Skill Focus – Adverb Overuse

Gently, lovingly, we're going to stop relying heavily on adverbs excessively.

✨ Welcome to the Adverb Appreciation Lounge

Let’s be clear: adverbs aren’t evil.
They're like hot sauce—delicious in moderation, but if you're drowning your sentence in “quickly, softly, angrily,” you might be covering up a flavorless verb.

Our goal isn’t to ban them… it’s to make sure your verbs don’t need crutches.

🧠 What’s an Adverb, Again?

An adverb usually describes how something is done:

“She walked slowly.”
“He angrily slammed the door.”
“They stared blankly at the screen.”

That’s fine. But when your verb is already strong, that “-ly” word is often just… extra. Like a hat on a hat.

Weaker:
“He shouted loudly.”
(How else do people shout?)

Stronger:
“He bellowed across the room.”

Let’s try giving your verbs a protein shake.

🛠️ Try This Rewrite Drill

Here’s your practice sentence:

“She quickly ran down the hallway.”

Now revise it with a stronger verb that shows urgency—without needing the word “quickly.”

💡 Hint: try words like “bolted,” “raced,” or “charged.”

🧹 Bonus Clean-Up Tip

Search your draft for common adverbs like:

• really

• very

• suddenly

• quietly

• nervously

• slowly

• quickly

Now, ask:

What would happen if I deleted this word?
Can I swap the verb for something sharper instead?

If it reads better without the adverb… let it go. You’re not being mean. You’re being precise.

💬 Need Help? Ask Quillwyn!

She’s great at sniffing out overused adverbs and helping you level up your verbs.

Try asking:

“Can you help me replace weak adverbs in this paragraph?”

Quillwyn will show you how to trade “gently closed the door” for something with real mood and motion.