How do you position adverbs in a sentence? And are adverbs necessary in our sentences? Review the basic grammar rules on the proper use of adverbs with this issue of the Learner's Digest. Sections include the following: News article, Vocabulary, Useful Phrases, Grammar Review, Application, Challenge and Recommended Online Courses. This is a creation of my team (QC TEAM) at Isentia Brandtology.

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You can finally decide what
happens to your Facebook account
when you die.
In a change of heart, the world’s most
popular social network will begin
allowing its members to designate
someone—what they call a “legacy
contact”—to manage parts of their
accounts posthumously. Members can
also choose to have their presence
deleted entirely.
Facebook and other Internet services
walk a difficult tightrope
between respecting the privacy of the
deceased and the demands of grieving
friends and family. Previously, Facebook
automatically froze the accounts of
members it learned had died, angering
some heirs who wanted to edit the
deceased’s online presence. It will roll
out the new options to members in the
U.S. on Thursday, with others to follow
later.
Asking us to make plans for a digital
afterlife may sound morbid, but it can
bring clarity to an issue that’s
both legally and
emotionally challenging. In
2013, Google became the first major
Internet company to allow users to
select digital heirs for its Gmail, cloud
storage and other services, dubbed
“inactive account managers.”
What’s the point of maintaining a social
network after death? Facebook legacy
contacts will be able to manage accounts
in a way that can turn the deceased
person’s Facebook page into a kind of

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digital gravestone. Legacy contacts can
write a post to display at the top of their
friend’s memorialized profile page,
change the friend’s profile picture, and
even respond to new friend requests on
behalf of the deceased.
Previously, Facebook froze the accounts
of members who had died.
If they’re granted prior permission,
legacy contacts can also download an
archive of posts and photos from the
deceased, but not the contents of his or
her private messages.
All of this is optional. If you do nothing,
when Facebook finds out you’ve passed,
it will simply freeze your account
and leave posts and pictures at the
privacy settings you determined, a
process it calls memorialization.
Facebook says it has done this to
hundreds of thousands of accounts to
date. (As before, Facebook won’t show
advertisements on memorialized
accounts.)
Being a legacy contact is different from
simply logging into the account of the
deceased, and there are important
things legacy contacts can’t alter. They
can’t edit what the deceased has already
posted, or what his or her friends post
on the page. If you chose to post a photo
while you are living that looks
embarrassing when you are gone, your
legacy contact can’t do anything about it.
A legacy contact also can’t decide to
delete a whole account.
These restrictions might upset some
people who think their job as a caretaker
is to maintain a Facebook page as
the nicest possible memorial. “We gave
this a lot of thought, and ultimately
decided against it for this first version,”
said spokeswoman Jodi Seth. Facebook
feared that curation responsibilities
might add an extra emotional load to
grieving, among other concerns.
To select your legacy contact, go to
Settings and choose Security and then
Legacy Contact at the bottom of the
page—it is the same for the Facebook
website or mobile app. There you can
designate an existing Facebook friend
(in other words, only someone who’s
already part of the social network), grant
that person permission to download an

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archive of your data, or choose to have
your account deleted after death.
Both the Facebook website and app have
this Legacy Contact setting under the
Security option.
There’s more fine print worth paying
attention to: You can select only one
person—and no backup—so spouses and
partners who often travel together may
face a difficult choice about whether to
designate each other. Ms. Seth says
Facebook is continuing to think about
how it might allow for contingent legacy
contacts.
Facebook members can change their
legacy contact selection at any time, but
once they have died, a legacy contact
can’t pass along the responsibility to
someone else.
If you don’t choose a legacy contact on
Facebook but name a digital heir in a
legal will, Facebook will designate that
person.
It’s exhausting to think that Facebook
has become so interwoven into our lives
that we not only have to think about
setting our birthdays, relationships and
jobs in stone there, but now also our
deaths. Still, Facebook’s new service
empowers people to make choices about
their data while they are living, and for
many, that’s a relief.
By: Geoffrey A. Fowler
Source: The Wall Street Journal
 posthumously – following or occurring after death
 tightrope – to be in a difficult situation that demands careful and considered behavior
 legacy – a gift of property, especially personal property or money, by will
 curation – pulling together, sifting through, and selecting for presentation, e.g. music or website
content
 interwoven – intermingled or combined as if by weaving

