3.                                 Adjectives

Adjectives are words we use to describe a noun. They usually come before it:

a big, red, boring book

The noun in this phrase is book and the adjectives tell us what size it is (big), what colour it is (red) and what we think of it (boring).

Adjectives never change their form; they are always the same:

the ugly woman and the ugly man

the ugly football team and the ugly goalkeeper

the ugly dog and the ugly scenery

1) Some adjectives can only come before a noun. These are called attributive adjectives:

{­attributive adjective} + {­noun}

Other adjectives can only come after a verb. These are called predicative adjectives:

{­verb} + {­predicative adjective}

For example, alone is a predicative adjective; it can only follow:

I feel alone.

He is an alone man.

In the second example, we can use instead an attributive adjective and say:

He is a lonely man.

2) When we use a noun as an adjective, it is usually attributive only:

{­noun as attributive adjective} + {­noun}

a table leg

football hooligans

Common attributive-only adjectives include:

Notes

a) live is attributive only when it means not dead; it can be predicative when it has other meanings.

b) Intensifying adjectives such as sheer and sure are usually attributive only.

3) Common predicative-only adjectives include:

Notes

a) Many words in this list begin with a-

b) present is attributive only when it means in this or that place

Predicative and adnominal or attributive adjectives are invariable.

-able:

• It’s a considerable change of policy.

-al:

• Some MP’s are very non-committal on the subject.

-ative:

• It looks like there will be a legislative assembly in Scotland.

-cant:

• Labour's new plans are a significant change in policy.

-ive:

• Many MPs are responsive to the new plans.

Verb --> adjective

• to liquidise --> liquid: The embryos are stored in liquid nitrogen.

• to visualise --> visible: Frozen embryos are not visible to the naked eye.

• to arbitrate --> arbitrary: The deadline is completely arbitrary, according to the staff at the clinic.

ALSO!

• vanish --> vanishing

• privatise --> private •

• steal --> stolen

Noun --> adjective

• cell --> cellular: Embryos are cellular in form.

• pregnancy --> pregnant: Harriet Bains feared that she could be pregnant.

ALSO!

• horror --> horrible

• destruction --> destructive

• finance --> financial

• Canada --> Canadian

• youth --> young

• love --> beloved

• valuables --> valuable

• specificity --> specific

Adjectives ending in:

Two consonants/two vowels with one consonant: +-er/-est

• old --> older/oldest, small -->smaller/smallest • great --> greater/greatest

Vowel with consonant: final consonant doubled +-er/-est

• big --> bigger/biggest

BUT! Silent -e: +r/st

• nice --> nicer/nicest

Consonant and -y becomes -i +-er/-est

• dry --> drier/driest BUT! gay -->gayer/gayest

Adjectives with two syllables ending in:

-er, -le, -ow, -y: + -er/-est

• clever --> cleverer/cleverest

• simple --> simpler/simplest

• narrow --> narrower/narrowest

NOTE!

-y changes to -ie

• angry --> angrier/angriest, lucky --> luckier/luckiest

Adjectives having the stress on the last syllable:

• polite --> politer/politest

Adjectives with two syllables and the stress on the first syllable:

• more/most frequent, more/most normal

Adjectives with three or more syllables:

• more/most beautiful, more/most comfortable

Adjectives used only predicatively:

• more/most afraid, more/most like

Participles ending in -ing, -ed:

• interesting --> more/most interesting, excited --> more/most excited

Equality: as ... as

• This doll is as ill as the others.

Non-equality of two persons or things: not as/so ... as ...

• This treatment is not [stressed] so expensive as the other one.

• This treatment is not as expensive [stressed] as the other one.

Non-equality of two persons or things: -er than ...

• England is larger than Scotland.

Non-equality of three or more persons or things: the -est + of ...

• England is the richest of the three countries.

1) We can use an adjective as a noun by using this pattern:

{­the} + {­adjective}

We use this to talk about a group of people:

The rich get richer while the poor get poorer.

We can also use it to talk about an abstract idea:

the new, the old, the infinite

2) We can also put two nouns together. When we do this, the first noun acts like an adjective and gives us more information about the second noun:

 [determiner] + {­noun} + {­noun}

computer programs

some record players

We can often make an adjective from a verb. We do this by using the -ing and -ed participles:

We use the -ed participle as a subject adjective; it describes how the subject of a sentence feels:

She was interested in the programme.

The disappointed candidate felt cheated by the result.

We use the -ing participle as an object adjective; it describes the object of the sentence:

The programme was interesting (for her).

The candidate objected to the disappointing result.

1) When we put adjectives with nouns, they usually come before the noun:

{­adjective(s)} + {­noun}

a dirty, old man

some large blue whales

2) When the adjective is a subject complement, we put it after the verb:

{­verb} + {­adjective(s)}

The Atlantic Ocean is big.

The man seemed old, infirm and drunk.

3) When the adjective is an object complement, we put it after the noun phrase:

{­noun phrase} + {­adjective(s)}

They called him fat.

I painted the old car yellow and purple.

4) When we use compound pronouns ending with -body, -one, -thing and -where, the adjective follows:

{­compound pronoun} + {­adjective(s)}

Give me something cool and strong to drink.

Anybody brave can do it.