175
votes
"It really doesn't matter" v "It doesn't really matter"
When the adverb really comes before a negated auxiliary, the effect is of emphasising the truth of the sentence:
I really cannot tell the difference.
Here the speaker is emphasising that they ...
- 47.7k
28
votes
"It really doesn't matter" v "It doesn't really matter"
Ultimately the word "really" means the same in both cases, of adding strength or emphasis.
If we swap "really" for "definitely" this becomes more clear: The first one is like
"It definitely ...
- 23.2k
17
votes
"It really doesn't matter" v "It doesn't really matter"
I think it helps a lot to break these two sentences down:
It really doesn't matter: The base sentence here is It doesn't matter. Really is an adverb which modifies doesn't. In this case, it puts ...
- 687
10
votes
Is “On Sundays, my sister and I never play hockey” correct?
There are no rules in English, there is only guidance. “Rules are for the obedience of fools and the guidance of wise men.”
Adverbs, adverbial phrases and adverbial clauses have a default order in ...
- 45.1k
9
votes
"It really doesn't matter" v "It doesn't really matter"
When dealing with modifiers, it is crucial to understand what is being modified, and in English, this is typically determined positionally: modifiers tend to come directly before the thing being ...
- 494
6
votes
"currently is a ..." or "is currently a ..."
Word Choice
The first hurdle in answering your question is to decide whether you should use the word at all:
Caution: Use of currently, now, or presently is wordy when the verb it modifies is in ...
- 28.2k
6
votes
Accepted
Position of "only" in “We 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 have two possibilities”
Since only (like even, too, and also) is a word with a focussed constituent elsewhere in the sentence, its placement has to coordinate with that focus. The rule for only is that it has to go
either
...
- 108k
5
votes
Adverb placement: Obviously and Definitely
I'm assuming the adverbs have to go in that respective order in those clauses.
Adverbs are complicated in English. They perform a variety of functions. I won't go into details about the various ...
- 284
5
votes
Indian English use of "only"
In India, this reference of Only has a direct relationship with the native language.. Hindi.
I'm going to a particular place.
In Hindi language would mean.. "Main wahin ja raha hun"..which ...
- 13.8k
5
votes
Accepted
Place the adverb before or after "to"?
This depends on how formal you wish to be. By the content it sounds like you wish to be relatively formal.
The construction ''to identify'' is an infinitive in English. Traditional orthodoxy has it ...
- 415
5
votes
Why can you say “not only will I” but not “not only I will”?
When a negative phrase like not only is moved from its usual position after the first auxiliary verb (or before the main verb if there's no auxiliary) to the beginning of the sentence (usually to ...
- 108k
5
votes
Herewith versus herein. In this situation, is one or the other more grammatically correct and/or sense correct?
If you want your comment to mean in this document (though you probably mean in this post/in this OP?), then use herein, which is an abbreviation of in this. (see M-W)
Herewith is more about attaching ...
- 35.7k
4
votes
Indian English use of "only"
In almost all the cases you can use 'just'.
We are just getting that printed
Adds emphasis.
But avoid putting 'just' near 'that' unless you intend to imply specificity rather than mere emphasis.
We ...
- 602
4
votes
Position of adverbs
Frequency adverbs are placed before an action verb, after the be verb, before or after the auxiliary of the action verb, and at the beginning of a sentence.
The adverb "still" is placed ...
- 159
4
votes
Accepted
Why is "He climbed the mountain up" incorrect?
Short answer
The Original Poster is 100% absolutely correct that if up was an adverb functioning as an Adjunct (read Adverbial), it should be able to come after the Direct Object. However, it is not ...
- 47.7k
3
votes
"It really doesn't matter" v "It doesn't really matter"
In sentence #1, really modifies "doesn't matter".
In sentence #2, really modifies "matter".
EDIT
Both can be seen as an answer to the wh-question "Does it matter?".
Sentence #1 means: it doesn't ...
- 906
3
votes
Does the position of the adverb in a sentence change anything?
When "quickly" comes before the verb, it is a sentence adverb, and it means that only a small interval of time passed between some past reference time and the event of you eating the sandwich. When "...
- 17.5k
3
votes
Can I use "afoot" instead of "on foot" here? "I will go to market on foot."
You'd probably be misunderstood, because "afoot" is more commonly used to mean, as Chambers dictionary puts it "actively in existence".
The original sense of "on foot" ...
- 5,338
3
votes
"... respectively are ..." vs "... are respectively ..."
Using respectively at the end of the sentence is the normal structure:
"Figures 1 to 3 are front, top and bottom views of the object, respectively."
However, respectively can be placed ...
- 37.5k
3
votes
Accepted
Is there a word for near the tip of an object?
Proximal is nearest to the point of attachment and distal is furthest away.
So in this diagram you could describe the proximal and distal component
Alternatively, you could say subdistal as as meaning ...
- 62
3
votes
Accepted
"Even more worth reading" v "worth reading even more"
Aza on Literature, worth reading, predates other events; later wrote an update that's even more worth reading.
Aza on Literature, worth reading, predates other events;
later wrote an update that's ...
- 47.7k
3
votes
Accepted
Can be <verb> arbitrarily vs Can arbitrarily be <verb>
In this case, the positioning of the adverb makes a significant difference to what is modified, and the polyseme involved.
Using the adverb after the main verb
Data can be arranged arbitrarily
...
- 85.8k
3
votes
Accepted
Can fastly be preferred over using "fast" just after any subject?
The trouble with multiple choice questions with right/wrong answers, is that the questions themselves can be fallible, as, I think, in this case.
First, there is no such adverb as fastly (in the sense ...
- 11.3k
2
votes
"early in the morning" and " in the early morning"
In context, there is very little in the way of practical differences in semantic meaning here.
Linguistically, this demonstrates an interesting phenomenon, which might be underlying your intuition ...
- 57
2
votes
Adverb position: 'I have also been working" or 'I have been also working'?
see the comparison from google. google book Ngram viewer!
- 21
2
votes
Correct position of "only"
Robusto's answer provides an accurate, commonsense illustration of how the positioning of only in a sentence can significantly influence the sense of the sentence. The followup answer from systemovich ...
- 166k
2
votes
Accepted
"commonly known as" or "known commonly as"?
"Commonly known as" is grammatically correct.
The adverbs which are placed at end position are known as Adverbs of Manner.
It is known as Photosynthesis, commonly.
While, the adverbs that are ...
- 4,657
2
votes
"I’ve still berries in the fridge"
It is perfectly grammatical. Still is an adverb, which most often precedes the verb, but can sometimes follow it: He plays the piano still.
It's a little unusual in that position, and even more so ...
- 77.4k
2
votes
Accepted
Why "would rather" +noun is feasible?Without principal verb
“Would rather” means “prefer” so:
......would rather (prefer) a more secular Pakistan (than)...
“I had enough of entertaining children and Ann would rather a house full of cats, dogs, with horses ...
- 67.7k
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