Adverbs of place: examples, rules, and positions

In this lesson, we learn what adverbs of place are, and how to use them in sentences. We will also understand adverb phrases of place and adverb clauses of place.

There is a video lesson attached at the end of the post that explains all types of adverbs in English; scroll down to it if you prefer watching videos.

What are Adverbs of Place in English?

Adverbs of place definition: An adverb of place modifies a verb and tells us the place of the action. It tells us where an action takes place or where someone or something is.

All adverbs of place

• Here
• There
• Up
• Upstairs
• Down
• Downstairs
• In
• Out
• Inside
• Outside
• On
• Above
• Over
• Under
• Abroad
• Away
• Far
• Behind
• Below
• Back
• Anywhere
• Somewhere
• Everywhere
• Elsewhere
• Inwards
• Backwards
• Downwards
• Near
• Nearby
• Along
• Indoors
• Outdoors
• Overseas
• Off
• sideways

Examples of adverbs of place

• Could you come here?
• We don’t go there; it is believed to be a haunted place.
• Pull your pants up.
• We are climbing down.
• Jon is partying upstairs with his friends.
• My trainer lives downstairs.
• May I come in?
• Yes, please come in?
• There is nothing good to eat here. Let’s move out.
• I was outside when they had come to my place.
• It’s raining heavily outside. Let’s stay inside.
• Put your clothes on. We are going to a party.
• Look at the kites flying above.
• As soon as he laid down, I turned the lights off.
• While riding his bike, he fell over and broke his right arm.
• My friends were playing along the river, and all of a sudden, I decided to jump into it, and stay under for some minutes.
• Max worked abroad for a couple of years.
• As soon as I saw my mother coming towards us, we ran away.
• Look behind. There is something for you.
• We went below to check if anything is blocking the boat.
• They can’t go back now.
• You need to move back. My friends are here for a few days.
• I am not going anywhere unless I get my money back.
• He hid the money somewhere.
• He follows me everywhere.
• This sweet can’t be found elsewhere.
• The hall has enough space. Let the car come inwards.
• The door opened outwards and knocked him out cold.
• Close your eyes and take two steps backwards.
• Point the torch downwards; it’s quite dark in here.
• Let it come near. We can’t shoot it right now.
• Does he work nearby? We can meet him if he does.
• The road is 5 kilometers long. keep walking along until you a big bridge on the left.
• The doctors are requesting everyone is stay indoors in this pandemic.
• The kids love to play outdoors.
• Why don’t you take your business overseas?
• Before the cops could catch the thief, he ran off.
• He always sits sideways on the chair.

Adverbs of place ending with ‘where’

Adverbs of place that end with “where’ are anywhere, somewhere, elsewhere, nowhere, and everywhere. These adverbs of place talk about the location of an action without making it specific.

Adverbs of place ending with ‘wards’

Adverbs of place that end with ‘wards’ are the following: inwards, outwards, backwards, eastwards, downwards, and westwards. They tell us in which direction a movement is happening.

NOTE: ‘Towards’ doesn’t work as an adverb, it functions as a preposition as it is followed by a noun or a pronoun. A phrase starting with ‘towards’ works as an adverb though.

• The car is coming towards us.
• Let’s move towards the bus stop.

