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An adjective is a word usually used to modify a noun and provide more information about the noun . Adjectives are often called 'describing words' as they describe a feature or quality of the noun such as colour, size, quantity, etc. They can therefore be used to add more meaning to a sentence.
There are many adjectives in the English language that tell us more information about the noun.
In the examples below, the adjectives and nouns have been highlighted:
A beautiful forest
A meaningful gift
An old car
The baby's first word
A red book
A relaxed outfit
Take a look at this sentence:
The blue old big car drove down the lane.
It really doesn't sound right, does it? This is because adjectives are arranged in an irregular order.
Take a look at this corrected sentence:
The big old blue car drove down the lane.
This sentence just 'feels' better as the adjectives are placed in a recognizable way.
For native English language speakers, putting adjectives in the correct order tends to come naturally, we can just feel it in our bones. However, for non-native speakers, remembering the order of adjectives can be a tricky process.
When there is a sequence of multiple adjectives, their order can be arranged as follows:
Quantity (' three bottles of rum')
Opinion or Observation ('It's a lovely shirt' / 'It's a ripped shirt')
Size ('It's a tiny shirt')
Shape ('It's a square shirt')
Age ('It's a new shirt')
Color ('It's a pink shirt')
Origin ('It's an American shirt')
Material ('It's a cotton shirt')
Purpose ('It's a business shirt')
A big, old, blue car - pixabay.
If a word is an adjective, it can be placed in several different ways. These include:
Before a noun ( pre-modification )
After a noun ( post-modification )
On its own as a complement
Pre-modification is when an adjective is placed before a noun to add information. For example:
The red car
The ugly man
The happy hamster
A loud noise
Adjectives that pre-modify a noun are traditionally called attributive adjectives.
Post-modification is when an adjective is placed after a noun to add information. For example:
The car will be red
The man was ugly
The hamster is happy
The noise was loud
These are traditionally called predicative adjectives. The adjective is not used immediately after the noun, instead, it follows a verb that links the sentence such as 'is', 'was', or 'seems'.
It is important to note that pre-modification is a term that can be applied to any information added before a noun. Other word classes pre-modify a noun, for example, determiners ('the' dog) and adverbs (the 'very' big dog). Whole phrases and clauses may also pre-modify a noun. By adding these different bits of information you create a noun phrase.
Adjectives can also be used as a complement to 'complete the sentence'. This is a form of post-modification however, in this case, the adjective is used with a pronoun. Here are some examples:
It will be red
He was ugly
She is happy
It was loud
As you can see, the adjective is used to modify the pronouns ('he', 'she', 'it'). It describes a quality about the person or thing, however, it does not specifically state what is being described. Complements usually follow the forms of the verb 'to be' such as 'is', 'was', and 'will be'.
Most adjectives can be placed freely between each position. For example:
The adjective 'happy' can pre modify a verb ('the happy hamster'), post-modify a verb ('the hamster is happy'), or be used as a complement to a pronoun ('it was happy').
There are only a few adjectives that are restricted to one position. For example:
The adjective 'main' can be used to post-modify a noun ('the main reason') but can not be used to pre-modify a noun ('the reason is main').
This is the opposite for the adjective 'alone' which can be used to post-modify a noun ('the child is alone') but can not be used to pre-modify a noun ('the alone child').
A happy hamster - pixabay
We can describe this photo in three ways:
Different types of adjectives can be used for different functions in a sentence:
When comparing two or more nouns, adjectives can give further information about the extent of the comparison. The initial adjective, otherwise called the positive degree adjective, is the basic, unchanged form of the adjective (e.g., 'fast'). These are normally qualitative adjectives that describe a quality of a thing.
A comparative adjective, as the name suggests, compares two or more nouns. This can be:
This is the highest or lowest possible form of the adjective. For example, 'highest', 'tallest', 'most handsome'. Superlative adjectives can often be made by adding the suffix '-est' or the word 'most'.
Comparative and superlative adjectives - StudySmarter Original
You may also hear the term 'grading', which simply means that an adjective can have more or less of the quality that they refer to. Comparative and superlative adjectives are both examples of grading.
There are some adjectives that, when made into comparative or superlative forms, become irregular. A good example of this is the adjective ' good '. When changed into a comparative adjective 'good' becomes ' better '. When changed into a superlative adjective it becomes ' best '.
Irregular comparative and superlative adjectives (StudySmarter Original)
Absolute adjectives are qualitative adjectives that can't be graded, intensified, or compared to anything else. In other words, they are in their 'ultimate' form. Some examples of absolute adjectives include:
Perfect
Empty
Infinite
Supreme
A thing can not be more 'perfect' or 'more infinite' than another. Therefore it is in its absolute form.
Classifying adjectives allocate things or people to a group, class, or category. These cannot be converted into comparative or superlative forms. Here are some examples:
British
Northern
Annual
Rural
It is not possible to have a 'more annual fair' and it is not grammatically correct to say 'more northern'. That is because each of these adjectives describes a group or category.
An adjective may also exist as a clause of its own . For example, 'fantastic!' derives from the sentence 'that's fantastic', however, it can be used on its own to express an emotion or feeling.
When studying language, it is important to look at the context in which words exist. Sometimes a word can be used as a noun, a verb, or an adjective, depending on the context. Here are two examples:
In the sentence 'I have a piano', the word 'piano' is a noun. However, in the sentence 'I have a piano lesson' the word 'piano' is an adjective used to describe the type of lesson.
The word 'falling' is used as a verb in the sentence 'the tree is falling'. However, in the sentence 'a falling tree', it is used as an adjective describing the state of the tree.
An adjective phrase is a simple phrase (group of words) that is 'built' around the adjective. It takes centre stage in the sentence. For example:
These flowers are lovely.
This is an adjective phrase as it is focused on the adjective 'lovely' as the most important piece of information.
Some words exist independently as adjectives and can not be used in any other word class, for example:
Other adjectives are formed from nouns by adding a suffix, for example:
Adjectives may also be formed from verbs by adding a suffix, for example:
read → readable
create → creative
The suffix at the end of a word can often indicate the class that a word belongs to.
Here is a list of suffixes that are common for adjectives:
Suffix | Examples |
-ible, -able | Gullible, comfortable |
-ful | Beautiful, skilful |
-y | Funny, dirty, sunny |
-less | Powerless, homeless |
-ous | Dangerous, nervous |
-some | Tiresome, wholesome |
-ive | Sensitive, supportive |
-ish | Foolish, selfish |
-al | Social, accidental |
An adjective is a word that modifies and provides more information about a noun. It describes certain features or qualities of the noun such as colour, size, quantity, etc.
Examples of adjectives include qualitative adjectives that describe a feature of a noun e.g. ‘red’ and evaluative adjectives that give an opinion about a noun e.g. ‘difficult’. Some adjectives may show a degree of comparison between two things e.g. ‘better’ whilst superlative adjectives compare nouns to the most extreme degree e.g. ‘best’.
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