Modern Hebrew Grammar - Adverbs

Adverbs

The Hebrew term for adverb is תואר הפועל /ˈtoʔar ha-ˈpoʕal/.

Hebrew forms adverbs in several different ways.

Some adjectives have corresponding one-word adverbs. In many cases, the adverb is simply the adjective's masculine singular form:

• חזק /ħaˈzaq/ (strong or strongly)
• ברור /baˈrur/ (clear or clearly)

In other cases, the adverb has a distinct form:

• מהר /maˈher/ (quickly; from the adjective מהיר /maˈhir/, quick)
• לאט /leʔat/ (slowly; from the adjective איטי /iˈti/, slow)
• היטב well; from the adjective טוב /tov/, good

In some cases, an adverb is derived from an adjective using its singular feminine form or (mostly in poetic or archaic usage) its plural feminine form:

• אוטומטית /otoˈmatit/ (automatically)
• מעדנות /maʕadaˈnot/ (finely)

Most adjectives, however, do not have corresponding one-word adverbs; rather, they have corresponding adverb phrases, formed using one of the following approaches:

• using the prepositional prefix ב /be-/ (in) with the adjective's corresponding abstract noun:
  • בִּזְהִירוּת /bizhiˈrut/ ("in carefulness": carefully)
  • בַּעֲדִינוּת /baʕadiˈnut/ ("in fineness": finely)
• using the same prefix, but with the noun אופן /ˈofen/ (means/fashion), and modifying the noun with the adjective's masculine singular form:
  • באופן אטי /beˈofen iˈti/ ("in slow fashion": slowwise).
• similarly, but with the noun צורה /t͡suˈra/ (like/shape), and using the adjective's feminine singular form:
  • בצורה אופיינית /bet͡suˈra ofˈjanit/ ("in characteristic form": characteristiclike).

The use of one of these methods does not necessarily preclude the use of the others; for example, slowly may be either לאט /leʔat/ (a one-word adverb), or באטיות /beʔitijut/ (literally in slowness, a somewhat more elegant way of expressing the same thing) or באופן אטי /beʔofen ʔiˈti/ (slowwise), as mentioned above.

Finally, as in English, there are various adverbs that do not have corresponding adjectives at all:

• לכן /laˈχen/ (therefore)
• ככה /ˈkaχa/ (thus)