A list of adverbs of place with examples

Adverbs of Place	Examples
Here	• Leave the keys here. • Take him here.
There	• Is anyone living there? • Does anyone play there?
Up	• Stand up and come with me. • It is a huge mountain. Let’s drop the plan of climbing it up.
Upstairs	• My friends are sleeping upstairs. • There is no place to sit upstairs.
Down	• They laid down and fell asleep.
Downstairs	• You should go downstairs and play with your friends. • Someone is playing the guitar downstairs.
In	• It is my shooting lab. You can’t just walk in anytime you want. • The apartment looks perfect for us. Let’s move in.
Out	• You can’t move out until I come back. • Jon hid in the almirah, and he is not coming out.
Inside	• If you are hungry, come inside. I will get you something to eat. • Is everyone inside?
Outside	• Only hospital staff can enter the lab; no other person can come inside without permission. • Some people are shooting outside.
On	• Put a hat on. It will match with the overall look. • The bus I got on was was full of kids.
Above	• Put the books on the shelf above. • He lives in the apartment above.
Over	• Look at the birds flying over. They are beautiful. • Turn the page over.
Under	• The river is deep. I can’t jump in and stay under for more than a minute. • Put the shirts on and fold the sleeves under.
Overseas	• My parents are living overseas with my elder brother. • My friend Amir has been working overseas with an oil company. • Some selected cops are sent overseas on a covert mission.
Abroad	• Most of my friends have never been abroad. • Navi would love to study abroad.
Away	• Go away! We don’t want to see you. • The way you treat the customers is turning them away.
Far	• They were sitting far away from each other. • I can’t live far away from my family.
Behind	• Open your eyes and look behind. • It’s time to take a step behind.
Below	• Look at the river below. It is beautiful. • Can you hear some voices from the apartment below?
Back	• We can’t go back now. • Take a few steps back.
Anywhere	• We can play anywhere we want. The ground is ours now. • Do you want to go anywhere?
Somewhere	• She needs an apartment somewhere. • We need to hide the money somewhere.
Everywhere	• God is everywhere. • They are opening their stores everywhere.
Elsewhere	• The kids are not playing here. We have to look elsewhere. • We will take the food and eat elsewhere.
Inwards	• He opened the door inwards and broke its handle. • It time you turn inwards.
Backwards	• I will not run backwards. I will face him like a man. • Can you swim backwards?
Downwards	• The river is flowing downwards. • He is lying face downwards on the ground.
Near	• Come near; I want to share something with you. • Bring everyone nearer; he is showing something interesting.
Nearby	• Do you want to meet Sam? He lives nearby. • Park the car nearby.
Along	• We walked along in complete silence and horror. • While basking in the sun at the beach, I saw them walking along, smiling at each other.
Indoors	• I know you have a huge house, but these mango trees can’t be grown indoors. • We are indoors as it’s raining outside.
Outdoors	• The kids love to play outdoors. • The doctors asked me not to go outdoors.
Overseas	• My friend Amir has been working overseas for a fight promotion. • Some selected cops are sent overseas on a covert mission.
Off	• Take your glasses off. • Take your shoes off. Wear these slippers.
sideways	• I fell sideways into the dam. • She leaned sideways to smell my perfume.

Adverbs of time vs Preposition

Most adverbs of time are prepositions. As an adverb of time, these words are not followed by a noun or a pronoun, but they function as a preposition, they are followed by a noun, a noun phrase, or a pronoun.

Study the following examples to understand the difference:

• The hall is packed right now. You just can’t move in. (adverb of time)
• You can’t move in the hall; it is packed. (preposition)

• Don’t look behind. (adverb of place)
• Don’t look behind the curtains. (preposition)

• This is government property. We can’t go inside. (adverb of place)
• We can’t go inside the property. It’s not allowed. (preposition)

Adverb phrases of place

Adverb phrases of place, also called adverbial phrases of place, are prepositional phrases that function as an adverb of place as they indicate where an action takes place or where someone or something is.

Examples:

• Some people just moved inside the building.
• The kids are playing in the park.
• She slapped me in the face.
• Someone is shouting at the main gate.
• Jacob has been teaching some poor kids under the bridge.
• Everyone is on the terrace.

Adverb clauses of place

Adverb clauses of place, also known as adverbial clauses of place, are dependent clauses that indicate where an action takes place. These clauses start with the following subordinating conjunctions: where, anywhere, everywhere.

Examples:

• He doesn’t eat where he sleeps.
• You can sleep anywhere you want.
• She follows me everywhere I go.

Hope you enjoyed the lesson. Feel free to correct any typing mistake you come across. Share the post with others to help and empower them. See you in the next post, learners! Contact me at [email protected] for one-on-one classes.