# Adverbs are real nice **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 31, 2003, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849 "2003-01-31T13:30:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/1 "2003-01-31T13:30:36Z")
Couple of questions on translatlantic uses of adverbs. 1. When did US English stop using the adverb form of “really”? Are there any other adverbs that are replaced with their adjectival form in US English? 2. When did British English stop using the adverb form of “likely”? In US English I’ve heard “It will likely be raining tomorrow”, which makes grammatical sense, whereas British English uses the more clumsy “It is likely to be raining tomorrow” (though the US usage is creeping in in the UK). ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/2 "2003-01-31T13:34:48Z")
I would not say it is accepted here as proper English to say “You wrote that real nice”, although I’ve certainly heard people say it. It sets off yokel alarms though. “You writ that there post real nice!” ---
**Author:** ![DrNick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@DrNick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrNick)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/3 "2003-01-31T13:43:37Z")
‘It will likely be raining tomorrow’ is prevalent among a lot of uk dialects - ‘It is likely’ is just the RP grammatical form. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/4 "2003-01-31T13:46:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DrNick \* > \*\*‘It will likely be raining tomorrow’ is prevalent among a lot of uk dialects - ‘It is likely’ is just the RP grammatical form. \*\* Which ones? I’ve never heard it. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/5 "2003-01-31T14:01:37Z")
Although in American colloquial English, adverbs are sometimes replaced with their corresponding adjectives (real for really, or nice for nicely), it is not standard by any means. ---
**Author:** ![micilin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8c91f0/32.png) [@micilin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/micilin)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/6 "2003-01-31T14:35:25Z")
I was once in a bar in NY playing pool with an english teacher who was a bit annoying. In an effort to try to make the git develop some empathy I praised his pool playing. I said ‘You did good’ (an American phrasing which is not part of my lingo at all, but I was a bit pissed). He corrected me: “I think you mean ‘You did _well_’” he said. I wanted to punch him. Sanctimonious dick. Oh, yeah: [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/7 "2003-01-31T14:41:01Z")
People have gotten so lazy about proper English. Adverbs are being sliced and diced right and left. “Drive safe!” Well, as Ed Newmann would say “I can’t drive safe, but I can drive safely!” - Jinx ---
**Author:** ![FranticMad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c68b51/32.png) [@FranticMad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FranticMad)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/8 "2003-01-31T14:57:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Achernar \* > \*\*Although in American colloquial English, adverbs are sometimes replaced with their corresponding adjectives (real for really, or nice for nicely), it is not standard by any means. \*\* Not standard? I don’t know about that, I hear it all the time. So much so, that I am reluctant to use “really” and “well”. I imagine that it must sound weird to people who say they feel real good. ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/9 "2003-01-31T15:03:16Z")
Why would you care about what people who say “real good” think? They’re morons. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/10 "2003-01-31T15:15:05Z")
**FranticMad** : I said that that sort of construction is common in colloquial American English. But standard American English is what gets published in newspapers and books, and said on radio and television by people who are professionals at speaking. Because they reflect things like this, good dictionaries of American English will also reflect the standard language. The AHD lists _real_ as an adverb only informally. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/11 "2003-01-31T15:32:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jjimm \* > **…whereas British English uses the more clumsy "It is likely to be raining tomorrow"** Does it? “It is likely to rain tomorrow” would be more common usage , I think. Isn’t “likely to be raining” in the passive voice? (IANAEnglish teacher). ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/12 "2003-01-31T15:37:54Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mangetout \* > \*\*Does it? “It is likely to rain tomorrow” would be more common usage , I think. > > Isn’t “likely to be raining” in the passive voice? (IANAEnglish teacher). \*\* I was contrasting it exactly with the US English phrase I used. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/13 "2003-01-31T15:42:18Z")
I understand (and I apologise for the sidetrack); my point is that usage has diverged beyond the simple substitution of single word forms. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/14 "2003-01-31T15:50:07Z")
People should actually _go to a dictionary_ before pontificating on how words should be used. The OED quotes “real good” as beginning in 1718 (and from a UK source). The use of “real” as an adverb is not listed as colloquial when used to modify an adjective. All the OED says is that it’s “not standard in southern England,” which means that to object to the usage “real good” is to indulge in a regional dialect, which means _you’re_ the one who isn’t speaking “correctly.” “Real” to modify an adverb (e.g., “real soon”) is listed as “colloquial,” however. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/15 "2003-01-31T17:00:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jinx \* > **People have gotten so lazy about proper English.** Latin speakers in Gaul, Hibernia, and Dacia started getting lazy about their proper Latin 20 centuries ago. To simplify considerably, they started speaking French, Spanish, and Rumanian, respectively. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/16 "2003-01-31T17:01:51Z")
Um … please substitute the word **Iberia** for “Hibernia” above. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/17 "2003-01-31T17:08:23Z")
Unless you mean Sean Connery in “Highlander”, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Belrix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed655f/32.png) [@Belrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belrix)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/18 "2003-01-31T17:33:51Z")
Everytime I saw the “Think Different” ads from Apple, I nearly burst a vein. A coworker had a poster with Einstein & the slogan. I used a Post-it note to add the missing “-ly” to the slogan. Personally, I lament the loss of American adverbs. …although, being a computer geek, I have a nasty habit of nounifying verbs & verbifying nouns. _Excuse me, I have to interface with my boss, now._ ---
**Author:** ![efalken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@efalken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/efalken)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/19 "2003-01-31T18:37:53Z")
Strunk and White, a classic reference on English, advises to minimize the use of adverbs, as opposed to verbs and nouns. In their opinion this is not lazy, but produces clearer, more vibrant language. Note that over the centuries unnecessary letters and phrases have been dropped from words, sentences, introductions and signatures. I figure the internet will only hasten this. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2003, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849/20 "2003-01-31T21:11:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Belrix \* > \*_Everytime I saw the “Think Different” ads from Apple, I nearly burst a vein. A coworker had a poster with Einstein & the slogan. I used a Post-it note to add the missing “-ly” to the slogan._ \*\* Thinkly Different? Eh? D&R [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adverbs-are-real-nice/151849.md?page=2)