Shortly (adverb)

 

Let's explore the adverb "shortly." This word means "in a short time" or "soon." It's useful to know and can help you sound more natural in English.

What Does "Shortly" Mean?

"Shortly" indicates something will happen soon. For example, "The bus will arrive shortly" means the bus is coming soon.

How to Use "Shortly" in Sentences

• Travel Context: Our flight will take off shortly. Please fasten your seatbelts.
• Healthy Living Context: The yoga class will begin shortly. Let's get our mats ready.
• Music Context: The concert is starting start shortly. Are you excited?
• Sports Context: The game will begin shortly. Make sure you find your seats.

Try using "shortly" in your own sentences. 

• For example, write about something you are waiting for: The Amazon truck will arrive shortly.
• Describe an event that is about to happen: The movie will start shortly.

Practice using "shortly" in your daily conversations and writing. The more you use it, the more natural it will feel.

Pretty

Do you know what pretty means in the following sentences?

• Natalie has a pretty good memory. 
• I'm a pretty informal guy. I ride a Harley.
• Tom lives a pretty simple life. 

In the above cases, pretty is an adverb. Adverbs give more meaning to adjectives and adverbs, so in those sentences pretty defines the adjectives good, informal, and simple. Thus, pretty means to a moderately high degree, or fairly.

The adjective pretty means to be attractive, such as a pretty dress, a pretty little girl, a pretty flower.

If you incorporate the adverb pretty into your vocabulary, you’ll be a pretty good English speaker. It’s pretty simple, don’t you agree?