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Should an adverb go before or after a verb?

Is it correct to write a sentence this way?

Now we can speak about the steps that I’ve previously listed.

Or it would be better move the temporal adverb to the end?

Now we can speak about the steps that I’ve listed previously.

Community
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MatterGoal
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    Strictly personal preference. Mine is your first sentence. It's normal in English for modifiers to come before the words they modify, not after, except for a few adjectives (viz., galore) and adverbs (but misplacing adverbs can sometimes confuse the reader). –  Jan 30 '13 at 09:04
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    Try yesterday in place of previously. – Kris Jan 30 '13 at 11:54
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    Even with a different temporal adverb: We came early. *We early came. – Edwin Ashworth Jan 31 '13 at 22:55

1 Answers1

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Both are ok, but the second one sounds a bit better and may be used more in casual speech.

amanda witt
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    See what I mean about personal preference? There are no real answers about usage, just "I like this better than that". –  Jan 30 '13 at 09:05
  • My doubt is related with past tense and adverbs of frequency. I write I've NEVER eaten snails and probably it confuses me :P and I supposed it was a good idea to use any adverb type with this rule. – MatterGoal Jan 30 '13 at 09:46
  • @MatterGoal: One should be as specific as possible when asking questions. There's no difference in meaning between "I've NEVER eaten snails" and "I NEVER have eaten snails", but they have different focuses and would be used in different contexts. Other placements of NEVER are not idiomatic, except in contrived contexts. "I NEVER ate snails" doesn't mean the same thing. It suggests that you won't eat snails because there aren't any more to eat or because you're about to die or to begin a liquid or vegan diet. Also, never is a negative, not an adverb of manner. –  Jan 30 '13 at 11:38