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Newguest Posted 16 years ago
Grammar

Silent/silently

Hi

1. He walked silently.

2. He sat silent.

--- I know that in the first example "silently" refers to the verb and in the second to the noun that's why it is "silent" instead of "silently". However I'm not sure why in the 2nd example it refers to the noun and not to the word "sat"???
  

Top answer

Hi Newguest! You might find this link interesting. html Tom

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4 Answers
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Hi Newguest!

You might find this link interesting.

http://www.english-test.net/forum/ftopic10065.html

Tom
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Hi

So in my example it would mean that he "sat as if he were silent"?

Thanks
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"He sat silent."

In this sentence, the writer apparently did not use "silently" because s/he felt that it would

emphasize "how" he sat. The writer apparently wanted to simply point out that he was silent.

Thus, the writer decided to use "sat" as a linking verb (something like "was"). Thus, the

sentence is basically: He was silent. If the writer had used "s
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He walked silently: "silently" is the adverb modifying the verb "walk"--telling how he walked.
He sat silent: "silent" is the adjective describing the noun "He"--the focus is on the noun, not the verb.

I hope that helps.
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