What are Adjectives

An adjectives are words which are used to point out or describe a person or thing, animal, place and which describe or modify nouns are known as Adjectives.

Examples :

Sizes : big, small, large, thin, thick

Shapes : triangular, round, square, circular

Colors : black, blue, white, green, red

Personality : happy, sad, angry, depressed

Time : Yearly , monthly, annually

Ages : new, young, old, brand-new, second-hand

Sounds : Loud, noisy, quiet, silent

Tastes : juicy, sweet

Qualities : good, bad, mediocre etc.

Now in a sentence –

Ex – ‘My mother was angry on me.’

In this sentence, the word ‘angry’ is the adjective. It is used to describe about the noun ‘mother’.

There are five types of adjectives.

1. Adjective of quality

2. Adjective of quantity

3. Adjective of number

4. Demonstrative Adjective

5. Interrogative Adjective

1. Adjective Of Quality: Words which are used to describe about the kind or quality of a noun are known as adjectives of quality.

Ex – She is a beautiful girl.

In this sentence, the word she is a pronoun which represents a noun and the word beautiful is an adjective. Here the adjective explains or adds more information about the noun in terms of its kind. Hence it is called adjective of quality.

2. Adjective Of Quantity: Words which shows the quantity of thing needed for a noun are known as adjectives of quantity.

Ex – Take great care of your health.

In this sentence, the word health is the noun and the word great is an adjective. Here the adjective is used to express the quantity or the amount needed for the noun. Hence this is known as adjective of quantity.

3. Adjective of Number: Words which are used to express the exact quantity of noun are known as adjectives of number.

Ex – I have taught you many things.

Here many is an adjective which describes the noun things. The adjective is used to specify the quantity of the noun. Hence, it is known as adjective of number.

Adjective of number are of three types namely.

A. Definite Numeral Adjective

B. Indefinite Numeral Adjective

C. Distributive Numeral Adjective

A. Definite Numeral Adjective:

Words which express the exact number are known as definite numeral adjectives. There are two types of definite numeral adjectives,

a. Cardinals ( one, two, three etc.)

b. Ordinals (first, second, third etc.)

For example,

Ex – He came first in his class.

Here the word first is the adjective which is used to describe the position of the noun.

B. Indefinite Numeral Adjective: Words which do not express the exact quantity are known as indefinite numeral adjectives. Some of indefinite numeral adjectives are

All

No

Many

Few

Some

Any

Several

Certain

For example,

Ex – All Indians are my brothers and sisters.

Here the word all is an adjective which is used to describe the quantity of noun Indians but not the exact number.

C. Distributive Numeral Adjective:

Words which points out or describes noun one at a time are known as distributive numeral adjectives.

Ex – Either pen will do.

Here The word either is the adjective used to point out one noun from a group of nouns.

4. Demonstrative Adjective:

Words which are used to point any noun in particular are known as demonstrative adjectives. Some of the demonstrative adjectives are this, these, those, that etc.

Have a look at this sentence,

Ex – These mangoes are tasty. In this sentence, the word these is an adjective which is used to represent a set of noun in this case, mangoes.

5. Interrogative Adjective:

Words which are used to ask questions are known as interrogative adjectives. Some of interrogative adjectives are what, which, whose etc.

Ex – Whose book is it?

In this sentence, the word whose is an adjective which is used to question the ownership of the noun in this case, book.

Note: Adjective of number and Adjective of quantity depend on the usage in a sentence.

Every adjective has three degrees of its own. They are : Positive, Comparative, Superlative degrees.

1. Positive Degree

2. Comparative Degree

3. Superlative Degree

Positive         Comparative             Superlative

bold               bolder                   boldest

bright             brighter                 brightest

black              blacker                  blackest

able               abler                    ablest

true               truer                    truest

sad                sadder                   saddest

early              earlier                  earliest

ugly               uglier                   ugliest

active             more active              most active

beautiful          more beautiful           most beautiful

good               better                   best

bad                worse                    worst

little             less                     least

1. Positive Degree : It is used to describe the quality of noun. A positive degree both preceded and followed by as, in negative sense it can be followed by so also.

Ex : Delhi is as big as Mumbai.

He is not so Clever as his sister.

2. Comparative Degree : It is used when there is a comparison between two nouns or pronouns. A comparative degree is followed by than.

Ex : He is better than you

The Ganges is longer than any other river in India.

3. Superlative Degree :  When noun is shown as a superior out of a group, class etc. Superlative degree is always precede by ‘ the ‘.

Ex : He is the best student of the class.

Rules of Adjectives

1. When a selection is made out of the two, and two is given in the sentence, the is used before the adjective denoting comparison.

Ex : Amit is the better of the two brothers.

2. Preferable takes to and is not preceded by more.

Ex : Tea is preferable to coffee in India.

3. When two adjectives in different degrees of comparison are used in the same sentence, each should be complete in itself.

Ex : My father is as rich as if not richer than your mother.

