AdjektivAdverb

AdjektivAdverb is a term used in German grammar to describe the functional overlap between adjectives and adverbs. It refers to adjectives that can serve as adverbs without acquiring a distinct adverbial form. In everyday usage, adjectives used as adverbs modify verbs and typically do not carry endings, while adjectives in attributive position before nouns do take inflections.

In practice, three main functions are distinguished. Attributive adjectives modify nouns and inflect for gender, number, and case (for example, ein schneller Hund). Predicative adjectives follow a linking verb and describe the subject (Der Hund ist schnell). Adverbial use involves modifying verbs directly, often with the base adjective form unchanged (Er läuft schnell; Sie arbeitet hart). In the adverbial position, the word often behaves as an uninflected base form, which is a characteristic feature of the AdjektivAdverb phenomenon in German.

Examples illustrate the distinction. Attributive: ein schneller Mann. Predicative: Der Mann ist schnell. Adverbial: Der Mann rennt schnell. Some adjectives can also function as adverbs across different contexts without morphological change, highlighting the overlap between the adjective and adverb categories.

The term AdjektivAdverb emphasizes functional rather than a separate lexical class. It is commonly used in teaching and descriptive grammar to explain how many German adjectives can serve adverbial roles while retaining their base form. Related concepts include the broader notions of Adjektiv, Adverb, attributive and predicative use, and the study of morphosyntactic inflection in German.