Adverb can modify an adjective, another adverb, verb

Question

HiAn adverb can modify an adjective, another adverb, verb, and what else? Would you please let me know. Thanks a lot.

Avangi · Accepted Answer

Just a small contribution -
phrases, clauses, sentences.

Get out of the building now!
Lately she has been very depressed.
Carefully place the eggs in the container.

To be honest, I'm never quite sure where to draw the line here. When I was a lad we would have said it modified the verbs.

BillJ · Answer

Jackson6612An adverb can modify an adjective, another adverb, verb, and what else? Would you please let me know

Adverbs can also modify determinatives, preposition phrases and noun phrases. Here are some examples using the adverb 'virtually'. The constituents it modifies are underlined:

Virtually all copies are torn. I have almost no money left. (determinative)

I did it virtually by myself. It lasted almost until midnight. (preposition phrase)

I'm virtually his only friend. I bought almost the last copy. (noun phrase)

Sometimes, though rarely, certain adverbs also can modify a single noun:

A shortage of timber internationally led to a steep rise in prices.

This construction is subject to severe constraints, the most important being that adverbial modifiers of nouns are restricted to post-head position, i.e. they follow the noun.

BillJ

Avangi · Answer

BillJ A shortage of timber internationally led to a steep rise in prices.

Hi, Bill.

If I say "A shortage of timber locally prompted them to build with brick and stone," the noun being modified adverbially is "shortage," right?
Or are you saying the adverb modifies the phrase, "shortage of timber"?

We could say, "Speaking of timber, there is a shortage internationally."
I don't see any way to eliminate "shortage" from the main clause and leave "timber."
I guess we could replace it with a pronoun:
"Speaking of shortages, there's one of timber internationally." (I think "internationally" modifies "one.")

Regards, - A.

BillJ · Answer

Avangi
BillJ A shortage of timber internationally led to a steep rise in prices.
Hi, Bill.

If I say "A shortage of timber locally prompted them to build with brick and stone," the noun being modified adverbially is "shortage," right?

My apologies, I made a typo. I should have underlined the head noun 'shortage' (not 'timber')

BillJ

Adverb can modify an adjective, another adverb, verb

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