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French · Grammar · A1 to B1

French adverbs: -ment, bien, déjà, and where they go

Three ways to build -ment · pick a pattern
Parlespeakdoucement !gently
PARL doos-MAN · “Speak quietly!”Why: doucement also means “quietly” or “take it easy”.

Short answer: an adverb tells you how, when, where or how much. French makes most adverbs by adding -ment (the English “-ly”) to the feminine form of an adjective: lent → lente → lentement (slowly). If the masculine ends in a vowel, add it to that: vrai → vraiment. Adjectives in -ant and -ent become -amment and -emment, both said “-a-MAN”: évidemment. Short common adverbs are single words: bien, mal, déjà, toujours. In the passé composé, short adverbs go between the auxiliary and the participle: J’ai bien mangé.

-ly-mentj’ai bienPositionbienbon or biendéjàEveryday adverbsne … plusNegative adverbsplus viteComparing adverbs
Where the adverb goes

J’ai bien mangé

Je mange bien J’ ai bien mangé present: after the verbpassé composé: betweenthe two parts of the verb
Never between subject and verb, unlike English “I often eat”: French says je mange souvent. Long -ment adverbs usually go after the participle: Il a parlé lentement.
After the verb
Ilheparlespeakssouventoftende toi.of you
eel PARL soo-VAN duh TWA · “He often talks about you.”Why: English puts “often” before the verb; French after.
Between avoir and the participle
Tuyouashavedéjàalreadyfini ?finished
tü a day-ZHA fee-NEE · “Have you finished already?”Why: Short adverbs: bien, mal, déjà, souvent, toujours, encore.
Long adverb at the end
Elleshea réponduhas answeredcalmement.calmly
el a ray-pon-DÜ kal-muh-MAN · “She answered calmly.”Why: -ment adverbs usually follow the participle.
Time and place: start or end
Demain,tomorrowonwepart.leave
duh-MAN, on PAR · “We’re leaving tomorrow.”Why: demain, hier, ici, là-bas sit at the start or end, never in the middle.
Adjective versus adverb

Bon or bien, mauvais or mal

Adjective (describes a noun)Adverb (describes a verb)
un bon repasa good mealIl cuisine bien.He cooks well.
un mauvais filma bad filmElle dort mal.She sleeps badly.
une voiture rapidea fast carIl conduit vite.He drives fast.
C’est meilleur.It’s better (tastier).Ça va mieux.I’m feeling better.
Everyday adverbs

Déjà, toujours, souvent, ici

Tempsquand ? · when?
Fréquencehow often?
Quantitécombien ? · how much?
Lieuoù ? · where?
Negative adverbs

Ne … plus, ne … jamais, ne … guère

These adverbs wrap the verb with ne, like ne … pas. In the passé composé they sit before the participle.

ne … plus
JeIne fumenot smokeplus.no-more
zhuh nuh FÜM PLÜ · “I don’t smoke any more.”Why: plus = any more, no longer.
ne … jamais
Ilhen’estnot-isjamaisnevervenu.come
eel nay zha-MAY vuh-NÜ · “He never came.”Why: jamais before the participle.
ne … pas encore
Elleshen’anot-haspas encorenot yetfini.finished
el na pa zan-KOR fee-NEE · “She hasn’t finished yet.”Why: pas encore = not yet.
ne … guère
Onwenenotsortgo-outguère.hardly
on nuh SOR GAIR · “We hardly ever go out.”Why: Formal and written.
Comparing adverbs

Plus vite, mieux, le plus souvent

Keep going

Related guides

lenteAdjectives →The feminine form behind -ment.j’ai déjàPassé composé →Where déjà and bien go.jamaisNegation →ne … jamais, ne … plus.-mentWord formation →-ment and other suffixes.