Adjectives Used as Adverbs

By Marie-Claire Lander

In a previous Yabla lesson, you learned how to turn adjectives into adverbs. But what about adjectives that act as adverbs without changing at all? For example, did you know that the adjective bon (good) can be used as an adverb and therefore never take agreements? In this lesson, we will look at a few of these instances where adjectives morph into adverbs without warning.

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Let’s take a look at the word bon (good) as an adjective. In the example below, bon modifies the masculine pronoun il (it):

On va le goûter pour savoir s'il est bon.

We're going to taste it to find out if it's good.

Caption 43, Frédéric La fabrication du jus de pomme - Part 2
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Bon also appears in this example, but here it's used as an adverb, not an adjective:

De manger dehors... -Ah ouais. quand il fait bon et tout

Eating outside... -Oh yeah. when it's nice out and everything

Captions 74-75, Sophie et Patrice Terrasse
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You will often come across the adverb bon in the expression il fait bon (it’s nice out). Remember that an adverb modifies a verb, not a noun/pronoun. So in this expression, bon modifies the verb fait, not the pronoun il.

However, don’t assume that bon always works as an adverb after faire. In the expression faire bon voyage (to have a good trip), bon is an adjective describing the noun voyage (trip):

J'espère que vous avez fait bon voyage.

I hope you had a good trip.

Caption 10, Le Jour où tout a basculé Des hôtes pas comme les autres - Part 2
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If our speaker had been referring to a road trip, the adjective bon would become bonne to go with the feminine noun route:

J'espère que vous avez fait bonne route.

I hope you had a good road trip.

Now let’s move on to another adjective, dur (hard). In the following video, Barbara knows how dur (hard) it is for her mother to give up her dreams of seeing her daughter dance at the opera:

Je savais que c'était dur pour ma mère d'abandonner l'idée de me voir danser à l'Opéra.

I knew that it was hard for my mother to abandon the idea of seeing me dance at the Opera.

Captions 69-70, Mère & Fille Danse pas si classique
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But in the expression travailler dur (to work hard), dur functions as an adverb. Dur doesn’t change since it modifies the verb travailler:

Maintenant c'est à toi de travailler, travailler dur, très dur.

Now it's up to you to work, work hard, very hard.

Captions 17-18, Le Jour où tout a basculé Mon père s'oppose à ma passion - Part 6
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Now let’s talk about the adjective fort (strong), which in the example below modifies il (it):

Ah oui, il t'a eu. Il est très fort.

Ah yes, he got you. He's very strong.

Caption 60, Le Monde Sauver les animaux sauvages ? C'est la mission de cette clinique - Part 2
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In the feminine plural, fort becomes fortes, as in the expression de fortes chances (a good chance):

Si tu cherches le genre d'un pays, il y a de fortes chances pour que le pays soit féminin.

If you're looking for the gender of a country, there's a good chance that the country is feminine.

Interestingly, when used as an adverb, fort also takes on a different meaning: “loudly,” as in parler fort (to speak loudly):

Et « crier », qui veut dire parler très fort, hurler.

And "crier," which means to talk very loudly, to shout.

Caption 72, Français avec Nelly Les faux amis - Part 1
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Finally, we have the adjective cher/chère. You are probably familiar with the expression cher + noun, as in chère voisine (dear neighbor):

Bonjour, chère voisine.

Hello, dear neighbor.

Caption 27, Le Jour où tout a basculé Notre appartement est hanté - Part 8
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In a different context, cher/chère means "expensive":

La vie à Paris est-elle chère ?

Is life in Paris expensive?

Caption 2, Français avec Nelly Ma vie à Paris - Part 1
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As an adverb, cher most often means "expensive," as in coûter cher (to cost dearly, to be expensive). Again, there is no need to worry about agreements here, since cher modifies the verb couter:

Quand même, ça coûte cher.

That's still expensive.

Caption 81, Sophie et Patrice Le sapin
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There you have it. We have looked at some of the most common instances of adjectives "disguised" as adverbs. Just remember that while adjectives must agree in gender and number with the noun they modify, they don't require agreement when used as adverbs. And remember that French n’est pas si dur (is not so hard) if vous travaillez dur (you work hard). Soon, you will become très fort en français (very good at French)!

Topics Grammar