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 a change of heart
Definition: a reversal of one's feelings, intentions, opinions, etc.
Example: In a change of heart, the world’s most popular social network will begin
allowing its members to designate someone—what they call a “legacy contact”—to
manage parts of their accounts posthumously.
 legacy contact
Definition: a person chosen to look after a deceased person’s Facebook account once it is
memorialized.
Example: Being a legacy contact is different from simply logging into the account of the
deceased, and there are important things legacy contacts can’t alter.
 digital heir
Definition: beneficiary of a deceased person’s digital assets.
Example: If you don’t choose a legacy contact on Facebook but name a digital heir in a
legal will, Facebook will designate that person.
Positioning of Adverbs in Sentences:
 What are adverbs?
 Adverbs are words that modify verbs, adjectives or other adverbs.
 Adverbs usually answer the questions when, where and how.

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 Adverbs typically end in –ly (e.g. slowly, immediately).
 When a group of words with a subject and a verb functions as an adverb, it is called an
adverb clause.
 When a phrase acts as an adverb, it is called an adverbial phrase.
 Adverb modifying verbs:
A legacy contact will be allowed to manage parts of a deceased person’s accounts posthumously.
verb adverb
The adverb posthumously answers the question, “When can the legacy contact manage a person’s
Facebook account?”
 Adverb modifying adjectives:
Curation responsibilities might add an extra emotional load to grieving.
adv adj
Extra answers the question, “How much emotional load do curation responsibilities add to
grieving?”
“More”, “most”, “less” and “least” are the most common adverbs used to show degree.
 Adverb modifying another adverb:
Facebook is very seriously considering having a contingent legacy contact in case of death of the
adv adv
original legacy contact.
The adverb very answers the question, “How seriously is Facebook considering having a contingent
legacy contact in case the original legacy contact dies?” The adverb seriously answers the question “How
is Facebook taking the issue of having a contingent legacy contact?”

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 How do we position adverbs in a sentence?
 The position of the adverb in a sentence can be determined by the type of adverb used.
Incorrect positioning of adverbs in a sentence can affect meaning.
 There are three basic adverb positioning: in the beginning, middle and end of the sentence.
 Adverbs can also be placed after to be, before the main verb, and in between the auxiliary verb
(has, have, can, shall, will etc.) and the main verb.
 Types of adverbs:
 Adverb of manner:
 The placement of an adverb of manner is flexible, but the most common and acceptable
placement is the end of the sentence:
He posthumously managed the account. [Beginning of sentence]
The account is posthumously managed. [Mid-sentence, before main verb]
He managed the account posthumously. [End of sentence]
 Adverb of place:
 An adverb of place can be put in the middle or at the end of the sentence:
There might be a copy on Facebook of your embarrassing photo. [Mid-sentence]
There might be a copy of your embarrassing photo on Facebook. [End of sentence]
 Adverb of frequency:
 An adverb of frequency can be placed in the middle or at the end of the sentence. It can
also be placed between the auxiliary verb and the main verb:
Facebook continuously thinks about having a contingent legacy contact. [Mid-
sentence, before main verb]
Facebook has to continuously think about having a contingent legacy contact.
[Between auxiliary and main verbs]
Facebook thinks about having a contingent legacy contact continuously. [End of
sentence]

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 Adverb of time
 An adverb that denotes infinitive time should be placed before the verb or between the
auxiliary and the main verbs:
The legacy contact can never delete the deceased person’s Facebook account.
[Between auxiliary and main verbs]
 Adverb of purpose
 An adverb of purpose is usually placed at the end of the sentence:
It is important to have a digital heir to easily bring clarity to a legally and emotionally
challenging issue. [End of sentence]
 Positioning of multiple adverbs in a sentence:
 When using multiple adverbs in a sentence, prioritize according to:
1. Manner
2. Place
3. Frequency
4. Time
5. Purpose
Netizens participated enthusiastically in the contest on Facebook and repeatedly sent
manner place frequency
entries before the end of the campaign period to have a higher chance of winning.
time purpose

