Adverbs and Adjectives at the Circus worksheet for language arts practice.
Worksheet titled "Adverbs and Adjectives at the Circus" with instructions and ten sentences for students to identify whether adjectives or adverbs should be used, including examples and blank lines for answers.
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Show Answer Key & Explanations
Step-by-step solution for: Adverbs and Adjectives Worksheet 2 | Preview
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Show Answer Key & Explanations
Step-by-step solution for: Adverbs and Adjectives Worksheet 2 | Preview
Let’s go through each sentence one by one. We’ll figure out whether to use the adjective or adverb, then answer what word is being modified and what part of speech that word is.
Remember:
- Adjectives describe nouns or pronouns (like “the green house” — “green” describes “house”).
- Adverbs describe verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs (like “I ran quickly” — “quickly” describes how you ran).
---
1. The students were very quiet / quietly when they entered the circus tent.
We’re describing “students” — which is a noun. So we need an adjective: quiet.
→ What word is modified? students
→ What part of speech is that? noun
---
2. The ring at the center of the tent was colorful / colorfully decorated.
“Decorated” is a verb (past participle used as adjective here, but still acting like a verb form). We’re saying *how* it was decorated → so we need an adverb: colorfully.
→ What word is modified? decorated
→ What part of speech is that? verb (or past participle functioning as adjective — but in this context, since it’s describing action, treat as verb)
Actually, let’s be precise: “was decorated” is passive voice — “decorated” is a past participle acting as part of the verb phrase. But even if we think of “decorated” as an adjective, “colorfully” modifies how the decoration happened — so still adverb.
But wait — actually, “colorful” would describe the ring itself (“The ring was colorful”), but here it says “was ___ decorated” — so we’re modifying the verb “decorated”. So yes — colorfully.
→ Modified word: decorated
→ Part of speech: verb
---
3. We were all very eager / eagerly to see what the circus had in store for us.
“We were...” — “were” is a linking verb. After linking verbs, we use adjectives to describe the subject. “Eager” describes “we” → so eager.
→ Modified word: we
→ Part of speech: pronoun
---
4. A woman ... was singing beautiful / beautifully.
“Singing” is a verb. How was she singing? → Use adverb: beautifully.
→ Modified word: singing
→ Part of speech: verb
---
5. As the show began, the mood in the auditorium was joyous / joyously.
“Was” is a linking verb. “Mood” is the subject. We’re describing the mood → use adjective: joyous.
→ Modified word: mood
→ Part of speech: noun
---
6. My friend started laughing quite loud / loudly when the clowns came out...
“Laughing” is a verb. How did he laugh? → Use adverb: loudly.
→ Modified word: laughing
→ Part of speech: verb
---
7. I could barely hear the ringmaster over the crowd because they were so noisy / noisily.
“They were...” — “were” is linking verb. Describing “they” (the crowd) → use adjective: noisy.
→ Modified word: they
→ Part of speech: pronoun
---
8. The man with the popcorn sloppy / sloppily applied butter and seasoning...
“Applied” is a verb. How did he apply? → Use adverb: sloppily.
→ Modified word: applied
→ Part of speech: verb
---
9. The trapeze artists performed fantastic / fantastically even though there was a safety net.
“Performed” is a verb. How did they perform? → Use adverb: fantastically.
→ Modified word: performed
→ Part of speech: verb
---
10. I became very irate / irately when the man... sat in front of me.
“Became” is a linking verb. Describing “I” → use adjective: irate.
→ Modified word: I
→ Part of speech: pronoun
---
Final Answer:
1. quiet; students; noun
2. colorfully; decorated; verb
3. eager; we; pronoun
4. beautifully; singing; verb
5. joyous; mood; noun
6. loudly; laughing; verb
7. noisy; they; pronoun
8. sloppily; applied; verb
9. fantastically; performed; verb
10. irate; I; pronoun
Remember:
- Adjectives describe nouns or pronouns (like “the green house” — “green” describes “house”).
- Adverbs describe verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs (like “I ran quickly” — “quickly” describes how you ran).
---
1. The students were very quiet / quietly when they entered the circus tent.
We’re describing “students” — which is a noun. So we need an adjective: quiet.
→ What word is modified? students
→ What part of speech is that? noun
---
2. The ring at the center of the tent was colorful / colorfully decorated.
“Decorated” is a verb (past participle used as adjective here, but still acting like a verb form). We’re saying *how* it was decorated → so we need an adverb: colorfully.
→ What word is modified? decorated
→ What part of speech is that? verb (or past participle functioning as adjective — but in this context, since it’s describing action, treat as verb)
Actually, let’s be precise: “was decorated” is passive voice — “decorated” is a past participle acting as part of the verb phrase. But even if we think of “decorated” as an adjective, “colorfully” modifies how the decoration happened — so still adverb.
But wait — actually, “colorful” would describe the ring itself (“The ring was colorful”), but here it says “was ___ decorated” — so we’re modifying the verb “decorated”. So yes — colorfully.
→ Modified word: decorated
→ Part of speech: verb
---
3. We were all very eager / eagerly to see what the circus had in store for us.
“We were...” — “were” is a linking verb. After linking verbs, we use adjectives to describe the subject. “Eager” describes “we” → so eager.
→ Modified word: we
→ Part of speech: pronoun
---
4. A woman ... was singing beautiful / beautifully.
“Singing” is a verb. How was she singing? → Use adverb: beautifully.
→ Modified word: singing
→ Part of speech: verb
---
5. As the show began, the mood in the auditorium was joyous / joyously.
“Was” is a linking verb. “Mood” is the subject. We’re describing the mood → use adjective: joyous.
→ Modified word: mood
→ Part of speech: noun
---
6. My friend started laughing quite loud / loudly when the clowns came out...
“Laughing” is a verb. How did he laugh? → Use adverb: loudly.
→ Modified word: laughing
→ Part of speech: verb
---
7. I could barely hear the ringmaster over the crowd because they were so noisy / noisily.
“They were...” — “were” is linking verb. Describing “they” (the crowd) → use adjective: noisy.
→ Modified word: they
→ Part of speech: pronoun
---
8. The man with the popcorn sloppy / sloppily applied butter and seasoning...
“Applied” is a verb. How did he apply? → Use adverb: sloppily.
→ Modified word: applied
→ Part of speech: verb
---
9. The trapeze artists performed fantastic / fantastically even though there was a safety net.
“Performed” is a verb. How did they perform? → Use adverb: fantastically.
→ Modified word: performed
→ Part of speech: verb
---
10. I became very irate / irately when the man... sat in front of me.
“Became” is a linking verb. Describing “I” → use adjective: irate.
→ Modified word: I
→ Part of speech: pronoun
---
Final Answer:
1. quiet; students; noun
2. colorfully; decorated; verb
3. eager; we; pronoun
4. beautifully; singing; verb
5. joyous; mood; noun
6. loudly; laughing; verb
7. noisy; they; pronoun
8. sloppily; applied; verb
9. fantastically; performed; verb
10. irate; I; pronoun
Parent Tip: Review the logic above to help your child master the concept of adverb and adjective worksheet.
