Adjectives
Introduction
When I arrived at their house, the big dog, which was called Rover, was barking loudly because it was lonely.
Words like big and lonely are adjectives.
- An adjective can add information about a noun by standing immediately before it:
a big dog
a new baby
startling discoveries
These adjectives modify the nouns. They make the meaning more specific.
An adjective can add information about a noun by being linked to it by a verb:
the dog is big
the road seemed long
it became obvious
These adjectives also add information about the nouns. Linked in this way, the adjective is the verb’s complement while the noun is its subject .
Warning!
The traditional definition of an adjective as a ‘describing word’ can be confusing because many other kinds of words can be descriptive. For example, swooped and flickered are very descriptive verbs.
Self-assessment on adjectives
[2016 note: unfortunately the links no longer work, but you may find the exercise useful even without the answers.]
Find the adjectives in the sentence below. (As usual, not all the underlined words are relevant.) Click on the words to check the answer.
Suddenly and without warning the rear doors would be flung open to reveal the tattered draperies that masked the terrible interior. (Alan Bennett The Lady in the Van)
Now find the nouns which are modified by an adjective:
Suddenly and without warning the rear doors would be flung open to reveal the tattered draperies that masked the terrible interior.
