entry
adverb
/ˈæd.vɝːb/Word modifying verbs, adjectives, or other expressions
From Latin ad (to) + Latin verbum (word) + Greek epi (upon).
from Late Latin adverbium "adverb," literally "that which is added to a verb" (to extend or limit its meaning)
from Late Latin adverbium "adverb," literally "that which is added to a verb" (to extend or limit its meaning)
from Late Latin adverbium "adverb," literally "that which is added to a verb" (to extend or limit its meaning)
Word Ancestry
from Late Latin adverbium "adverb," literally "that which is added to a verb" (to extend or limit its meaning)
from Late Latin adverbium "adverb," literally "that which is added to a verb" (to extend or limit its meaning)
from Late Latin adverbium "adverb," literally "that which is added to a verb" (to extend or limit its meaning)
Grammar gives us a small linguistic oddity: the English word adverb is Latin in clothing, but its birth certificate points to a Greek model. In the late fourteenth century, Latin adverbium meant literally “that which is added to a verb,” built from ad, “to,” and verbum, “word” or “verb.” The Romans were translating the Greek term epirrhēma, from epi, “upon,” and rhēma, “utterance” or “verb”—two languages independently pointing at the same grammatical creature. And verbum has an unexpectedly busy family: verbatim means “word for word,” while a proverb is, etymologically, a word put forward. Today an adverb can quietly alter an entire scene—she ran quickly, he was remarkably calm, they almost won—so remember it as the word that leans onto another word and nudges its meaning.
The Story
Grammar gives us a small linguistic oddity: the English word adverb is Latin in clothing, but its birth certificate points to a Greek model. In the late fourteenth century, Latin adverbium meant literally “that which is added to a verb,” built from ad, “to,” and verbum, “word” or “verb.” The Romans were translating the Greek term epirrhēma, from epi, “upon,” and rhēma, “utterance” or “verb”—two languages independently pointing at the same grammatical creature. And verbum has an unexpectedly busy family: verbatim means “word for word,” while a proverb is, etymologically, a word put forward. Today an adverb can quietly alter an entire scene—she ran quickly, he was remarkably calm, they almost won—so remember it as the word that leans onto another word and nudges its meaning.
Kin & Kindred
From 'ad'·to, toward, in addition to
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From 'verbum'·word; spoken expression; verb
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From 'epi'·upon, on
Derived Terms
English words from this root
From 'rhema'·word, utterance, especially a verb
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Free Dictionary
Urban Dictionary
Wikipedia