Why focus on "-ly" adverbs?

Adverbs ending in "-ly" are the most frequent and overused type in English writing. Authors like Stephen King famously advise cutting them because they often signal a weak verb choice. For example, "she ran quickly" can be rewritten as "she sprinted" for greater impact.

Does this catch all adverbs?

This tool detects adverbs ending in "-ly", which covers the vast majority of adverbs in English prose. It does not detect non-ly adverbs such as "very", "just", "soon", "often", "here", or "there" — those require dictionary-based part-of-speech tagging.

What is a good adverb density?

There is no universal rule, but many style guides suggest keeping adverb density below 2–3 per 100 words for fiction. Non-fiction and technical writing can be slightly higher. The goal is intentionality — every adverb should earn its place.

Is my text sent to a server?

No. All analysis runs entirely in your browser using JavaScript. Your text is never transmitted anywhere.

Are words like "family", "apply", or "fly" flagged?

No. The tool matches only words that end in "-ly" preceded by at least two letters, and it excludes a built-in list of common non-adverb "-ly" words such as "family", "reply", "supply", "early", "only", "likely", "friendly", and others.

Adverb Counter

Paste your text to instantly count and highlight all "-ly" adverbs, see their frequency, and get a density score.

Your Text

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Analysis Summary

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Total Adverbs

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Unique Adverbs

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Total Words

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Per 100 Words

Adverb density —

Adverb Frequency

Adverb frequency will appear here after analysis.

Highlighted Result

Adverbs highlighted in blue

Your analyzed text will appear here with adverbs highlighted.

Summary

The Adverb Counter scans your text for adverbs ending in "-ly" — the most common form of adverbs in English — and highlights each occurrence inline. It shows the total adverb count, unique adverbs used, adverb density per 100 words, and a ranked frequency list. Strong writing typically relies on precise verbs and nouns rather than adverbs to convey meaning.

How it works

Paste or type your text into the input box.
Click "Analyze" or type to trigger automatic analysis.
All "-ly" adverbs are highlighted in blue within the result panel.
The summary shows total adverbs, unique adverbs, word count, and adverb density.
The frequency table ranks every adverb found from most to least common.
Review highlighted adverbs and consider replacing weak adverb-verb pairs with stronger verbs.

Use cases

Identify adverb overuse in fiction and creative writing drafts.
Strengthen blog posts by replacing adverb-heavy phrases with precise verbs.
Review essays and academic papers for excessive qualifier adverbs.
Polish marketing copy by cutting filler adverbs like "really" and "truly".
Help ESL writers understand how adverbs affect writing style.
Prepare manuscripts for submission to publishers who discourage adverb overuse.

Frequently Asked Questions

Last updated: 2026-05-23 · Reviewed by Nham Vu