The children were hardly awake after the long journey.
Here, the word “hardly” is a/ an -

• The children were hardly awake after the long journey. Here, the word 'hardly' is an Adverb.

- "hardly" modifies the adjective "awake", indicating the degree or extent to which the children were awake.
- অর্থাৎ, প্রদত্ত বাক্যে verb 'were' এর পরে adjective "awake" কে modify করতে তার পূর্বে Adverb 'hardly' বসেছে।

• Hardly (Adverb):
- English Meaning: Almost no; almost not; almost none.
- Bangla Meaning: নামেমাত্র; সবেমাত্র; বড় একটা নয়; পুরোপুরি নয়।

Source: Accessible Dictionary by Bangla Academy, Merriam-Webster Dictionary.