4. If two adjectives are connected by and, they should be in the same degree throughout.

Ex : Seema is more intelligent and more active.

5. The comparative in -er is not used when we compare two qualities of the same person or thing.

Ex : Divya is more wise than strong.

6. When two objects are compared with each other, the latter term of comparison must exclude the former.

Ex : Savita is cleverer than any other student in his class.

7. The comparative degree is generally followed by than but the following comparative adjectives are followed by the preposition to : inferior, superior, prior, anterior, posterior, senior, junior.

Ex : Bangladesh fielding is inferior to Pakistan.

8. Adjectives expressing qualities that do not admit of different degrees cannot be compared.

Ex : Our field is square.

9. Double comparatives and superlatives are to be avoided.

incorrect: Zarda mangoes are more sweeter than Maldah ones.

Correct: Zarda mangoes are sweeter than Maldah ones.

Some exam oriented concepts which are used in various questions:

Rule-1 Adjective of quantity like much, LITTLE, ENOUGH, SUFFICIENT, WHOLE, etc. must be used with uncountable nouns only as they express quantity and not number.

Ex.-Many (not much) boys are absent from the class today.

Many (not much) boys failed in the examination.

Rule-2 The use of ‘few’, ‘a few’ and ‘the few’ should be used with care they denote number. Few means ‘NOT MANY’.

Few has negative meaning

A few means ‘SOME AT LEAST’

The few means ‘WHATEVER THERE IS’.

Ex. I read few books.

I Read a few books.

I Read the few books I had.

A few men are true from fault. (Incorrect)

Few men are true from fault. (Correct)

Rule-3 Use of little, a little, the little

Little means ‘hardly any’ in quantity.

Ex.-He had little money

There is little water in the bottle

There is a little hope of his recovery (Incorrect)

There is little hope of his recovery (Correct)

A little means ‘Some’ in quantity if not much.

Ex.-Little knowledge is a dangerous thing. (Incorrect)

A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.(correct)

He had a little money.

There is a little water in the bottle.

The little means ‘not much in quantity but all that is’.

Ex.-I spent the little money I had.

 little water that is in the bottle may be used for the patient. (Incorrect)

A little water that is in …………….. (Correct)

Rule-4 Adjective of number must be used only with the countable nouns and not with uncountable as they indicate number and not quantity.

Ex-I have taken many milk today. (Incorrect)

I have taken much milk today. (Correct)

Do not drink so many water. (Incorrect)

Do not drink so much water. (Correct)

Rule-5 Some, All, Any, No. Most etc. may be used both as adjectives of number and Adjectives of quantity as they can express number as well as quantity.

Ex.-There are no boys in the class (Adj. of Number)

There is no milk in the pot. (Adj. of quantity)

All big machines are imported from foreign countries. (Adj. of number)

All the sugar was thrown into the sea. (Adj. of Quantity)

Give me some water. (Adj. of Quantity)

Some of these students are excellent. (Adj. of Number)

Rule-6 the comparative adjectives, ending with like superior, inferior, senior, junior,  prior, anterior, posterior, exterior etc. Take ‘to after them and not ‘than’.

Ex.-He is senior than me. (Incorrect)

He is senior to  me. (Correct)

Health is preferable than wealth. (Incorrect)

Health is preferable to wealth.  (Correct)

Rule-7 Double comparative adjectives or double superlative adjectives must not be used.

(Incorrect) He is more senior than me.

(Correct) He is senior to me.

Milk is more preferable than tea. (Incorrect)

Milk is preferable to tea. (Correct)

Ashoka was the most strongest  of the kings. (Incorrect)

Ashoka was the strongest of the kings. (Correct)

Rule-8 Comparative degree must be used when the comparison is between two persons of things and superlative degree when the comparison is among more than two things.

Ex.-Who is the tallest of these two brothers ? (Incorrect)

Who is taller of these two brothers ? (Correct)

He is wise of all students in the class. (Incorrect)

He is the wisest of all students in the class. (Correct)

Rule-9 The comparative ending in ‘er’ is not used when we compare two qualities in the same person or thing. In that case we use ‘more’ before the Adjective.

Ex.- Ram is braver than wise. (Incorrect)

Ram is more brave than wise (Correct)

Rule-10 Use of (Later, Latter; latest, last)

Later and Latest – shows time

Latter and last – shows position

Ex.-He latter refused to come (Incorrect)

He later refused to come. (Correct)

The later part of the novel is not clearly written (Incorrect)

The latter part of the novel is not clearly written . (Correct)

Rule-11 Use of (farther, further; farthest, furthest)

Farther, Farthest - denote distance

Further, Furthest - next, also (position)

Ex.-After this he made no farther statement. (Incorrect)

After this he made no further statement. (Correct)

Delhi is farther from Haridwar than Roorkee.

Don’t make further delay.

Rule-12 Before superlative adjectives articles ‘THE’ must (always) placed.

Ex.-He is the best boy of the class.

She is the most intelligent girl.

