Forming adverbs from adjectives ending in -ant and -ent in French (French Adverbs)

In French, adverbs can be formed by using adjectives that end in -ant or -ent.

Adverbs ending in -amment or -emment in French

Look at these adverbs:

Ce fil est apparent, mais apparemment personne ne l'a remarqué.This thread is showing, but apparently no one noticed it.

Notre amitié est récente : nous nous sommes rencontrés récemment.Our friendship is recent: we met recently.

Cette réponse est évidente : c'est évidemment 1515. This answer is obvious: it's obviously 1515.

Ce train est fréquent : il vient fréquemment. This train is frequent: it comes frequently.

Marc est très patient : il attend patiemment.Marc is very patient: he's waiting patiently.

When turned into adverbs, adjectives ending in -ant and -ent act as follows:

-ant becomes -amment 
-ent becomes -emment 
Pronunciation: -emment and -amment both are pronounced the same = [aman]

 Attention:

Elle parle français couramment.She speaks French fluently.

Note that though the adverb couramment (fluently) is based on the adjective courant, the latter never means fluent, but can mean running (water), or common (word...).
Thus in French, you cannot express the sentence I am fluent in [...], but you use I speak [...] fluently instead.

 

Want to make sure your French sounds confident? We’ll map your knowledge and give you free lessons to focus on your gaps and mistakes. Start your Brainmap today »

Learn more about these related French grammar topics

Examples and resources

Marc est très patient : il attend patiemment.Marc is very patient: he's waiting patiently.
Elle parle français couramment.She speaks French fluently.
Le temps n'est pas constant: il change constamment.The weather is not constant: it changes constantly.
Ce fil est apparent, mais apparemment personne ne l'a remarqué.This thread is showing, but apparently no one noticed it.
Ce langage est courant: des millions de personnes le parlent couramment à travers le monde.This language is common: millions of people speak it fluently around the world.
Cette réponse est évidente : c'est évidemment 1515. This answer is obvious: it's obviously 1515.
Ce train est fréquent : il vient fréquemment. This train is frequent: it comes frequently.
Notre amitié est récente : nous nous sommes rencontrés récemment.Our friendship is recent: we met recently.
Let me take a look at that...