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An adverb of frequency is a type of adverb that modifies the verb in a sentence and tells us how often an action happens.
Adverbs of frequency are often used to talk about routines or activities you do a lot (or not very often).
For example: I always brush my teeth in the morning.
‘Always’ describes how often I brush my teeth. In this instance, it means every morning, without fail. The adverb of frequency is placed before the main verb in a sentence.
List of adverbs of frequency
Here is the most common adverbs of frequency and an indication of how frequent they are with some examples.
- 100% – always
example – I always study for an exam. - 90% – usually
example – I usually walk to work. - 80% – normally/generally
example She normally gets good marks. - 70% – often/frequently
example – They are often partying until 3 am. - 50% – sometimes
example – I sometimes sing in the shower. - 30% – occasionally
example – We occasionally go to bed late. - 10% – seldom
example – I seldom put salt on my food. - 5% – hardly ever/rarely
example – He is hardly ever angry. - 0% – never
example – Vegetarians never eat meat.
Adverbs of frequency examples
Let’s see some examples in use.
always
This adverb describes actions that happen 100% of the time.
examples
- Tom always eats porridge for breakfast.
- We always play football at lunchtime.
- I always call my mum on her birthday.
usually
This adverb describes actions that happen 90% of the time.
examples
- I usually make the dinner.
- I usually do my homework.
- Kimmy usually passes her exams.
normally/generally
This adverb describes actions that happen 80% of the time.
examples
- They normally have a takeaway on Saturday night.
- May generally drives to work.
- I normally wash my hair every day.
often/frequently
This adverb describes actions that happen 70% of the time.
examples
- I often do the dishes.
- We frequently visit my aunt.
- Graham often plays rugby.
sometimes
This adverb describes actions that happen 50% of the time.
examples
- Kyle sometimes goes to chess club.
- We sometimes get our groceries delivered.
- I sometimes take the dog to the beach.
occasionally
This adverb describes actions that happen 30% of the time.
examples
- We occasionally have a date night.
- Mum lets me have dessert occasionally.
- I go to church occasionally.
seldom
This adverb describes actions that happen 10% of the time.
examples
- I seldom go on Instagram.
- Chris seldom hoovers his car.
- We seldom get the kids a KFC.
hardly ever/rarely
This adverb describes actions that happen 5% of the time.
examples
- I hardly ever have a bath; I prefer a shower.
- Liam rarely gets less than 100% on his spelling tests.
- My husband hardly ever loads the dishwasher.
never
This adverb describes actions that happen 0% of the time.
examples
- My wife never cooks for me.
- The kids never take the dog for a walk.
- I never take lunch to work.
sentence structure
There are a few different places you can put the adverb in a sentence. Let’s take a look.
subject + adverb + main verb
For example:
- I sometimes teach Maths at school.
- We occasionally go to the cinema after school.
- Shona hardly ever buys expensive shoes.
- They usually order a Hawaiian pizza.
subject + auxiliary + adverb + main verb
For example:
- I have never eaten bugs before.
- My parents have always supported me.
- We have often seen him in the park.
- He has hardly ever seen his son.
subject + be + adverb
For example:
- He is always happy.
- I am sometimes afraid of the dark.
- You are always late.
- We are normally in bed by 10.
auxiliary + subject + adverb
For example:
- Does he always sleep rough?
- Are they often this grumpy mum?
- Does he always cry at men?
- Are they sometimes late for work?
- Does she usually have blue hair?
- Are you often at the home games?
always/never + main verb
For example:
- Mum said never go down the mine.
- Always hold the reins tightly.
- Never drink wine on an empty stomach.
- Always stick to the paths.
normally/occasionally/often/sometimes/usually + subject + main verb
For example:
- Normally I go to tennis lessons.
- Occasionally I eat meat.
- Often, they come around for dinner.
- Sometimes we eat bamboo.
- Usually, the dog eats tinned food.
frequently/often/normally/sometimes at the end of a sentence
For example:
- White lightning wins frequently.
- We go for a walk along the beach often.
- She dyes her hair often.
- The joyrider gets away sometimes.
If you’ve enjoyed learning about adverbs of frequency, how about learning some the other adverbs we have in English?