Rule-13 Use of (Nearest, next)

Nearest denotes distance.

Next denotes position.

Ex.-He was sitting next to me.

Patna junction is the nearest to my house.

This is the next post-office to my house. (Incorrect)

This is the nearest post-office to my house. (Correct)

Rule-14 Use of (Elder, older; Eldest, oldest)

Elder and eldest – are used of members of the same family.

Older and oldest are used for persons or things.

Elder takes ‘To’ after it while older takes ‘than’

Ex.-I have an older brother (Incorrect)

I have an elder brother (Correct)

Mohan is the eldest boy in the town. (Incorrect)

Mohan is the oldest boy in the town. (Correct)

Rule-15 Use of less and fewer

Less - Quantity

Fewer - Number

Ex.-There is fewer sugar in your tea than in mine. (Incorrect)

There is less sugar in your tea than in mine. (Correct)

He has less money than I.

Rule-16 Some adjectives like (Perfect, Ideal, Full, Chief, Unique, Complete, Infinite, Extreme, Entire, Universal, Empty, Impossible, Unanimous, square, sound etc. are not compared as they express meaning which do not admit of any variation of degrees.

Ex.-This achievement was most unique. (Incorrect)

His achievement was unique. (Correct)

Your knowledge is most perfect. (Incorrect)

Your knowledge is perfect (Incorrect)

Rule-17 When a comparison is introduced and has ‘ANY’ after it, the things compared must always be excluded from the class of things with which it is compared, by using ‘OTHER’

Ex.-London is larger than any city in England. (Incorrect)

London is larger than any other city in England (Correct)

Ram is cleverer than any student in his class (Incorrect)

Ram is cleverer than any other student in his class. (Correct)

The tiger is as swift as any animal.

The tiger is as swift as any other animal.

Rule-18 ‘Each’ is used to indicate a limited number and ‘EVERY’ to denote an unlimited number  in selection or choice.

Ex.-Everyone of the two boys was given a prize. (Incorrect)

Each one of the two boys was given a prize (Correct)

He came to see us Each day. (Incorrect)

He came to see us Every day. (Correct)

Rule-19 "Some" is used in the affirmative sentence "any" is used in negative and interrogative  sentence.

I don’t want some chocolates. (Incorrect)

I don’t want any chocolates (Correct)

I will have any tea. (Incorrect)

I will have some tea. (Correct)

Did you go somewhere last night ?

Did you go anywhere last night ?

Rule-20 What’s the Correct Order for Multiple Adjectives in a sentence?

When you list several adjectives in a row, there’s a specific order they need to be written or spoken. Native speakers of English tend to put them in the correct order naturally, but if you’re learning English, you’ll have to memorize the order. It goes like this:

Before the adjectives you will normally have the Determiner.

1.Determiner: The determiner tells us if the noun is singular or plural, definite or indefinite

a, an, the, my, your, four, those, some etc

2.Quantity or number:

3.Quality or opinion: Explains what we think about something. This is usually our opinion, attitude or observations. These adjectives almost always come before all other adjectives.

beautiful, boring, stupid, delicious, useful, lovely, comfortable

4.Size: Tells us how big or small something is.

big, small, tall, huge, tiny

5.Shape / Weight / Length: Tells about the shape of something or how long or short it is. It can also refer to the weight of someone or something.

round, square, circular, skinny, fat, heavy, straight, long, short,

6.Condition: Tells us the general condition or state of something

broken, cold, hot, wet, hungry, rich, easy, difficult, dirty

7.Age: Tells us how old someone or something is.

old, young, new, ancient, antique

8. Colour: The colour or approximate colour of something.

green, white, blue, reddish, purple

9.Pattern: The pattern or design of something.

striped, spotted, checked, flowery

10.Origin: Tells us where something is from.

American, British, Italian, eastern, Australian, Chilean

11.Material: What is the thing made of or constructed of?

gold, wooden, silk, paper, synthetic, cotton, woolen

12.Purpose/Qualifier/Use: What is it for? These adjectives often end in –ing.

sleeping (bag), gardening (gloves), shopping (bag), wedding (dress)

If you look at the examples above, you can ask… what are the gloves used for? (gardening) What is the bag used for? (shopping)

And after these  adjectives we have the…

13.Noun: The person or thing that is being described

This is the correct order for adjectives that come directly before a noun, and they are separated by commas.

Ex- My beautiful, big, circular, antique, brown, English, wooden coffee table was broken in the move.

If the adjectives come after the verb “be” as the complement, then the qualifier will stick with the noun at the beginning of the sentence. The adjectives in the complement are separated by commas with the final two being separated by “and.”

For example-

My coffee table is beautiful, big, circular, antique, brown, English and wooden.

Ex- I love that really big old green antique car that always parked at the end of the street.

Ex- a wonderful old Italian Car.(opinion-age- origin)

A big square blue box. (size -shape- color)

A disgusting pink plastic ornament. (opinion- color- material)

I bought a pair of black leather.  (color-material)