English Teaching

Adverbs of Frequency: How Often Do You Do Things?

โฑ 5 Minutes ยท A2

๐Ÿ“– From Experience

When a French customer at the Ivy asked me how often I worked nights, I said ‘I work night always.’ The look on her face told me something was wrong. The correct order is: subject โ†’ adverb โ†’ verb. ‘I always work nights.’ A tiny shift that makes a big difference.

๐Ÿ“š Adverbs of Frequency + Position

Order from most to least frequent:

always (100%) โ†’ usually โ†’ often โ†’ sometimes โ†’ rarely โ†’ hardly ever โ†’ never (0%)

Position: before the main verb but AFTER the verb to be

  • She always arrives early. [before main verb]
  • He is never late. [after be]
โœ… Examples

  • I usually wake up at 6am.
  • We rarely get complaints โ€” the team is excellent.
  • She is often the last to leave.
โœ๏ธ Your Turn

Put the adverb in the right position:

  1. I eat breakfast. (always)
  2. She is tired in the morning. (hardly ever)
  3. They are late for meetings. (sometimes)
  4. He drinks coffee. (never)
๐Ÿ’ก Check Answers
  1. I always eat breakfast.
  2. She is hardly ever tired in the morning.
  3. They are sometimes late for meetings.
  4. He never drinks coffee.

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