情狀副詞透露某件事是如何發生的，一般會放在主要動詞或受詞後。
舉例
- He swims well.
- He ran quickly.
- She spoke softly.
- James coughed loudly to attract her attention.
- He plays the flute beautifully.（在直接受詞後）
- He ate the chocolate cake greedily.（在直接受詞後）
情狀副詞並不能放在動詞和直接受詞之間，必須放在動詞前或句尾。
舉例
- He ate greedily the chocolate cake. [不正確]
- He ate the chocolate cake greedily. [正確]
- He greedily ate the chocolate cake. [正確]
- He gave us generously the money. [不正確]
- He gave us the money generously. [正確]
- He generously gave us the money. [正確]
如果動詞的受格前有個介系詞，就要將情狀副詞放在介系詞前或受詞後。
舉例
- The child ran happily towards his mother.
- The child ran towards his mother happily.
如果動詞沒有受詞（不及物動詞），情狀副詞就一律應緊接在動詞之後。
舉例
- The town grew quickly after 1997.
- He waited patiently for his mother to arrive.
這些常見的情狀副詞 well、badly、hard、fast 幾乎都是緊接在動詞後。
舉例
- He swam well despite being tired.
- The rain fell hard during the storm.
當句中有多個動詞，副詞的位置就會變得很重要。如果副詞放在主要動詞前或後，就只會修飾那個動詞。如果副詞放在語句後，則會修飾該語句描述的整個動作。從以下例句中，您會發現意思的差異。
| 例句 | 意思 |
|---|---|
| She quickly agreed to re-type the letter. | 迅速地同意 |
| She agreed quickly to re-type the letter. | 迅速地同意 |
| She agreed to re-type the letter quickly. | 迅速地重新打 |
| He quietly asked me to leave the house. | 安靜地詢問 |
| He asked me quietly to leave the house. | 安靜地詢問 |
| He asked me to leave the house quietly. | 安靜地離開 |
文學上的用法
有時候情狀副詞會放在動詞 + 受詞之前，增添強調的意味。
舉例
- He gently woke the sleeping woman.
- She angrily slammed the door.
有些作家會把情狀副詞放在句首，引起我們的注意或好奇。
舉例
- Slowly she picked up the knife.
- Roughly he grabbed her arm.