VOA慢速英语2016--Understanding Adverbs: Always

Understanding Adverbs: Always

The film “Casablanca” is one of the most famous American movies of all time.

At the end of the film, the actor Humphrey Bogart says a heartbreaking farewell to the woman he loves.

Bergman: But what about us?

Bogart: We'll always have Paris.

Besides affecting one’s emotions, this movie scene can teach you a lot about English grammar. It can show you how English speakers use adverbs in a sentence.

In our program today, we explore a single word: always. We will discover why Bogart said his famous line the way he did.

Do not worry. Unlike the ending of “Casablanca,” we will not leave you in tears!

Adverbs and Movability

In other Everyday Grammar stories, we explored adverbs.

Adverbs are words that change the meaning of a verb, adjective, or sentence. They are often used to show time, place, or a way of doing things.

Adverbs are often movable. They can appear at the beginning, middle, or end of a sentence.

Consider these examples:

Occasionally I eat seafood¹.

I occasionally eat seafood.

I eat seafood occasionally.

In this example, the adverb occasionally appears in three different places in the sentence. The placement of the adverb does not change the meaning. All three sentences have the same meaning. Most English speakers would not think it strange if you used any one of these sentences.

Always is not as movable

What about the adverb always?

In general, the adverb always is not as movable as other kinds of adverbs – like the word occasionally.

You will not often hear an English speaker use always at the beginning or the end of a sentence.

Most often, you will hear always in the middle of the sentence, before the verb it is modifying.

In some cases, you might hear it at the beginning of a sentence – when giving an order or command, for example.*

Or you might hear it at the end of a sentence, but usually only in an artistic² setting: a poetry reading or a musical performance, for example.

But the central point is this: in speaking and in writing, always does not move its position as often as other adverbs.

So, if you were to take our example sentence, "I eat seafood," and use the adverb always, you could say, "I always eat seafood."

Always generally is found after “BE” verbs and auxiliary³ verbs, but before other verbs.

You will find this structure in many popular films. Consider this famous line from “A Streetcar Named Desire:”

"Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers."

A Streetcar Named Desire, 1951

In the example, always appears after the auxiliary verb, have, and just before the main verb, depended.

This same idea is true of Bogart's famous line from “Casablanca,”

"We'll always have Paris."

"We'll" is a short way to say, "we will." Always appears after the auxiliary verb, will, and before the main verb, have.

Emphasized always

You might think that our story about the word always ends here, but it does not!

English speakers can also change the meaning of always.

When you hear or read the adverb always in its usual position, before the verb it is modifying. It generally has the meaning of habitually⁵.

However, sometimes you will hear English speakers emphasize the word always.

In this case, the meaning of the sentence has changed. Think back to our example sentence: "I always eat seafood."

This sentence means that you usually eat seafood – perhaps when you go to a restaurant.

If the speaker says, "I ALWAYS eat seafood," with the emphasis on the word "always," then the speaker is expressing annoyance⁶. Perhaps the speaker is angry that another person – a close friend, for example – did not remember they like to eat seafood when they go out to dinner.

Here is another example: you hear a child say, "My father always works late on Thursdays." This sentence uses the adverb always to express a habitual⁴ or common action.

However, if you hear the child say, "My dad ALWAYS works late on Thursdays," then you know that the child is unhappy with the father's work schedule.

What can you do?

So, now you know that if Bogart had used the emphasized always in the film Casablanca, the ending of the film would have been very different.

The next time you are listening or speaking, try to pay attention to the placement of the word always. Then, try to identify if it is emphasized or not. This will help you understand the speaker's feelings.

Remember: English does not always communicate meaning through grammar. Emphasis plays an important role in showing the meaning of a sentence.

With practice, you, too, will be able to use always like a native speaker!

Words in this Story

farewell – n. an act of leaving

adverb – n. a word that describes a verb, an adjective, another adverb, or a sentence and that is often used to show time, manner, place, or degree

occasionally – adv. sometimes but not often

emphasize – v. to place emphasis on (something)

auxiliary verb – n. a verb (such as have, be, may, do, shall, will, can, or must) that is used with another verb to show the verb's tense, to form a question, etc.?

modify – v. to limit or describe the meaning of (a word or group of words)?

scene – n. a part of a play, movie, story, etc., in which a particular action or activity occurs?

1 seafood   

n.海产食品，海味，海鲜

参考例句：

• There's an excellent seafood restaurant near here.离这儿不远有家非常不错的海鲜馆。
• Shrimps are a popular type of seafood.小虾是比较普遍的一种海味。

2 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

3 auxiliary   

adj.辅助的，备用的

参考例句：

• I work in an auxiliary unit.我在一家附属单位工作。
• The hospital has an auxiliary power system in case of blackout.这家医院装有备用发电系统以防灯火管制。

4 habitual   

adj.习惯性的；通常的，惯常的

参考例句：

• He is a habitual criminal.他是一个惯犯。
• They are habitual visitors to our house.他们是我家的常客。

5 habitually   

ad.习惯地，通常地

参考例句：

• The pain of the disease caused him habitually to furrow his brow. 病痛使他习惯性地紧皱眉头。
• Habitually obedient to John, I came up to his chair. 我已经习惯于服从约翰，我来到他的椅子跟前。

6 annoyance   

n.恼怒，生气，烦恼

参考例句：

• Why do you always take your annoyance out on me?为什么你不高兴时总是对我出气？
• I felt annoyance at being teased.我恼恨别人取笑我。