Not all adverbs are single words. Groups of words can act as adverbs to tell us when, where, why, how, or under what condition something happens.
Adverbial Phrases
An adverbial phrase is a group of words that functions as an adverb. It does not contain a subject-verb pair.
Time phrases:
- I will meet you after lunch.
- She arrived a few minutes ago.
- He calls every single day.
Place phrases:
- She lives in a small town.
- He works on the fifth floor.
Manner phrases:
- She spoke with great confidence.
- He completed the task without any help.
Adverbial Clauses
An adverbial clause is a group of words with a subject and verb that functions as an adverb. It begins with a subordinating conjunction.
Time clauses (when, while, after, before, until, as soon as):
- When I arrived, the meeting had already started.
- Call me after you finish work.
Reason clauses (because, since, as):
- She stayed home because she was sick.
- Since it was raining, we stayed inside.
Condition clauses (if, unless, provided that):
- If it rains, the game will be cancelled.
- You won't pass unless you study.
Concession clauses (although, even though, though):
- Although she was tired, she kept working.
- He passed the exam even though he didn't study much.
Punctuation Rules
When an adverbial clause or phrase comes before the main clause, use a comma.
- After dinner, we went for a walk.
- Because it was late, we went home.
When it comes after the main clause, no comma is needed.
- We went for a walk after dinner.
- We went home because it was late.