The invention is based on the discovery that adhesive compositions containing certain low-viscosity, mono-ethylenically unsaturated monomers have surprisingly good cure parameters, resulting in very little weight loss upon cure. Many of these monofunctional monomers used alone or in combination with other monofunctional monomers described herein have high glass transition temperatures when cured. Moreover, since these monomers are monofunctional the crosslink density of the adhesive composition does not increase (relative to multi-functional monomers), which in turns results in lower stress, lower modulus adhesive compositions. As such, these monomers are useful in a variety of thermoset adhesive compositions, such as for example, die attach adhesive compositions.