Look at these sentences:
J'ai beaucoup aimé le spectacle.
I really liked the show.
In compounds tenses (e.g. past involving 'avoir' or 'être' as auxiliary verbs), some adverbs are placed between the auxiliary verb and the past participle.
These include: assez, bien, beaucoup, bientôt, déjà, encore, enfin, jamais, mal, mieux, moins, souvent, toujours, trop and vite.
BUT
Certain adverbs of time and manner can both be AT THE END or be AT THE START of the sentence:
e.g. hier, aujourd'hui, avant-hier, après, autrefois,... (and some adverbs ending in -ment for emphasis)
Il s'est retourné lentement.
He turned around slowly.
Lentement, il s'est retourné.
Slowly, he turned around.
Hier, nous sommes allés à Marseille.
Yesterday, we went to Marseille.
Nous sommes allés à Marseille hier.
We went to Marseille yesterday.
BUT
you would NOT say "Nous sommes hier allés à Marseille." NOR "Nous sommes allés hier à Marseille."
AND
Adverbs of place and certain adverbs of time usually FOLLOW the past participle:
e.g. tard, tôt,... and some adverbs ending in -ment
Il est parti tard.
He left late.
Elle a compris facilement.
She understood easily.
Learn more about these related French grammar topics
Examples and resources
Hier, nous sommes allés à Marseille.
Yesterday, we went to Marseille.
Lentement, il s'est retourné.
Slowly, he turned around.
Nous sommes allés à Marseille hier.
We went to Marseille yesterday.
Elle a compris facilement.
She understood easily.
Hier tu as joué au foot.
Yesterday, you played football.
Tu as joué au foot hier.
You played football yesterday.
J'ai beaucoup aimé le spectacle.
I really liked the show.
Il est parti tard.
He left late.
Il s'est retourné lentement.
He turned around slowly.
Q&A
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
17/07/17
Paul
Kwiziq community member
14 June 2018
1 reply
Plus tard
"Adverbs of place and certain adverbs of time usually FOLLOW the past participle:
e.g. tard, tôt,... and some adverbs ending in -ment
Il est parti tard."
But the "correct"micro-quiz answer for the placement of "plus tard" is at the beginning or end of the sentence. Does adding "plus" modify the normal placement of "tard"?
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
18 June 2018
18/06/18
The case of "plus tard" is similar to the English "later": it can be used at the beginning of the sentence, after the verb or at the end of the sentence.
Later, I went to the cinema.Plus tard, je suis allé au cinéma.
I went to the cinema later.Je suis allé au cinéma plus tard.Je suis allé plus tard au cinéma.
Bonne journée !