Adjectives How many adjectives can you think of to describe this photo (noun)?

This photo is __________.  bright, incredible, sparkly, colorful, detailed, unique, green, crisp, entertaining, beautiful, freaky, recent, majestic, amazing, mind- bending, National Geographic, unbelievable, creepy, bizarre, electric, scientific, tremendous, orange, spectacular, award- winning, professional, brilliant, educational, lucky, confusing, creative, inspiring, intriguing, complex, stunning, dynamic, spirited, one-of- a-kind, lively, special, rectangle, precise, digital, focused, impressive, December This is a/an __________ photo.

What is an adjective?  An adjective is a word that modifies, or describes, a noun or pronoun.  It describes or tells:  which one: this, that, these, those (demonstratives)  what kind: e.g. green, funny, wide, intense  how many: many, several, four, two-thousand.

Where are adjectives used?  1) Adjectives can come before or after nouns: the new car/that car is new  2) Adjectives can come after linking verbs: that car looks new (predicate adjectives)  Linking verbs do not express action. Instead, they connect the subject of the verb to additional information about the subject.  e.g. be, become, seem, look, appear, feel, grow, prove, remain, smell, sound, taste, turn etc. (I am happy because the car smells new.)  3) They can be modified by adverbs: I am insanely happy about my new car!

The most commonly used adjectives: articles and demonstratives  Indefinite articles: a, an.  They refer to someone or something in general: a boy; an idea.  Use a before a word beginning with a consonant and an before a word beginning with a vowel.  Exceptions:  The silent “h” (an honest error; an honorable death)  When "u" makes the same sound as the "y" in "you," or "o" makes the same sound as "w" in "won," then a is used (a united front; a one-legged man).  Definite article: the.  The definite article indicates that the noun is a particular one (or ones) identifiable to the reader/listener: the ball; the computers.  Demonstrative adjectives: this, that, those, these.  They show whether the noun they refer to is singular or plural and whether it is located near to or far from the speaker or writer.

Adjectives in comparisons  Adjectives can be used to express degree of modification (of a noun).  The adjective forms are positive, comparative, and superlative.  This tree is tall. (positive) That tree is taller. (comparative) The last tree is the tallest. (superlative)  NOTE: some comparative and superlative forms, especially when they are formed from longer words, use the adjectives more and most: this is the most enlightening grammar lesson.

 A proper adjective is adjective that is written with a capital letter.  They are often derived from proper nouns related to a specific person, people, place, language, or organized group.  Italian coffee (Italy)  Lutheran handbook (Luther)  Newtonian telescope (Newton)  Bulls jersey (Bulls)  Apple smartphone (Apple)  Pacific island (Pacific)  Hollywood stars (Hollywood)  Victorian era (Victoria)  In some cases a proper noun is converted into a proper adjective simply by adding suffixes –ian, -ese, -an, or –esque. In other cases, the spelling of the proper noun isn’t changed at all. Proper adjectives

Order of adjectives  Multiple adjectives can describe a single noun: two young American students  Order is essential: the two young American students vs. young American two students vs. young the American two students  Determiners usually come first : articles, possessives, demonstratives, quantifiers, numbers.  Next, adjectives are ordered according to the following categories:  Opinion what you think about something: (silly, beautiful, horrible)  Size how big or small something is: (large, tiny, enormous, little)  Age how young or old: (ancient, new)  Shape (square, round, flat, rectangular)  Color (blue, pink, reddish, grey)  Origin/Proper Adj. (French, lunar, American, eastern, Greek)  Material what something is made from: (wooden, metal, cotton, paper)  Purpose what something is used for: (sleeping bag, frying pan)

Image sources  3/33/Three_Trees_-_geograph.org.uk_-_65245.jpg 3/33/Three_Trees_-_geograph.org.uk_-_65245.jpg  content/uploads/Subaru-Impreza-WRX-STI-2011_1- 587x389.jpg content/uploads/Subaru-Impreza-WRX-STI-2011_1- 587x389.jpg  tography/photo-of-the-day/dragonfly-branch- rain/ tography/photo-of-the-day/dragonfly-branch- rain/  eedster87322/Jerseys/IMG_0210.jpg eedster87322/Jerseys/IMG_0210.jpg

Practice for homework  Complete worksheet by 1/10/2010 (Tues.)  Read directions carefully  Number or highlight key instructions  Complete sample problems together