Adjectives

Adjectives
An adjective describes the person, thing etc.,
which noun refers to. We use adjectives to say
what a person, etc. is like or seems like.
Adjectives give us information about quality (a
beautiful dress), size (a big car), age (a young
man), temperature (cold evening), shape (a
round table), colour (blue eyes), origin (a
Japanese camera).
Many adjectives can answer the question What
.. like?

The adjective may have two

functions in a sentence:
It can be used as an attributive adjective
when it precedes the subject. (e.g. The
black boy said to the white boy)
It can be used as a predicative adjective
when it follows the subject or the verb.
(e.g. Life is short.) Some adjectives can be
used in this position only, e.g. afraid,
asleep.

Names that behave like

adjectives
Names of materials, substances, etc. resemble
adjectives. Its a cotton dress. Its a summer dress.
Words like cotton, summer do not have comparative
and superlative forms and cannot be modified by very.
Some other names for materials have adjectival
forms: gold/golden, lead/leaden, silk/silken/silky,
stone/stony. Adjectival forms has a metaphorical
meaning (like ). E.g. a gold watch = watch made
of gold; golden sunset = sunset which is like gold

Names that behave like

adjectives
Some other names for materials have
adjectival forms: gold/golden, lead/leaden,
silk/silken/silky, stone/stony. Adjectival
forms has a metaphorical meaning (like
). E.g. a gold watch = watch made of
gold; golden sunset = sunset which is like
gold

Adjectives
Most present participles can be used as
adjectives: breaking glass, frightening
story
Many past participles can be used as
adjectives: a broken window, a locked
door

Adjectives
The + adjective: e.g. the rich
Adjectives like the following are used after the
to represent a group as a whole: the blind, the
deaf, the dead/the living, the poor. These
adjectives are followed by a plural verb.
Sometimes after both, the can be dropped.
E.g. Both young and old enjoyed themselves
at the party.

Formation of adjectives
Some words function only as adjectives (e.g.
tall)
Some words function as adjectives or nouns
(e.g. cold)
Many adjectives which are related to verbs or
nouns have a characteristic endind (suffix):
truthful, enjoyable
Present participle ing forms often function
as adjectives: running water

Formation of adjectives
Some irregular past participles function as
adjectives (e.g. a broken glass)
Prefixes added to adjectives generally
have a negative effect (e.g. disagreeable,
uninteresting)

Formation of adjectives
Compound adjectives formed with participles:
-present participles: long-suffering, longplaying, time-consuming
-past participle: candle-lit table, self-employed
author, tree-lined avenue,
- ed words that look like participles although
they are formed from nouns: cross-eyed,
open-minded, slow-footed, hard-hearted,
quick-witted

Compound adjectives of
measurment
Cardinal numbers combine with nouns (usually
singular) to form compound adjectives relating to
time, measurement: a three-year old man, a
two-day conference, a six-foot hole, a $50 dress,
a ten-minute walk
Many compounds can be formed with well and
badly: well/badly -behaved, - built, - done, - paid,
etc.
Ill and poorly combine with some past
participles: -educated, -informed, -paid

Gradable and non-gradable

adjectives
An adjective is gradable when we can
imagine degrees in the quality referred to
and so can use it with words like very, too
and enough. E.g. very good, too good, less
good, not good enough.
An adjective is non-gradable when:
-we cannot use it with very, too
-we cannot make comparative and
superlative: unique, medical

Adjectives
Common pairs of ed/-ing adjectives are:
amazed/amazing, bored/boring,
excited/exciting, interested/interesting,
pleased/pleasing.
Similar pairs: upset/upsetting,
impressed/impressing, delighted/delightful
-Adjectives ending in ed often combine
with personal subjects and those ending in
ing often combine with impersonal ones.

Adjectives
E.g. The story excites me. I am excited
by it. It is exciting.
-Most -ing adjectives can also be applied
to people.
E.g. Gloria was quite enchanting to be
with.

Gloria was quite enchanted.

Comparison
There are three degrees of adjectives:
positive (My brother is tall.), comparative
(My brother is taller than my sister.) and
superlative. (My brother is the tallest of all
of us.)

Other types of comparison

Comparison of equality
Adjectives in the positive degree with as ...
as denote an equal degree.
E.g. X is
as old as Y.
In the negative sense first as may be
replaced by so. E.g. X is not so .... as ...

Other types of comparison

-Comparison of superiority
-Adjectives in comparative and superlative
denote a higher degree.
E.g. She is nicer than her sister. She is the
nicest of all girls in the school.
-Comparison of inferiority
Adjectives with less and least denote a lesser
degree, an inferiority.
E.g. This book is least interesting of all the books
I have read.

Irregular comparison
ill worse - the worst
little less-the least
much/many more
the most
far farther/further
the farthest/the
furthest

near nearer the

nearest/the next
later later/latter
the latest/the last
old older/elder the
oldest/the eldest