grammar - Do adverbs only describe verbs?



Egypt and Tunisia have both taken steps to form a new government after the overthrow of Mubarak and Ben Ali respectively.



In this context, does respectively describe the steps that have been taken, or the overthrow of Mubarak and Ben Ali?



Answer



Respectively shows that Egypt has taken the steps mentioned after the overthrow of Mubarak, and that Tunisia has done so after the overthrow of Ben Ali.


As for your headline question, adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives and other adverbs, as well as a number of other word categories.


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