Adjectives A
ARTICLES
POSITION
SPECIAL TYPES
DEGREES
FUNCTIONAL VARIATION
DEFINITION
= describing word that modifies a Noun/Pronoun
= limiting Adj.
Definite (the): description not needed / about to describe / important + singular & plural
Indefinite (a/an): nonspecific, singular, uncountable, generalized
Consonant sound: /y/ a eulogy, /h/ a historic site, /w/ a Ouachita tribe member
Vowel sound: an LSAT test, an X-files episode, an hour ago
Demonstrative value: the red-and-blue cloth = better as the red and blue cloth; the red cloth and the blue cloth = better as the red and the blue cloth
Zero/Implied: by sunset (time); has cancer (illness); travel by train (transportation); go to bed (pers. routines); make breakfast (meals)
...BUT FOLLOWS WHEN:
USUALLY PRECEDES (Attributive Adj.): perfect storm, spectacular view, a bowl of soup, utter nonsense, a mere child, low-rent district
FOLLOWS POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS: the children's shoes, the company's former president
FOLLOWS PRONOUNS: People found HIM unconscious, Some like IT hot, +PREDICATE ADJECTIVES: IT WAS insensitive + WHO WAS so angry?
Predicate Adj.s follow Linking Verb & modify the SUBJECT: the CHILD IS afraid, the NIGHT BECAME colder, THIS TASTES delicious, I FEEL bad. The TRAIN WILL BE late.
(The TRAIN will be here at a late hour: late = NOT a Pred. Adj. because it modifies HOUR, not TRAIN)
DATES = Descriptive Adj.s
Month-Year/Month-Day, no hyphen/comma: May 1 festivities, May 2001 ceremonies
Month-Day-Year, add commas (but awkward): the May 1, 2001, ceremonies... INSTEAD, recast as: Ceremonies on May 1, 2001
SUPERLATIVES
UNCOMPARABLE (cannot add: very, large or quite): entire, impossible, pregnant, unique (BUT sometimes: most perfect)
COMPARATIVE
EQUAL: as old as
3+ SYLLABLES: more intelligent, less purposeful
1 SYLLABLE: Add -er: lighter, cheaper, happier
1 SYLLABLE: Add -est: biggest, bitterest, lightest
3+ SYLLABLES: most quarrelsome, least humerous
2 SYLLABLES:
- Some take -est: bitterest, holiest, noblest
- Most take most/least: most fruitful, least reckless
COORDINATE ADJECTIVE Connected
PHRASAL ADJECTIVES Compounds (-)
PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVES
Present Participle: dinning room, walking stick, rising star
Past Participle: endangered species, completed tasks, proven need, shaven face
COMMA/AND: skilled, experienced artist...experiences, skilled artist, skilled AND experienced artist
If not connected, no comma/and: good team player, red brick house, wrinkled rain coat
2 SYLLABLES:
- -er OR more/less: Adj.s ending in
-er, -le, -ow, -ure, -y - Some take -er: lazier
- Most take more/less: less hostile, more careless
RULES:
- Single vowel, end in single consonant: Double consonant + suffix: red-redder-reddest
- Ends in silent -e: Drop -e, add suffix: polite-politer-politest
- If Adj. = Participle: Add more/less OR most/least: more boring, most tired
- Some 1 syllables can only take more/most (only informal speech): more real, less right, least wrong
- Some 2 syllables can only take more/most: most eager, most proper, more somber
- 2 syllables + -un take suffix OR more/most: unhappiest, most unhappy
- Irregular: good-better-best, less-lesser-least
- Special emphasis is needed: reasons innumerable, captain courageous
- Standard usage: court-martial, notary public
- = Predicate Adj. following a Linking/Copulative Verb: I am ready, the city is asleep, the door was open
- Type of Pronoun usually followed by Adj.: anything good, everything red, nothing important, something wicked
Adverbial Phrase:
- If mostly ADJECTIVAL: very tired, very drunk
- If mostly VERBAL: very much distrusted, very much appreciated, very much delayed
- Very (only): bored, interested, pleased, satisfied
Add Adverb: quite surprised, barely concealed, little known
- Better define: red car, human error
- Limit: two pigs, this time
- Suffix: manage-able, mystic-al, element-ary, hammer-ed, wood-en, statu-esque, harm-ful, inaccess-ible, artist-ic, fool-ish, demonstrat-ive, help-less, child-like, ghost-ly, peril-ous, lone-some, sunn-y
- No suffix: old, tall, brilliant
- Proper: a New York minute, a Cuban cigar, a Canadian dollar