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. It’s a cotton dress. It’s 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, long- playing, 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