ADJECTIVES
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An adjective is a word which modifies a noun or a pronoun. The word modify means describe. So, adjectives describe nouns or pronouns. The bold words in the following sentences are adjectives. What is an adjective? You have known that an adjective is a describing word. For better understanding, we can see how the greatest grammarians have described adjective: "The word adjective means adding."-J.C. Nasefield. "An adjective is a word used to add something to the meaning of a noun."-Wren & Martin. "An adjective is a word that describes a person or thing." -Oxford Dictionary. "An adjective is a word like green, hungry, impossible, which is used when we describe people, things, events, etc." -Michale Swan. "Adjective describes properties, qualities or states attributed to a noun or a pronoun."-Cambridge Grammar of English. Adjectives are one of the four largest major classes of words and the use of adjectives makes your writing or speech spicy and juicy. The forms of Adjectives will help you little to identify them. You need to learn where adjectives are used in the sentences. That is, you can identify adjectives by their position in the sentence. Why do you need to learn Adjective?
How to Identify Adjectives in the Sentence?
Adjectives occupy three different positions in the sentence. They are: We use Adjectives before the nouns they describe. Adjectives used before nouns are called pre-positive adjectives, or Attributive Adjectives. Attributive adjectives can only modify nouns because we cannot use adjectives before pronouns. (ii) After Linking Verbs We use Adjectives after Linking Verbs. Adjectives after linking verbs modify the subject of the verb. Adjectives after Linking Verbs are called Predicative Adjectives. Predicative adjectives can modify both nouns and pronouns. (iii) After the Noun We can use Adjectives immediately after the noun they modify. Adjectives used immediately after the noun are called Postpositive Adjective.(i) Before the Noun
Adjectives describe colour, shape, size, physical condition, mental condition, opinion, quantity and number. Adjectives are named accordingly. Let us explore some of them. Colour Adjectives tell you about the colour of things. Shape adjectives tell you about the shape of things. 3. Size Adjectives Size adjectives tell you about the size of things. 4. Adjectives of Physical Condition Adjectives of physical condition tell you about the physical condition of people and animals. 5. Adjectives of Mental Condition Adjectives of mental condition tell you about the mental condition of people. 6. Opinion Adjectives Opinion adjectives tell you about the quality of things. Proper Adjectives are formed from Proper Nouns. Proper adjectives begin with a capital letter. The derivation of proper adjectives from proper nouns is somewhat irregular. For instance, the spelling of the following proper nouns and proper adjectives can be compared. Many proper adjectives end with an or ian. However, other endings are also used, as indicated below. 8. Adjectives of Quantity Adjectives of Quantity (or, Quantitative Adjectives) show how much of a thing is meant. Adjectives of Quantity answer the question: How much? Adjectives of Quantity are used with Uncountable Nouns. Adjectives of Number show how many persons or things are meant, or in what order a person or thing stands. Adjectives of Number answer the question: How many? Possessive Adjectives are his, her, its, my, our, their, and your. It answers the question “Whose”. The demonstrative adjectives are that, this, these and those. A demonstrative adjective may look like a demonstrative pronoun, but it is used differently in the sentence: Remember: this and that are used with Singular Nouns; these and those with Plural Nouns. What, which and whose are often used as Interrogative Adjectives. An interrogative adjective may look like a interrogative pronoun, but it is used differently in the sentence: Example:-1. Colour Adjectives
2. Shape Adjectives
7. Proper Adjectives
Proper Noun Proper Adjective America American Canada Canadian Germany German Mexico Mexican George Georgian Victoria Victorian Proper Noun Proper Adjective England English France French China Chinese Bangladesh Bangladeshi 9. Adjectives of Number
10. Possessive Adjectives
11. Demonstrative Adjectives
12. Interrogative Adjective