Adjective
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Insert non-formatted text here== Adjective ==
Adjective
There are some criteria used to identify an adjective: meaning of the word, form of the word and environment it occurs (and it depends on the language we are talking about)
An adjective usually describes attributes of a noun.
- BIG apple
- BEAUTIFUL lady
- WARM day
Adjectives can take modifiers before them, such as
- VERY big apple
- EXTREMELY warm day
Adjectives can take different forms, such as
- BIGGER apple
- WARMEST day
In Portuguese, for instance, they can also take plural and/or gender forms, as well, such as:
- Menino BONITO (boy CUTE)
- Meninos BONITOS (boy+pl CUTE+pl)
- Menina BONITA (girl CUTE)
- Meninas BONITAS (girl+pl CUTE+pl)
Adjectives can come before or after a noun:
- 1) GOOD boy
- 2) This boy is GOOD
In example 1), GOOD attributes a quality to the noun and it comes just before the noun; in example 2), GOOD predicates the noun and needs a verb to link it to the noun (depending on the language we are talking about; in Russian, for instance, one say "I - unhappy" (= I am unhappy), as in Hebrew and many other languages).
Adjectives can come after the noun without a linking verb, usually after pronouns "something USEFUL" and also in "Governor GENEREAL"-type expressions.
Some adjectives can be used as nouns, hence their name nominal adjectives (because they behave like nouns: they take determiners and can be modified by adjectives as well):
- The RICH, the POOR, the SICK
INTERESTING POINT:
There are words that occur in the same position as adjectives, but are NOT adjectives:
- FAMILY car
You cannot:
- have a modifier - *VERY family car
- make a predicate out of them - *This car is FAMILY
This type of word is rather a noun.
However, there are some adjectives derived from nouns (=denominals), they are, of course, adjectives:
- A MATH(EMATICAL) quiz
Some forms of verbs can be adjectives:
- This gymnast is DETERMINED
- A DETERMINED gymnast
- An ANNOYING neighbor
In Japanese, for example, adjectives also modify nouns, but they can also be verbs when used as predicates.
- ���犬 [CHIISAI inu] (small dog) – adjective-like
- ��犬������[Kono inu wa CHIISAI desu] (This dog is small) – verb-like
English has something similar, as in:
- a) The jury was CONVINCED that the man was innocent – adjective-like
- b) The jury was CONVINCED by the attorney’s argument – verb-like
With verb TO BE (WAS, in this case), it is hard to determine what class CONVINCED belongs to, but we have a cue here: the presence of a THAT-clause indicates it is an adjective-like word, and a BY-phrase indicates it is verb-like.
--Pittsboy 15:51, 14 Apr 2005 (CEST)
An adjective describes a noun
- a blue house
- a big man
Translations
- Danish: tillægsord n, adjektiv n
- Dutch: bijvoeglijk naamwoord n
- Faroese: lýsingarorð n
- German: Adjektiv n
- Swedish: adjektiv n
- Esperanto: adjektivo
- Italian: aggettivo m
- Polish: przymiotnik m
- Greek: επίθετο (epÃtheto) n
- Portuguese: adjetivo
- Persian: Sefat
back to Grammar glossary
