Intensifiers
Intensifiers are adverbs or adverbial phrases that lend extra emphasis to or strengthen expressions. Intensifiers can only modify adjectives, adverbs and verbs. Some common intensifiers include: really, very, extremely and incredibly.
Other intensifiers are:
absolutely, amazingly, awfully, completely, dreadfully, exceptionally, fairly, insanely, particularly, pretty, quite, remarkably, terribly, totally, unusually, and utterly
Some intensifiers are only used with specific adjectives or adverbs. These include "highly," "dangerously," "seriously," "critically" and "bitterly."
Examples:
The car passed dangerously close to the cyclist.
Fred was critically ill for several weeks.
The hail seriously damaged my car.
This is a highly unusual case.
Last winter was bitterly cold.
In addition, certain intensifiers are used for comparative forms of adjectives. These are:
-a fair bit
-a good/great deal
-a lot
-far
-much
-quite a lot
Examples:
We are a good deal farther along than I first thought.
Sydney is a lot better than me at painting.
Thomas is much faster than Rodney.
They are a fair bit more experienced in marketing matters.
Air travel is quite a lot more expensive than road travel.
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