Adjectives describe or give more information about nouns and pronouns. They help answer questions such as what kind, which one, how many, or how much.
Start with What Is an Adjective? for the basic definition, types, positions, and examples. You can then explore detailed lessons on adjective order, degrees of comparison, compound adjectives, proper adjectives, predicate adjectives, and other adjective types.
A beautiful old Italian painting sounds natural. An Italian beautiful old painting does not. The adjectives are the same, but English normally places them in a particular sequence before a noun. This pattern is called adjective order. The familiar OSASCOMP…
A five-hour delay, a thought-provoking question, and a user-friendly interface all use compound forms to describe a noun. Some compound adjectives are hyphenated. Others are written as one word or remain open. It helps to separate two questions: What kind…
Limiting adjectives are words that tell us which person or thing we mean, whose it is, or how many or how much there is. In traditional grammar, words such as this, my, some, and three belong to this group. Many…
Adjectives of material describe what something is made of, as in a wooden chair or a woollen coat. English also uses material nouns such as cotton, leather, and steel before other nouns, although these words are not always adjectives in…
A Japanese novel, a Brazilian architect, and a Sicilian recipe all use adjectives that connect a noun with a place, region, or culture. These forms can show where something is associated with, but the relationship is not always as simple…
Adjectives of purpose tell us what something is used for, as in a sleeping bag, running shoes, or a dining table. The term is common in traditional grammar lessons, although words expressing purpose are not always adjectives. What Are Adjectives…
Adjectives of opinion describe what someone thinks about something. A garden might be beautiful, a film disappointing, or an idea brilliant. These adjectives express judgments rather than simply stating observable features. For example: The hotel had a beautiful courtyard. The…
Adjectives of emotion describe how someone feels or the emotional quality of a person’s expression, reaction, or experience. Words such as relieved, anxious, delighted, and frustrated help us describe feelings in English. The passengers were relieved when their delayed flight…
Adjectives of size describe how big or small something is, or a particular dimension such as its height, length, width, or depth. Common examples include huge, tiny, tall, narrow, and shallow. The delivery truck was too wide to pass through…
Adjectives of color describe the color or shade of something. Common examples include red, blue, green, turquoise, and crimson. The workers painted the garden gate dark green. She chose burgundy curtains for the living room. List of Common Color Adjectives…
Adjectives of shape describe the form or outline of something. Words such as round, square, oval, curved, and triangular help us describe objects and their features. For example: Eight guests sat around an oval dining table. A jagged crack ran…
A sentence can be grammatically correct and still feel too vague. Compare a bag with a heavy canvas bag, or a road with a narrow, winding road. The added words tell you more about what the noun is like. Words…