 狀態 地方 頻率 時間 目的
Beth swims enthusiastically in the pool every morning before dawn to keep in shape.
Dad walks habitually to town every afternoon before supper to get a newspaper.
Tashonda naps   in her room every morning before lunch.  

當然,在實際的應用上,一串副詞修飾語若超過兩個或三個 (最多三個) 以上,是非常不尋常的事。由於副詞的位置很有彈性,我們可以將這些修飾語中的一個或兩個拿到句子的開頭:"Every afternoon before supper, Dad habitually walks to the town to get a newspaper." 在這種句型中,引導的副詞修飾語通常用逗點來分開。

再論副詞的順序

第一個通則是:不管內容為何,較短的副詞片語位在較長的副詞片語的前面。在下面的句子中,時間副詞位在頻率副詞的前面,因為前者比較短 (且比較簡單)。

  • Dad takes a brisk walk before breakfast every day of his life.

第二個通則是:在種類 (狀態、地方、頻率等) 相似的副詞片語中,比較特定的副詞片語居首:

  • My grandmother was born in a sod house on the plains of northern Nebraska.
  • She promised to meet him for lunch next Tuesday.

把副詞修飾語拿到句子的開頭可對該修飾語產生特別強調作用。這對狀態副詞特別有用:

  • Slowly, ever so carefully, Jesse filled the coffee cup up to the brim, even above the brim.
  • Occasionally, but only occasionally, one of these lemons will get by the inspectors.

不當的副詞順序

請參考錯置的修飾語裨進一步瞭解副詞位置的觀念。修飾語有時可能將自己放在不當的位置,而修飾它們不應修飾的字。

  • They reported that Giuseppe Balle, a European rock star, had died on the six o'clock news.

顯然地,將加底線的修飾語移到緊接 "they reported" 之後或移到句子的開頭會比較好,否則這位可憐的傢伙不就是死在電視上了?非常簡單的修飾語如 onlybarely 也可能發生錯置的情況:

  • She only grew to be four feet tall.

這句應改成 "She grew to be only four feet tall."。

附屬副詞,分離副詞和連接副詞 (Adjuncts, Disjuncts, and Conjuncts)

一個副詞不管它的位置為何,它通常密切地跟句子的走文整合在一起。在這種情況下 (幾乎都是這種情況),這個副詞被稱為附屬副詞:"An adverb is often neatly integrated into the flow of a sentence."。當一個副詞並未與子句的走文整合時,我們稱這個副詞為分離副詞或連接副詞,且通常用一個逗點或一對逗點來分開。雖然它通常修飾動詞,但我們可以說它也修飾整個子句:"Although it usually modifies the verb, we could say that it modifies the entire clause, too. "。這個 "too" 就是分離副詞;同一個字也可當做附屬副詞修飾語:"It's too hot to play outside."。下面這兩個副詞是分離副詞:

  • Frankly, Martha, I don't give a hoot.
  • Fortunately, no one was hurt.

另一方面,連接副詞在句子中具有連接功能,表示觀念或語氣的轉變。

  • If they start smoking those awful cigars, then I'm not staying.
  • We've told the landlord about this ceiling again and again, and yet he's done nothing to fix it.

我們還有純粹做為連接詞用的副詞,稱為連接詞副詞 (conjunctive adverb),通常也稱為副詞連接詞 (adverbial conjunction) -- 注意在連接詞副詞之前通常用分號分開:

  • Jose has spent years preparing for this event; nevertheless, he's the most nervous person here.
  • I love this school; however, I don't think I can afford the tuition.

一些特例

enoughnot enough 這兩個副詞通常位在它們所修飾的字的後面:

  • Is that music loud enough?
  • These shoes are not big enough.
  • In a roomful of elderly people, you must remember to speak loudly enough.

注意:當 enough 做形容詞用時,它可以位在名詞的前面:

  • Did she give us enough time?

副詞的 enough 後面通常接不定詞:

  • She didn't run fast enough to win.

too 這個副詞位在形容詞及其他副詞的前面:

  • She ran too fast.
  • She works too quickly.
    如果 too 位在副詞的後面,它可能是個分離副詞 (意思是 "也" ),通常用逗點來分開:
  • Yasmin works hard. She works quickly, too.

too 這個副詞後面通常接不定詞 (意思是 "太...不或無法"):

  • She runs too slowly to enter this race.

too 另一個常見的句型是 too 後面接介系詞片語 -- for + 介系詞的受詞 -- 再接不定詞

  • This milk is too hot for a baby to drink.

Guide to Grammar and Writing