The AdjectiveThe simplest definition of an adjective is that it is a word that describes or clarifies a noun. Adjectives describe nouns by giving some information about an objects size, shape, age, color, origin or material. Its abigtable. (size) Its aroundtable. (shape) Its anoldtable. (age) Its abrowntable. (color) Its anEnglishtable. (origin) Its awoodentable. (material) Its alovelytable. (opinion) Its abrokentable. (observation) Its acoffeetable. (purpose)When an item is defined by its purpose, that word is usually not an adjective, but it acts as one in that situation. coffeetable poolhall huntingcabin baseballplayerWhat Do Adjectives Look Like?English can be very tricky, so you have to be careful, but a lot of English adjectives end with these suffixes: -able/-ible adorable, invisible, responsible, uncomfortable -al educational, gradual, illegal, nocturnal, viral -an American, Mexican, urban -ar cellular, popular, spectacular, vulgar -ent intelligent, potent, silent, violent -ful harmful, powerful, tasteful, thoughtful -ic/-ical athletic, energetic, magical, scientific -ine bovine, canine, equine, feminine, masculine -ile agile, docile, fertile, virile -ive informative, native, talkative-less careless, endless, homeless, timeless -ous cautious, dangerous, enormous, malodorous -some awesome, handsome, lonesome, wholesomeMany adjectives also end with -y, -ary and -ate, but lots of nouns and adverbs also end with -y, lots of nouns also end with -ary, and lots of nouns andverbsalso end with -ate, so be careful with those.Adjectives, ending in -ing and -edThere are adjectives ending in -ing and -ed. A)Here theadjectiveis putbeforethenoun:Yesterday I read anamusingstoryin a magazine.Doris has aboringjob.We watched the group ofexcitedpeople.B)Here theadjectiveis putaftertheverb:Iwasnot at allamusedby the dicussion.Childrengetboredvery quickly.The end of the filmwasreallyexcitingfor me.

Whats the Correct Order for Multiple Adjectives?When you list several adjectives in a row, theres 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 youre learning English, youll have to memorize the order. It goes like this: Determiner This means an article (a, an, the), a number or amount, a possessive adjective (my, his, her, its, your, our, their), or a demonstrative (this, that, these, those). Observation/Opinion Beautiful, expensive, gorgeous, broken, delicious, ugly Size Huge, tiny, 4-foot-tall Shape Square, circular, oblong Age 10-year-old, new, antique Color Black, red, blue-green Origin Roman, English, Mongolian Material Silk, silver, plastic, wooden Qualifier A noun or verb acting as adjectiveThis is the correct order for adjectives that come directly before a noun, and they are separated by commas. My beautiful, big, circular, antique, brown, English, wooden coffee table was broken in the move.Comparison of adjectivesA - Comparison with -er/-estclean - cleaner- (the) cleanestWe use -er/-est with the following adjectives:1) Adjectives with one syllablepositivecomparativesuperlative

cleancleanercleanest

newnewernewest

cheapcheapercheapest

2) Adjectives with two syllables and the following endings:2 - 1) Adjectives with two syllables, ending in -ypositivecomparativesuperlative

dirtydirtierdirtiest

easyeasiereasiest

happyhappierhappiest

prettyprettierprettiest

2 - 2) Adjectives with two syllables, ending in -erpositivecomparativesuperlative

clevercleverercleverest

2 - 3) Adjectives with two syllables, ending in -lepositivecomparativesuperlative

simplesimplersimplest

2 - 4) Adjectives with two syllables, ending in -owpositivecomparativesuperlative

narrownarrowernarrowest

3) Spelling of the adjectives using the endings -er/-estpositivecomparativesuperlativecomment

largelargerlargestleave out the silent -e

bigbiggerbiggestDouble the consonant after short vowel

sadsaddersaddest

dirtydirtierdirtiestChange -y to -i (consonant before -y)

shyshyershyestHere -y is not changed to -i.(although consonant before -y)

B - Comparison with more - mostpositivecomparativesuperlative

difficultmoredifficult(the)mostdifficult

all adjectives with more than one syllable (except some adjectives with two syllables - see2 - 1 to 2 - 4)

C - Irregular adjectivespositivecomparativesuperlativecomment

goodbetterbest

badworseworst

muchmoremostuncountable nouns

manymoremostcountable nouns

littlelessleast

littlesmallersmallest

D - Special adjectivesSome adjectives havetwopossibleformsof comparison (-er/est and more/most).positivecomparativesuperlative

clevercleverer / more clevercleverest / most clever

commoncommoner / more commoncommonest / most common

likelylikelier / more likelylikeliest / most likely

pleasantpleasanter / more pleasantpleasantest / most pleasant

politepoliter / more politepolitest / most polite

quietquieter / more quietquietest / most quiet

simplesimpler / more simplesimplest / most simple

stupidstupider / more stupidstupidest / most stupid

subtlesubtler / more subtlesubtlest / most subtle

suresurer / more suresurest / most sure

Exercises AdjectivesCHOOSE THE CORRECT ANSWER FROM THE FOUR OPTIONS:

