Words to Describe and Compare Actions

Adverbs

Adverbs in Spanish modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs by providing additional information about the time, manner, place, etc. They are words such as rápidamente (quickly), despacio (slowly), siempre (always), nunca (never), ya (already), todavía (still) and tardíamente (late).
Unlike English, Spanish adverbs can be positioned both before and after the verb: for instance, “leí el libro rápidamente” (I read the book quickly) or “rápidamente leí el libro” (quickly I read the book).

When comparing actions using adverbs, use más…que (more…than) or menos…que (less…than): “Ella habla más rápidamente que yo” (She speaks more quickly than I do), “Él come menos lentamente que su hermano” (He eats less slowly than his brother).
When the action performed by two subjects is the same, use tan…como (as…as): “Iván trabaja tan duro como María” (Ivan works as hard as Maria).

To express the superlative form of adverb, use el/la/los/las más or el/la/los/las menos followed by an adverb: “María es la que más rápido corre en la familia” (Maria is the one who runs the fastest in the family), “Carlos es el que menos eficientemente trabaja en la oficina” (Carlos is the one who works the least efficiently in the office).

An Adverbial phrase is an adverb and additional words that together act as an adverb. They are typically formed by the preposition ‘a’ + an infinitive like “A menudo” often or “A veces” sometimes.

Adverbs of frequency explain how often an action occurs: siempre (always), normalmente (normally), a veces (sometimes), nunca (never). These can be used towards the beginning or end of a sentence, or directly before the verb they modify: “Normalmente me levanto a las siete” or “Me levanto a las siete normalmente” (I normally get up at seven).

Essential adverbs to learn include: así (so/like this), hoy (today), también (also), siempre (always), todavía (still/yet), apenas (hardly/barely), ya (already), muy (very), too/too much (demasiado), instead (en lugar de).