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 Not all adverbs are useful in our reports. To maintain brevity and objectivity, it is important to know
which adverbs may be omitted from the reports without affecting insights.
 Omit adverbs that only serve as intensifiers:
 When we say, “Netizens considered Product A to be very good,” the intensifier very
does not help make the insight actionable, as it only shows the degree by which Product
A is considered to be good. Alternatively, we may focus on what makes Product A “very
good” and revise to “Netizens considered Product A to be good at doing Function B”.
 Also avoid using “highly”, “really”, “extremely” and similar adverbs. Focus on the
quantifiable data that led to the use of the intensifier. Instead of saying that “Netizens
highly discussed Topic A”, go direct to the point and say that “500 netizens discussed
Topic A.”
 This also applies to using adverbs of degree such as “most”, “more” or “less”. Instead of
saying “Most buzz were about Topic A,” we may rephrase it to “80% of buzz were about
Topic A.” We may also change “Less buzz were observed for Topic B this month,” to
“Buzz for Topic B declined from 100 to 55 month to month.”
 Always remember that different readers will have different interpretations of
intensifiers/degree adverbs. What is high or extreme to one person may not be high or
extreme to another. In this case, focus on giving specific details.
 For time-sensitive reports (e.g. SGG DARS), using adverbs of degree is acceptable, as
long as there is a legend with clear definitions of what is considered to be “most”,
“more”, “less” or “few”.
 Omit adverbs of manner, time and purpose when they only highlight redundant information
 In many cases, adverbs of manner, time and purpose do not add value to a sentence or
write-up.
 For example, if we remove the underlined adverbs of manner, time and purpose in the
sentence “Netizens participated enthusiastically in the Facebook contest and
repeatedly sent entries before the end of the campaign period to have a higher chance
of winning”, we will end up with the much concise “Netizens sent multiple entries to
the Facebook contest.”

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 In this case, the fact that netizens “sent multiple entries” already implied that netizens
enthusiastically participated during the campaign period for a higher chance of winning.
 Unless doing time-based analysis, it is usually not necessary to indicate the month or
covered period within the analysis because it is already indicated in the project scope as
the default basis of the report. Instead of saying, “Brand A received 1,000 total
engagement this month,” we can just say, “Brand A received 1,000 total engagement.”
 When used properly, adverbs can help us present a robust analysis.
 Use adverbs of frequency and time to highlight a recurring issue/trend:
 “Netizens regularly complained about the attitude of beauty advisors for the past 6
months.”
 “Buzz for the past 3 months were increasingly negative.”
 Adverbs of place and degree may be used to present trends and demographic data:
 “Most netizens who comment on BeautyExchange Forum prefer Giorgio Armani
Luminous Silk Foundation.”
 “Majority of commenters on HardwareZone Forum are experts on finance and
technology.”
 Adverbs of purpose can be used to show the needs and wants of netizens:
 “Netizens look for an inexpensive travel cosmetic set to bring to their Chinese New
Year vacation.
 “Young mothers go the BB Expo to stock up on discounted newborn diapers.”

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Exercise 1: Answer the crossword puzzle by supplying the correct adverb that
will complete the sentence.
7
1 O N
2 Q C 9
8 I
3 S M M S
S
6
4 N E R E D
X
T
5 M O T
Across
1. According to Mark Twain,
“politicians and diapers must be
changed _______, and for the same
reason.”
2. He ran very __________.
3. I meet with clients in a coffee shop
_________.
4. Never say _______.
5. Buzz were _______ from Twitter.
Down
6. Going out at night is ___________
dangerous.
7. “One isn't ___________ born with
courage, but one is born with
potential.” – Maya Angelou
8. _____ buzz were observed for
Lancôme this month than last
month.
9. I called for an ambulance
____________.

