• Key Stage 2 • Grammar
A fronted adverbial is a word or phrase at the start of a sentence that tells you more about the action, such as when, where or how it happened. Pupils learn fronted adverbials in Year 4 and use them throughout Key Stage 2. This guide explains what they are, gives plenty of examples and shows how to punctuate them.
On this page
The Quick Answer
- An adverbial is a word or phrase that tells you more about a verb or clause, such as when, where or how something happens.
- A fronted adverbial is an adverbial that has been moved to the start of the sentence, before the verb.
- Fronted adverbials are usually followed by a comma: “Later that day, I heard the bad news.”
- They are part of the Year 4 national curriculum.
What Is a Fronted Adverbial?
The national curriculum glossary explains that a word or phrase that normally comes after the verb can be moved before it. When this happens, it has been “fronted”. A fronted adverbial is an adverbial that has been moved before the verb.
| Without fronting | With a fronted adverbial |
|---|---|
| I’m visiting my granddad the day after tomorrow. | The day after tomorrow, I’m visiting my granddad. |
| Make sure you’ve got a pencil before we begin. | Before we begin, make sure you’ve got a pencil. |
| I heard the bad news later that day. | Later that day, I heard the bad news. |
The first two examples come from the national curriculum glossary and the third from English Appendix 2.
Fronted Adverbial Examples
Fronted adverbials can tell the reader when, where, how or how often something happens:
| Type | Fronted adverbials | Example sentence |
|---|---|---|
| When | After lunch, Last night, In the morning, Suddenly | After lunch, we went to the park. |
| Where | Under the bridge, In the distance, Outside the school | In the distance, a dog barked. |
| How | Slowly, Without a sound, As quickly as possible | Without a sound, the cat crept forward. |
| How often | Every morning, Once a week, Sometimes | Every morning, Sam feeds the rabbits. |
| Viewpoint | Fortunately, Sadly, Surprisingly | Fortunately, it didn’t rain. |
A List of Fronted Adverbials
- Time: Afterwards, Before long, Eventually, Finally, Later that day, Meanwhile, Next, The next morning, Soon, Yesterday
- Place: Above the clouds, Across the field, At the end of the road, Behind the door, Nearby, Next to the river
- Manner: Carefully, Excitedly, In a flash, Nervously, Quietly, With a huge grin
- Frequency: Every day, Now and then, Occasionally, Often, Once upon a time
- Viewpoint: Amazingly, Clearly, Luckily, Of course, Unfortunately
Punctuating Fronted Adverbials
The Year 4 national curriculum includes “use of commas after fronted adverbials”. Put a comma after the fronted adverbial, before the main part of the sentence.
Tip: a quick test is to move the adverbial back to the end of the sentence. If the sentence still makes sense, you have found the adverbial and the comma goes where it ends at the front.
Common Mistakes
- Missing the comma: “After school we played football” should be “After school, we played football.”
- Comma in the wrong place: the comma comes after the whole adverbial, not partway through it.
- Overusing them: starting every sentence with a fronted adverbial makes writing feel repetitive. Use them to vary sentence openings.
- Confusing with subjects: in “The dog barked”, “The dog” is the subject, not a fronted adverbial.
Fronted Adverbials in KS2
Fronted adverbials are introduced in Year 4, along with the term adverbial. In Years 5 and 6, pupils use adverbials of time, place and number to link ideas across paragraphs. Questions about adverbials and comma use can appear in the KS2 grammar, punctuation and spelling test. See our guide to KS2 grammar terms for the other terms pupils learn.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a fronted adverbial?
An adverbial that has been moved to the start of a sentence, before the verb, such as “Later that day, I heard the bad news.”
Do you always need a comma after a fronted adverbial?
The national curriculum teaches pupils to use a comma after fronted adverbials. It makes sentences clearer to read.
What year are fronted adverbials taught?
They are part of the Year 4 national curriculum.
Can a fronted adverbial be one word?
Yes. Single adverbs such as “Suddenly,” or “Fortunately,” can be fronted adverbials.
Related Guides
Help your child build confidence in maths and English
Monster Learning gives children curriculum-aligned maths and English activities, games and SATs-style practice papers, with instant feedback after every attempt.
Teacher or school leader? Start a free school trial.
Sources: Department for Education, National curriculum in England: English programmes of study, including English Appendix 2: vocabulary, grammar and punctuation and the English glossary.