1. Rajesh is feeling very ______.

AngryAngrier

Angriest

2. Nokia is a _______ company.

GoodBetter

Best

3. Rajat is _______ than Ramesh.

FastFaster

Fastest

4. Amongst the three brothers, Aditya is the ________

TallTaller

Tallest

5. She will live ______ than him.

LongLongest

LongerLarger

6. What about this? Isnt it _______?

BeautifulBeauteous

Beauty

7. The test was ________ than I thought it would be.

DifficultMore difficult

Most difficult

8. He is the ________ boy in his class.

OldOlder

Oldest

9. This locality is ________ than ours.

ExpensiveMore expensive

Most expensive

10. You are so ________, I am sure you can pick this up.

StrongWeak

FatThin

Choose the correct adjective: 1. My nephew was (amusing / amused) by the clown. 2. Its so (frustrating / frustrated)! No matter how much I study I cant seem to remember this vocabulary. 3. This lesson is so (boring / bored)! 4. Im feeling (depressed / depressing), so Im going to go home, eat some chocolate, and go to bed early with a good book. 5. I thought her new idea was absolutely (fascinated / fascinating). 6. This maths problem is so (confusing / confused). Can you help me? 7. The teacher was really (amusing / amused) so the lesson passed quickly. 8. The journey was (exhausting / exhausted)! Twelve hours by bus. 9. The plane began to move in a rather (alarming / alarmed) way. 10. He was (frightening / frightened) when he saw the spider. 11. I was really (embarrassing / embarrassed) when I fell over in the street. 12. That film was so (depressing / depressed)! There was no happy ending for any of the characters. 13. Im sorry, I cant come tonight. Im completely (exhausting / exhausted). 14. We are going in a helicopter? How (exciting / excited)! 15. Dont show my baby photos to people, Mum! Its so (embarrassing / embarrassed)! 16. Its okay, its only me. Dont be (alarming / alarmed). 17. My sister is so (exciting / excited) because she is going on holiday tomorrow. 18. I hate long flights, Im always really (boring / bored). 19. She looked very (confusing / confused) when I told her we had to change the plan. 20. John was (fascinated / fascinating) by Mandarin when he first started learning languages. He decided to study more and now he can speak it fluently.Choose the correct adjective: 1. I am so (relaxing / relaxed) I dont want to move. 2. I find horror films really (frightening / frightened) and not at all fun to watch. 3. Sometimes I get really (frustrating / frustrated) when I cant express myself well in English. 4. We were stopped by a man with a knife who took our money. It was (terrifying / terrified). 5. The programme was really (interesting / interested). 6. She was (overwhelming / overwhelmed) when everyone cheered and we gave her presents. 7. If I feel stressed, I find taking a bath is often (relaxing / relaxed). 8. I am really (tiring / tired); I think Ill go to bed. 9. Hes very (interesting / interested) in history. 10. The trip was (overwhelming / overwhelmed), with so many things to do and it was all so new. 11. She is never (satisfying / satisfied) with her work. 12. Cleaning is so (tiring / tired)! I think Ill have a rest! 13. She thought the ride on the rollercoaster was (thrilled / thrilling). 14. I was really (surprising / surprised) when I saw you. I had thought you were on holiday. 15. My grandmother was (shocking / shocked) by the mans bad language. 16. My niece is (terrifying / terrified) of dogs. 17. Thank you so much for the prize! Im (thrilled / thrilling)! 18. My job is very (satisfying / satisfied), I love helping people. 19. The news was so (shocking / shocked) that she burst into tears. 20. My exam results were great! Its really (surprising / surprised) but good, of courseCircle the adjective in each sentence below. Underline the noun it describes. 1. The neighbors walk their spotted dog around the block. 2. Bill and Sue went on a wild ride at the park! 3. My group used purple markers to make our poster. 4. Moms new rose bush needs a lot of special care. 5. Porcupines are large rodents. . 6. The happy cheerleaders jump and yell. 7. Cherry pie is my favorite type of dessert. 8. My dad has many tools in the garage. 9. A spiders web is very silky. 10. The snowy driveway made it hard to walk without falling. 11. Grandma enjoyed a peaceful afternoon, reading a book. 12. My family made some tasty popcorn for tonight.

Circle the adjective in each sentence below. Underline the noun it describes. 1. A fox hunts for small animals at night. 2. I would love to learn to ride a beautiful horse. 3. Jake found an extra book so we didnt have to share. 4. My grandpa has an antique car that he takes to special shows. 5. I sprayed cold water from the hose on my brother. . 6. Aunt Kelly lives about two hours away. 7. We dove into the clear water at the lake. 8. My little brother uses an electric toothbrush. 9. I had a cinnamon muffin for breakfast. 10. We found some old jewelry in my grandmothers attic. 11. The plumber came to fix the leaky pipe. 12. A tiny ladybug landed on Laylas shoulder.

Circle the adjectives in the word bank. Then read the sentences. Use the word bank to place the correct adjectives in the blank. 1. Jenna was too when she did her homework! 2. My sister was very and offered to share the cookie. 3. We listened to music at church. 4. I got a new, plate to make my sandwich. 5. I had to sharpen my pencil. 6. Mom stirred the soup while it cooked. 7. The teacher greeted us with a smile. 8. It took minutes for Kayla to glue the letters. 9. I chose the paper to use to make a card. 10. We saw a actor in New York City. 11. My book fell in the , muddy gutter. 12. The clown was doing some magic tricks!

Circle the adjectives in the word bank. Then read the sentences. Use the word bank to place the correct adjectives in the blank. 1. She laid on the beach and enjoyed the sun. 2. The baker baked a cake for the wedding. 3. We picked some red, berries from the farm. 4. My family adopted a friendly, cat from the shelter. 5. The hawk swooped down and grabbed a field mouse. 6. The honey the bees made smelled so . . 7. The sunflowers lined the entire fence. 8. I rode the bus so that I could go to my band lesson. 9. The little boy didnt feel well and his face looked . 10. I bounced the big, beach ball in the air! 11. Kim was very because it was her birthday! .