Adverb Phrases
What Is It?
An adverb phrase modifies a verb, adjective, or entire clause, showing how, when, where, or degree: Adv (+ PP) → “Release completed ahead of schedule.”
Why Use Adverb Phrases?
- Specificity — answers key context questions quickly.
- Rhythm — varies sentence cadence.
- Emphasis — front‑loads important conditions.
When to Choose Adverb Phrases
Changelogs, case studies, SLO thresholds.
Forming Adverb-Phrase Sentences
| Function | Formula | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Manner | V + AdvP | “Requests processed with zero errors.” |
| Time (front) | AdvP, + clause | “During peak hours, latency rose.” |
| Degree | AdvP + Adj | “Deploy was far faster today.” |
| Place | V + AdvP | “Logs stored on‑prem servers.” |
Tips for Writing with Adverb Phrases
- Position near the word modified.
- Delete redundancy (“completely finished” → “finished”).
- Balance multiple AdvPs—one per clause is plenty.
- Use commas after fronted time phrases.
Exceptions & Nuances
Some adv‑phrases act sentence‑wide (“In short,”). Keep them brief.