Predicate Adjectives in English: Definition, Examples, and Usage

Some sentences don’t describe what someone does—they describe what someone is. That’s where predicate adjectives come in. A predicate adjective follows a linking verb and gives more detail about the subject’s qualities or condition.

For example, ‘The soup smells delicious.”
→ “Delicious” is a predicate adjective—it describes soup and follows the linking verb smells.

In this article, you’ll learn how predicate adjectives work, how they differ from other types of adjectives, and how to spot them in a sentence.

What Is a Predicate Adjective?

A predicate adjective is an adjective that comes after a linking verb and describes the subject of the sentence. It’s a type of subject complement, meaning it gives more information about who or what the subject is.

Predicate adjectives do not modify nouns directly—instead, they describe the subject from a distance, using the linking verb as a bridge.

This structure is also called an adjectival predicate, though “predicate adjective” is the more widely used term in English grammar.

Predicate Adjective Examples:

• The sky looks clear.
• His response was honest.
• The kids seem tired after the trip.

How Predicate Adjectives Work in Sentences

To qualify as a predicate adjective, the adjective must come after a linking verb and describe the subject, not an object or another noun in the sentence.

The basic pattern looks like this:

Subject + Linking Verb + Predicate Adjective

For example:

• The flowers look vibrant in the sunlight.
• His voice sounds confident during the presentation.
• My grandfather feels energetic this morning.

In these sentences, the predicate adjective directly relates to the subject:

• vibrant describes flowers
• confident describes voice
• energetic describes grandfather

Predicate adjectives never modify the verb itself. Instead, they complement the subject by completing the idea started by the linking verb.

Predicate Adjective vs. Attributive Adjective

Both predicate adjectives and attributive adjectives describe nouns, but they differ in position and function within a sentence.

An attributive adjective appears before the noun it modifies.
A predicate adjective appears after a linking verb and gives information about the subject of the sentence.

Examples:

• Attributive Adjective:
  The nervous student waited outside.
  → “Nervous” comes before student and directly modifies it.
• Predicate Adjective:
  The student looked nervous during the interview.
  → “Nervous” comes after the linking verb looked and describes the student.
• Attributive Adjective:
  They adopted a friendly dog.
  → “Friendly” describes dog before the noun.
• Predicate Adjective:
  The dog seems friendly.
  → “Friendly” follows the linking verb seems and describes the dog.

Common Linking Verbs with Predicate Adjectives

Predicate adjectives rely on linking verbs to connect them to the subject. Linking verbs don’t show action; instead, they link the subject to additional information about its state or quality.

Here are some of the most common linking verbs you’ll see with predicate adjectives:

• be (am, is, are, was, were)
  • The cookies are warm.
• seem
  • The plan seems practical.
• become
  • He became restless during the lecture.
• appear
  • Her painting appears unfinished.
• feel
  • I feel hopeful about the results.
• look
  • They look ready for the competition.
• sound
  • The story sounds believable.
• taste
  • The soup tastes spicy.
• smell
  • The kitchen smells fresh after cleaning.

Linking verbs help you place the predicate adjective after the verb while still describing the subject clearly.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Even advanced learners sometimes mix up predicate adjectives. Here are the mistakes you should watch for:

Confusing Predicate Adjectives with Adverbs

Predicate adjectives describe the subject, not the action, so don’t use an adverb after a linking verb.

❌ He feels happily about the change.
✅ He feels happy about the change.

(Feels is a linking verb, so it takes an adjective, not an adverb.)

Using Predicate Adjectives with Action Verbs

Predicate adjectives do not follow action verbs.

❌ She ran fastly. (wrong word altogether — “fast” is correct, but still not a predicate adjective)
✅ She ran fast.

Or if you mean to describe how she felt:
✅ She felt exhausted after running.

Placing Predicate Adjectives in the Wrong Spot

Predicate adjectives should appear after the linking verb, not before it.

❌ Happy is he about the results.
✅ He is happy about the results.

FAQs About Predicate Adjectives