position of adverbial of manner?

Question

1. The film attracted a huge amount of viewers (quickly)
Where can I put the adverb "quickly"? before the verb and after the verb are both ok?
2. The reporter asked a number of very searching questions (politely)
Where can I put the adverb "politely"? before the verb and after the verb are both ok?
3. when we can put the adverb after the object?

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

coif200287The film quickly attracted a huge amount of viewers.
The reporter politely asked a number of very searching questions.

As shown.

coif200287When ~~we can~~ can we put the adverb after the object?

An adverb of manner usually goes at the end of the sentence if it's not too far from the verb.

The film attracted viewers quickly.
The reporter asked the question politely.

But also

The film quickly attracted viewers.
The reporter politely asked the question.

Adverb placement can be flexible, but adverbs never (almost never) occur between a verb and its object.

The film attracted quickly viewers. No, no, no!
The reporter asked politely the question. No, no, no!

CJ

Coif200287 · Answer

The film attracted quickly viewers. No, no, no!
The reporter asked politely the question. No, no, no!

---> but can we use "The reporter asked politely a number of very searching questions"???

Coif200287 · Answer

CalifJim An adverb of manner usually goes at the end of the sentence if it's not too far from the verb

how many words after the verb so that we consider that the adverb is not far from the verb?

ex: He gave her the money reluctantly --> correct?

Philip · Answer

I would say:  He reluctantly gave her the money.

CalifJim · Answer

coif200287but can we use "The reporter asked politely a number of very searching questions"???

The reporter asked politely a number of very searching questions.

....................VERB .............O B J E C T - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

No, no, no! What's that adverb doing there between the verb and its object?

CJ

CalifJim · Answer

coif200287how many words after the verb so that we consider that the adverb is not far from the verb?

There is no exact number. Adverb placement can be flexible as long as you don't put it between the verb and the object.

coif200287He gave her the money reluctantly.

Correct. Also correct,

He reluctantly gave her the money.
________

But never: He gave reluctantly her the money.
And never: He gave her reluctantly the money.

CJ

Coif200287 · Answer

CalifJim coif200287but can we use "The reporter asked politely a number of very searching questions"???The reporter asked politely a number of very searching questions. ....................VERB .............O B J E C T - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -No, no, no! What's that adverb doing there between the verb and its object? CJ

if we don't us the adverb between V and O, and don't use after O because it's far from the V, then we must use it before the V. So with other adverb, ex, fast, we must use like this:
The reporter fast asked a number of very searching questions

CalifJim · Answer

coif200287The reporter fast asked a number of very searching questions.

You're correct that this would be very surprising. Much of adverb placement is more art than science. It becomes a matter of style, that is, some kind of harmony and balance between the various parts of the sentence, usually from the viewpoint of how the sentence sounds when read aloud. Here the native speaker's ear feels that a one-syllable adverb without -ly is awkward. Therefore, the wording would be changed.

The reporter rapidly asked a number of very searching questions.
The reporter asked a number of very searching questions in rapid succession.

This is why it's impossible to give a general rule about the placement of adverbs of manner (except that writers do everything possible to avoid putting any words between a verb and its object).

Before you ask, yes, it's possible in some cases that fast sounds all right before a verb. fast became is a good example of a combination that is used.

The reporter fast became popular when he asked some searching questions.

Sometimes all we can do is advise a student to read as much as possible and imitate the style of good writers.

CJ

Coif200287 · Answer

CalifJimSometimes all we can do is advise a student to read as much as possible and imitate the style of good writers.

"But an adverb can go before a long object.
Detectives examined carefully the contents of the dead man's pockets.
....
An adverb of manner tells us how something happens, e.g. noisily, quickly. It usually goes in end position,
but an adverb which ends in ly can sometimes go in mid position. We asked permission politely. We
politely asked permission." - Oxford Practice Grammar with answers, John Eastwood

---> Just because of reading this makes me confuse. Thank you very much

CalifJim · Answer

coif200287But an adverb can go before a long object. Detectives examined carefully the contents of the dead man's pockets.

I can see how this could confuse you after I said not to put any words between the verb and its object. However, you should note two things. 1) I said "almost always". This means that you may see the rule broken on a very rare occasion. 2) Textbooks like to include examples of even the most unusual kinds, just to be sure they are being complete. Just because you see an unusual example in a book, it doesn't mean that writers use that sort of construction regularly. Better ways of writing this are:

Detectives carefully examined the contents of the dead man's pockets.
Detectives examined the contents of the dead man's pockets carefully.

coif200287An adverb of manner tells us how something happens, e.g. noisily, quickly. It usually goes in end position, but an adverb which ends in ly can sometimes go in mid position. We asked permission politely. We politely asked permission."

There is nothing in this part that I haven't also said. I see no contradictions here.

If you are still confused, you can ask more questions.

CJ

position of adverbial of manner?

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