Sunday, November 1, 2026

Apparently, allegedly and basically

About twelve years ago a cute little boy was interviewed at an American fun fair by a TV reporter who handed him the microphone and let him ramble in the most adorable way. The surprisingly eloquent kid informed the audience that he had "never been on live television before" and went on to explain how great a particular ride in the fair had been. He became a YouTube sensation (so far it has racked up 73 million views) not because of the information he shared or his charming looks, but rather because of his repeated use of the adverb apparently. In fact, he is still known as "the apparently kid".





You probably know that we use the word apparently as a way to detach ourselves from the truth of a statement we are about to make. When we don't know exactly what has happened (but see some indications of what may be the case) it is not unreasonable to use an expression as a sort of "waiver". Apparently ripped jeans are no longer fashionable is something you can say when you're not sure whether ripped jeans have indeed fallen out of fashion or not. Similar adverbs, such as allegedly or presumably, perform an analogous function and should therefore be part of the repertoire of any advanced learner. The sentence "she was allegedly arrested for stealing a car" is a cautious way of saying that you're not sure that the arrest was made for the reason provided.

Apparently, bizarrely enough, unsurprisingly, etc. modify whole sentences. They are, in a way, a step up from the old adverb-adjective combinations which you learn in the intermediate level (see note below). In spontaneous English it's not uncommon to use adverbs as place holders or fillers. Native speakers often throw around basically and essentially for no discernible reason and that's okay. We're not supposed to be Demostenes 24/7. That said, go easy on those kinds of adverbs or else you risk becoming one day the "basically woman" on the Internet.


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N.B. You can use the word extremely with "basic" adjectives (tired, pretty, interesting) and absolutely with so-called "extreme" adjectives (exhausted, beautiful, fascinating), but that belongs to the B2 curriculum. The C1 level demands that you be aware of certain specific collocations (deeply concerned, highly skeptical, utterly devastated, etc.).


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Apparently, allegedly and basically

About twelve years ago a cute little boy was interviewed at an American fun fair by a TV reporter who handed him the microphone and let him ...