Placement
The placement of French adverbs is almost the same as the placement of English adverbs.
An adverb that modifies an adjective or adverb comes before that adjective or adverb:
- complètement vrai ("completely true")
- pas possible ("not possible")
- trop bien cuit ("too well cooked" or "overdone")
An adverb that modifies an infinitive (verbal noun) generally comes after the infinitive:
- marcher lentement ("to walk slowly")
But negative adverbs, such as pas ("not"), plus ("not any more"), and jamais come before the infinitive:
- ne pas marcher ("not to walk")
An adverb that modifies a main verb or clause comes either after the verb, or before the clause:
- Lentement il commença à marcher or Il commença lentement à marcher ("Slowly, he began to walk" or "He began slowly to walk").
Note that, unlike in English, this is true even of negative adverbs:
- Jamais je n'ai fait cela or Je n'ai jamais fait cela ("Never have I done that" or "I have never done that")
Read more about this topic: French Adverbs