Adjectives and Adverbs
English language users love to add layers of descriptions. Think about the last time you ate something truly delicious. How many words could you use to describe it that don't use the name of the food at all? You can start simply, with sweet, salty, hot, or cold. But that's not enough, is it? How about delectable, tender, wholesome, flavorful, or pungent? What about describing how you ate it? We could use heartily, greedily, or carefully. We could also mention how it was prepared: freshly, skillfully, or healthily. We could go on and on. Using adjectives and adverbs adds information and interest to a text. Using these words correctly is important for a message to be easy for a reader to understand and visualize. Read these sections on using descriptive words correctly.
Adverbs
Adverbs are words that modify or describe a verb, adjective, or another adverb. Just as an adjective changes a noun, an adverb changes a verb, adjective, or adverb. Adverbs are easily identified because they often end in ly, but this is certainly not always the case.
Descriptions make our writing rich and specific, so we shouldn't be afraid of using adjectives and adverbs in our sentences.
Look at these three sentences:
Jon walked to the large store to get canned goods for his zombie stash.
Jon walked urgently to the massively large store to get canned goods for his zombie stash.
As you can see, the last sentence is the most descriptive and informative. The use of adverbs and adjectives helps our writing come alive. The following page on adverbs will provide helpful tips on how to correctly use adverbs and give you examples of how adverbs can add descriptive detail to your writing.