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Exercise 2: Read each of the following sentences carefully. Identify the adverb
and the word it modifies. Use yellow highlights for the adverb and green
highlights for the adjective/verb/other adverb it modifies.
1. Netizens received the design of the new Samsung Galaxy S6 negatively.
2. Most engagement with Clinique’s Valentine’s Day campaign came from
Facebook.
3. Forum commenters repeatedly posted about the poor wording of Singtel’s
advertisements.
4. As Maybelline’s lipsticks made their lips dry, netizens looked for alternatives
from other brands.
5. SK-II’s website crashed unexpectedly, as 3,000 netizens tried to sign up for its
trial campaign within the first 30 minutes.

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Beauty Industry Jargons
1. Pigmented – how rich the color of a
product is.
Sample Sentence: Estée Lauder Pure
Color Envy Shine was a favorite among
beauty bloggers for being highly
pigmented.
2. Waterlining – applying eye liner on the skin
between the lower lashes and the eyeball.
Sample Sentence: The Revlon ColorStay
eye liner is good for waterlining because
the color stays well.
3. Cosmeceutical – a marketing term to
describe a cosmetic product that is claimed
to have a therapeutic effect.
Sample Sentence: SkinCeuticals is one
of the most popular cosmeceutical
brands.
4. HD – refers to high definition resolution of
television/film cameras. This requires
careful blending and use of makeup
products to avoid unwanted aspects
showing on screen. HD also affects the
appearance of colors, especially red shades.
Makeup artists have developed HD makeup
techniques, while brands have released
makeup suitable for HD shoots.
Sample Sentence: Make Up For Ever HD
Invisible Cover Foundation was
recommended for brides who want to
look good in wedding photos.
5. Sheen – describes the level of shine that a
product has. Sheen ranges from a soft,
natural sheen (also called dewy) to a high-
sheen or glossy finish. A product with no
sheen is called matte.
Sample Sentence: M·A·C Sheen
Supreme Lipstick was described to
combine the color impact of a lipstick
and the shiny sheen of a lip glass.
For more beauty terms and their meanings, you may go to:
1. LUXURY AND BEAUTY TERMS (prepared by the QC Team)
2. HAIR AND MAKEUP GLOSSARY: A-M; N-Z
3. A GUIDE TO BEAUTY BLOGGER LINGO

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High-Impact Business Writing
Articulate thoughts in a clear and concise manner and use
the proper business writing format depending on the
target audience.
Available at Coursera from April 6 to May 8, 2015
Data Visualization
Present data in an understandable and insightful manner.
Available at Coursera from July 20 to August 16, 2015
Digital Analytics for Marketing
Professionals: Marketing Analytics in
Practice
Communicate and visualize analytics for effective marketing.
Available at Coursera from June (unspecified) to July 26, 2015

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Adverbs. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2, 2014, from
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/adverbs.htm
Adverb placement. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2, 2014, from http://site.uit.no/english/grammar/adverb-
placement/
Beauty Blogger Lingo Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from
http://www.company.co.uk/beauty/beauty-blogger-language-dictionary
change of heart. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com
website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/change of heart
curation. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com
website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/curation
Hair and Makeup Glossary: A-M |. (2012, December 13). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://hair-and-
makeup-artist.com/makeup-glossary/
Hair and Makeup Glossary: N-Z |. (2012, December 13). Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://hair-and-
makeup-artist.com/makeup-glossary-n-z/
interwoven. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com
website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/interwoven
Learning English: Position of Adverbs. (n.d.). Retrieved September 2, 2014, from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv202.shtml
legacy. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com
website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/legacy
What is a legacy contact? (n.d.). Retrieved February 27, 2015, from
https://www.facebook.com/help/1568013990080948
posthumously. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com
website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/posthumously
tightrope. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved February 26, 2015, from Dictionary.com
website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/tightrope
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