ADJECTIVES

ADJECTIVES

ADJECTIVES

Traditionally, adjectives are defined as words that describe nouns or pronouns.  When they describe nouns or pronouns, adjectives typically answer the following questions:

What kind?             Which one?             How many?

For example, in the phrase

Tall is an adjective describing the noun man.

Tall answers the question "which man?" or "what kind of man?"

Similarly, in the phrase,

Easy is an adjective describing the noun assignment.

Easy answers the question, "what kind of assignment?"

  

Adjectives are usually placed before the nouns they describe, as in the examples, tall man and easy assignment, above.

Thus, one may identify an adjective by using the following word-order test:

*

*

Adjectives may also follow the noun they describe.

Example:

                          

Finally, adjectives may follow a verb of being or a linking verb, thus completing the noun subject

Examples

Like nouns, adjectives are often recognizable by their suffixes.

Endings such as  -ous   -ful  -ish  -able    usually designate adjectives.

Examples:

                             

Comparative and superlative forms

Single-syllable adjectives use -er and -est endings to designate comparative and superlative forms:

Examples:

                      

Adjectives of two or more syllables use more and most for comparative and superlative forms.

Examples:

                          

Note:	Two-syllable adjectives ending in -y may also use the -er / -est endings to designate comparative and superlative.
Examples:

                     

Note:  the following adjectives do not follow the regular rules for forming comparative and superlative forms: good, bad, little, ill. 

          

To create negative comparative and superlative forms, use
less  for –er	and	least for –est

             Examples:

                   

Proper Adjectives

They look like proper nouns because they are captialized but they are modifying nouns, and therefore are called adjectives.

It will answer the question what kind or which one? about the noun.

For Example : Darjeeling Tea is very famous around the world.

Now, kind of Tea is Darjeeling (which is a place in India). Here, it is Proper Adjective.

Possessive Adjectives

A possessive adjective ("my," "your," "his," "her," "its," "our," "their") is similar or identical to a possessive pronoun; however, it is used as an adjective and modifies a noun or a noun phrase.

Demonstrative Adjectives

The demonstrative adjectives "this," "these," "that," "those," and "what" are identical to the demonstrative pronouns, but are used as adjectives to modify nouns or noun phrase.

Interrogative Adjectives

An interrogative adjective ("which" or "what") is like an interrogative pronoun, except that it modifies a noun or noun phrase rather than standing on its own.

Indefinite Adjectives

An indefinite adjective is similar to an indefinite pronoun, except that it modifies a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase.