The Explanation
Adverbs of degree are defined as the adverbs that tell us about the strength or intensity of something that happens (of an adjective, an action, or another adverb). The Adverbs of degree are usually placed in a sentence before the adjective, adverb, or verb that they modify, with some exceptions.
The examples of Adverbs of Degree are the words such as ‘very’, ‘too’, ‘extremely’, ‘enough’, ‘extremely’, ‘absolutely’, ‘barely’, ‘somewhat’, ‘hardly’, ‘scarcely’ etc
E.g.:
The coffee was extremely cold
In the sentence above, the adverb of degree is ‘extremely’ and it is modifying an adjective
He has almost finished the task
In the sentence above, the adverb of degree is ‘almost’ and it is modifying the verb
Ana is walking fast enough
In the sentence above, the adverb of degree is ‘enough’ and it is modifying the adverb
Rules for using Adverbs of Degree
Usage of adverb of degree "Enough"
Enough can be used both as an adverb and as a determiner.
e.g.:
Paul didn't work hard enough for exams (used as an adverb)
Is your tea hot enough to drink? (used as a determiner)
Usage of adverb of degree "Too". Although "Too" is always an adverb, but it has two distinct meanings, each with its own usage patterns.
-Too meaning "Also"
e.g.: Can I go to the museum too?
-Too meaning ‘Excessively’
e.g.: I am too tired to walk
Usage of adverb of degree "Very"
‘Very’ goes before an adverb or adjective to make it stronger.
e.g.:
The house was very beautiful
This is very expensive to afford
1. Adverbs of degree are used to modify verbs and they can make the verb either stronger or weaker.
e.g.:
I totally agree with you
He can barely play the violin
2. Adverb of Degree can come either in front of a main verb, after a main verb, or after the object if it is present in the sentence.
e.g.:
Mrs. Edward strongly opposed the movement
The teacher disagrees completely with the student
The argument doesn't convince me totally.
3. Adverbs of degree are mostly used in front of the verb
e.g.:
She almost reached the summit
4. In some cases, adverbs of degree are used in front of adjectives or other adverbs to change or modify them.
e.g.:
Seattle is rather a nice city
5. Adverbs of degree are also used to modify clauses and prepositional phrases in some cases.
e.g.:
Are you acknowledging this simply because he is here?
We don't think it's worth going just for an hour
6. Adverbs of degree such as ‘so’ and ‘such’ are used to emphasize a quality that someone or something has.
e.g.:
Melissa is so interesting to talk to.
The world is changing so rapidly.
7. Adverbs of degree ‘too’ is used when we mean ‘more than is necessary’ or ‘more than is good’. We can also use ‘too’ before adjectives and adverbs, and before ‘many’, ‘much’, ‘few’, or ‘little’.
e.g.:
They've been paying too much rent for the property.
The stakes on the match are too high.
8. The emphasizing adverbs of degree are used to modify adjectives such as ‘astonishing’, and ‘wonderful’, which express extreme qualities.
e.g.:
The idea is simply wonderful.
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