Adjectives

Adjectives We generally use the word “adjective” to

describe words which tell us about the
quality of a noun or a pronoun. An
adjective is a describing word. Adjectives
tell us about such things as the size,
colour, age, material or quality of a
person or thing.

a red apple an interesting film

a beautiful girl an old couple
the blue ones a short conversation
a plastic bag a tiny insect
 Characteristics, position and formation of adjectives in English

Adjectives are invariable; they do not change their form whether the
noun they qualify is singular or plural.

a boy
a talkative girl
- boys
- girls
 The position of adjectives: Attributive position

Adjectives may be used:

(i) attributively: they usually come before a noun.

She is an intelligent girl.

She prepared some delicious food.
It was a slow journey.
She was holding a red umbrella in her hand.
That was a fantastic story.
 The position of adjectives: Predicative position
(ii) predicatively: they are separated from the noun, usually following a verb like be,
seem, appear, look or after a direct object in the pattern V + VCT + direct object +
object complement.
You look tired.
She is quite responsible.
I consider Martin irresponsible.

Notice that some adjectives – especially those beginning with the prefix “a” – alive,
ablaze, afloat, afraid, aghast, alone, aloof, alert, alike, asleep, awake, aware – are
generally used in the predicative position:

She was so tired that she fell asleep very early at night.
Keep alert in case somebody calls us.
The position of adjectives: Postpositive position
(iii) Postpositively: they can immediately follow the noun or pronoun they modify.

Compound indefinite pronouns and adverbs ending in “-body, -one, -thing, -where”
can be modified only postpositively:

I need something hot; it’s very cold outside.

Anyone clever enough can do it; it is not so difficult.
I’d like to go anywhere relaxing; I need a rest.
He is looking for someone intelligent.
Are you doing anything interesting this evening?
She did nothing wrong.
With several institutionalised expressions, the adjective is used postpositively:
the Chancellor elect
Attorney General
court martial
mission accomplished
Pope Emeritus
Adjectives such as past and preceding can occur in attributive and postpositive
position:
in past years
in years past
the preceding authorities
the authorities preceding
Some adjectives, such as concerned, involved, available, opposite, present,
proper, responsible, have different meanings when they are used before a noun
(attributive position) or immediately after it postpositive position).

Attributive: I was asked for my present address. (= my address now)

Postpositive: All the people present (= who were there) approved of the
decision.

Attributive: Concerned parents (= worried about) held a meeting to discuss the

issue.
Postpositive: The parents concerned (= who were involved, affected) held a
meeting to discuss the issue.
Other cases in which the adjective is used postpositively

When the word only precedes a singular noun, the adjective frequently follows the
noun:
the only person available
the only place suitable
Some adjectives that describe size can come after a noun group consisting of a
number or determiner and a noun that indicates the unit or measurement:
He was about six feet tall.
The water was several metres deep.
The baby is nine months old.
The river is nearly two miles wide here.
 Formation of Adjectives: Simple Adjectives

Many common adjectives do not have a distinctive “adjectival” ending at all.

Examples:
good – kind – sweet – tall – small – fast

Other adjectives have recognisable adjectival endings – called a “suffix”. This

process is called derivation. Typical adjective endings include:
-able/-ible: understandable; capable; readable; incredible
-al: functional; influential; chemical, situational
-ic: syntactic; artistic; terrific
-ful: beautiful; helpful; harmful, etc.
Adjectives can be formed from different words:
1) They can be formed from nouns:
accident – accidental
length – long
wind – windy
2) They can be formed from verbs:
enjoy – enjoyable
help – helpful
talk – talkative
obey – obedient
3) They can be formed from other adjectives:
comic – comical
economic – economical
red – reddish
correct – corrective
sick - sickly
Participles used as adjectives:

-ing: interesting; exciting; amusing; boring

-ed: interested, exited, amused; bored
-en: broken; hidden; frozen; written

Nouns can be used as adjectives:

a school uniform
history books
computer software
 Formation of Adjectives: Compound Adjectives

A compound adjective is a single adjective made up of more than one word.

There are three forms for compound nouns:

1) with spaces: swimming pool; ice cream; bus stop; living room
2) without spaces: seafood; greenhouse; classmate
3) with hyphens : mother-in-law; dry-cleaning; merry-go-round
Compound adjectives can be formed with:

1. noun + noun: school bag; taxi driver; wallpaper

2. adjective + noun: grey matter; full moon; highway
3. preposition + noun: onlooker; bystander; influx
4. noun + verb: sunrise; rainfall; haircut
5. preposition + verb: input; output; outbreak
6. verb + preposition: a checkout; take-off; drawback
7. present participles: a time-consuming task; a never-ending story
8. past participles: worn-out shoes, a broken-down car
9. cardinal numbers + nouns: a two-day seminar, a three-week holiday
10. well, badly, ill, poorly + past participle: a well-paid job; a poorly-paid worker;
an ill-chosen remark
 Some special notes on adjectives

The adjective as headword of a noun phrase

● The structure the + adjective is used as the head of a noun phrase when we
want to refer to the whole class of people described by the adjective.
When this structure is working as head of the subject, the verb goes in the
plural form.
We have made special arrangements for the handicapped and the disabled.
Our aim is not to make the rich poorer, but to make the poor richer.
The young do not listen to the old.
The disadvantaged should be helped by the wealthy.
● Nouns describing materials, substances, purpose and use can be used as
adjectives, but they do not have comparative or superlative forms and cannot
be modified by “very”.
a cotton shirt
a silver brooch
a stone wall
a gold necklace
a summer dress
a chopping board
● However, there are adjectives derived from the above nouns. These
adjectives have a metaphorical meaning:
silky hair (hair which feels like silk)
golden hair
silvery moon
stony look
feathery leaves
● There are certain adverbs such as above, upstairs, downstairs, inside,
etc. which can be used as adjectives:
the upstairs room
the downstairs bathroom
the above rule
the inside page