What is an Adjective?
An adjective is a word that describes or modifies a noun or a pronoun. It provides more information, making your sentences more vivid and specific. Adjectives answer questions like 'What kind?' (a 'red' car), 'How many?' ('several' cars), 'Which one?' ('that' car), and 'Whose?' ('her' car).
Comparative and Superlative Adjectives
- Adjectives can compare things. For one-syllable adjectives, add '-er' for the 'comparative' and '-est' for the 'superlative'. (e.g., 'big' → 'bigger' → 'biggest').
- For adjectives with two or more syllables, use 'more' for the comparative and 'most' for the superlative. (e.g., 'beautiful' → 'more beautiful' → 'most beautiful').
- For two-syllable adjectives ending in 'y', change 'y' to 'i' and add '-er' or '-est'. (e.g., 'happy' → 'happier' → 'happiest').
- Irregular Adjectives change completely and must be memorized: 'good' → 'better' → 'best'; 'bad' → 'worse' → 'worst'; 'far' → 'further' → 'furthest'.
Order of Adjectives (OSASCOMP)
- When using multiple adjectives before a noun, they usually follow a specific order. A common mnemonic is OSASCOMP:
- 1. Opinion: 'beautiful', 'ugly', 'interesting', 'lovely'
- 2. Size: 'large', 'small', 'tiny', 'huge'
- 3. Age: 'old', 'new', 'young', 'ancient'
- 4. Shape: 'round', 'square', 'triangular'
- 5. Color: 'blue', 'red', 'green', 'black'
- 6. Origin: 'Italian', 'American', 'Chinese'
- 7. Material: 'wooden', 'metal', 'cotton', 'plastic'
- 8. Purpose: 'dining' (table), 'sleeping' (bag)
- Example: 'She sat at a 'beautiful, large, old, round, brown, Italian, wooden, dining' table.'
💡 Adverbs vs. Adjectives
Be careful not to confuse adjectives with adverbs. Adjectives describe nouns or pronouns ('a 'quick' runner'). Adverbs describe verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs, and often (but not always) end in '-ly' ('He runs 'quickly'').