Irregular Adverbs — Exercises
Practice irregular adverbs that don't follow the -ly rule: well (good), hard vs hardly, fast, late vs lately, and high vs highly.
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She sings very ___.
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well
'Good' is irregular — the adverb is 'well'.
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He works ___ to support his family.
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hard
The adverb of 'hard' is the same — 'hard'. 'Hardly' means 'almost not', which is different.
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Don't drive too ___ on this road.
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fast
The adverb of 'fast' is the same — 'fast'. There is no word 'fastly'.
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I can ___ hear you — speak up, please.
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hardly
'Hardly' = 'almost not'. 'Hard' would mean 'with effort', which doesn't fit here.
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Bob worked ___ all week to finish the project on time.
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hard
'Hard' = 'with great effort'. 'Hardly' (= almost not) would give the opposite meaning.
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I haven't seen her ___ — she's been very busy.
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lately
'Lately' = 'recently'. 'Late' would mean 'after the expected time'.
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Sorry, I got home very ___ yesterday — there was a meeting.
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late
'Late' = 'after the expected time'. 'Lately' means 'recently', which doesn't fit.
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These cookies taste ___.
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good
After the linking verb 'taste', use an adjective — 'good'. 'Well' would describe how something is done.
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She speaks Italian very ___.
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well
After the action verb 'speak', use the adverb — 'well'.
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Her work is ___ regarded by her colleagues.
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highly
'Highly' is the figurative adverb (= very, with respect). 'High' is the literal one (= up in the air).
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The plane flew ___ above the clouds.
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high
'High' is the literal adverb (= up in the air). 'Highly' is figurative — 'highly regarded'.
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Talking about a colleague
A: How's your new colleague settling in?
B: Very {1}. She's been here a month and already knows everyone in the office.
A: Is she good at her job?
B: Yes, she works incredibly {2} and learns new systems {3} — she picked up our database in a week.
A: And with clients?
B: She speaks to them very {4} — always polite and patient. They appreciate it.
A: What does the manager think?
B: He thinks {5} of her, which is rare — he's not easily impressed.
A: Sounds like a perfect hire.
B: Almost. Sometimes she speaks too {6} in meetings, and people at the back can't hear her.
A: Easy to fix. Has she joined any team activities?
B: Yes — she came to the away-day last week and joined in {7}.Show answer
1. well — Irregular adverb of 'good' — 'settling in very well'.
2. hard — The adverb of 'hard' is the same word — 'works hard'. 'Hardly' would mean 'almost not'.
3. fast — The adverb of 'fast' is the same word — 'learns systems fast'. There is no 'fastly'.
4. kindly — Regular formation — 'kind' + ly. Describes the manner of speaking to clients.
5. highly — Figurative 'highly' = with respect — 'thinks highly of her' is a fixed phrase.
6. quietly — Manner adverb — speaking too quietly explains why people can't hear at the back.
7. enthusiastically — Manner adverb — describes how she joined in at the away-day.
Irregular Adverbs: well, hard, fast, late/lately, high/highly
A small group of very frequent adverbs either have no '-ly' form at all or have an '-ly' form with a completely different meaning from what the '-ly' rule would suggest. Because these words are so common in everyday speech, getting them wrong stands out more than a rare spelling slip, and corpus studies of spoken learner English single out 'hard/hardly' and 'late/lately' as two of the most persistent confusions at intermediate level.
Same Form as the Adjective: hard, fast
Don't drive too fast on this road. (there is no word 'fastly')
A Genuinely Different Word: well (from good)
These cookies taste good. (linking verb 'taste' takes the adjective, not 'well')
-ly Forms with a Different Meaning: late/lately, high/highly
I haven't seen her lately. (= recently, not 'in a late way')
The plane flew high above the clouds. (literal — up in the air)
Her work is highly regarded by her colleagues. (figurative — with respect)
Common Mistakes
✗ Bob worked hardly all week. → ✓ Bob worked hard all week.
✗ I haven't seen her late. → ✓ I haven't seen her lately.
✗ Her work is high regarded. → ✓ Her work is highly regarded.
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