Changing an adjective to an adverb (e.g. he ate quickly) in Japanese is simple, although the rules differ between i-adjectives and na-adjectives.

I-Adjectives

For i-adjectives we replace the い with く. For example, “cheap” goes to “cheaply” like so:

やすい ⇒ やす

“Good” goes to “well” like so:

いい ⇒ よ

We can then append our adverbs before the verb to make a sentence.

はや きます。
Wake up early.
つよ します。
To push with force [strongly].
たか りました。
Sell for a good price.

Na-Adjectives

For na-adjectives we add に. For example, “easy” goes to “easily” like so:

簡単かんたん ⇒ 簡単かんたん

“Quiet” goes to “quietly” like so:

しずか ⇒ しず

Some example sentences:

きれい きます。
Write beautifully.
丁寧ていねい はなします。
Speak politely.
You May Also Like

The Strong Suggestion: べき

We have already met one way to make a suggestion. タバコをやめた方ほうがいいです。 It’s better that you quit smoking. べき…

Comparisons within a Group

This phrase let’s us say things like, “Out of all my school subjects, I like history the most”.…

Expressing a Purpose: ため

One of the meanings of the noun 為ため is “objective” or “purpose”. 学費がくひの為ための貯金ちょきん。 Savings for school fees. Literally:…

どころか

どころか is used to express to the listener that the result was almost the exact opposite from what…