Noun Modifiers

Using nouns as adjectives

NounNoun Modifiers

AN ADJECTIVE + A NOUN A modifying phrase can be shortened by A noun can be modified by a phrase that using the main noun of the adjective or comes after it: an adjective phrase or prepositional phrase as a modifier before the preposition phrase. noun. The Jeep has a drive(-train) that moves all It has four-wheel drive. (a double-noun four wheels. (adjective phrase) modifier) He is a champion in swimming. (preposition phrase) May I have a spoon for eating soup. (preposition phrase) Ring the bell aside the door. (preposition phrase) He is a swimming champion. (a single-noun modifier) May I have a soup spoon. Ring the door bell.

A NOUN + A MODIFYING PHRASE

Hyphens

A DOUBLE-NOUN MODIFIER Use a hyphen to link two nouns that modify Two nouns do not require a hyphen. another noun, or to clarify which noun modifies which word. She bought some cat food. cat (n.) She bought a cat-food dish. cat-food (adj.) modifies food (n.) modifies dish (n.) We bought two foot stools. two (det.) We bought two-foot stools. two-foot (adj.) modifies [foot(n.) modifies stools (n.)] modifies stools (n.) The train station is nearby. train (n.) The Menlo-Atherton train station, The Californiamodifies station (n.) Nevada border is nearby.

A NOUN MODIFIER

We offer evening classes. (n.) modifies classes (n.)

evening

If you are a do-it-yourself person, don't call us for an estimate. We offer one-to-one, evening classes at convenient times.

For more examples, see Using a hyphen with a modifier.

Plural Exceptions

PLURAL NOUN MODIFIER SINGULAR NOUN MODIFIER Normally, adjectives do not take the plural Often, singular and plural forms avoid form. However, these are exceptions: 1) confusion by differentiating two possible indicates variety; 2) no singular noun form meanings such as. proper name v. generic exists; 3) specifies a degree or field of study; noun. Hyphenated modifiers cause irregular 4) specifies an office, department or plural modifiers to conform to the division; 5) refers to a news or social issue. singular modifier convention. It is a sports magazine / car. (Indicates I bought a sport-utility vehicle. (other words) variety.) We attended a jobs fair. (Indicates variety.) I have a job interview today. The Yankees were the 2009 World Series winners. (No singular form exists.) United States law prohibits torture. (No singular form exists.) The customs officer asked us questions. (No singular form exists.) She is studying to get a Linguistics degree. She has excellent linguistic skills. (Specifies a degree.) My sister received her Creative Arts She has creative art abilities. certificate. (Specifies a certificate.) Please contact the Appointments desk first. I have an appointment application on my (Specifies an office.) computer. We called the benefits representative for The state is undertaking a cost-benefit study. help. (Specifies a worker in an office.) You will find him in the Language Arts division. (Specifies a division.) The gay rights issue of marriage has gone to court. (Specifies a social issue.) Please send me a Girl Scouts booklet. She bought a Girl Scout uniform. (Specifies the organization or title.) We listened to a blues band. (Specifies the There are blue people in the movie Avatar. music style.)

Adjective Order

Descriptive adjectives often occur in the following order:

While the ordering of adjectives may vary slightly, they are often placed in the order indicated below. Word order used by friends, advertising, songs, news media and a number of other sources influences our sentence patterns. Additionally, the ability to recall and retrieve words for describing a stored visual image may affect the order. More word order variation tends to occur with the first three categories (i.e., Opinion, Appearance, Age) than the last two (i.e., Color, Origin). When in doubt, ask a native speaker, who will most likely have a strong opinion about what sounds natural. This chart is offered to you as a guide. The categories are not "written in stone".

EVALUATION/OPINION APPEARANCE AGE SIZE / beautiful new-born MEASURE good big / large old bad small / little young ugly interesting fascinating intelligent pretty unsightly low high heavy SHAPE triangular square

COLOR red

ORIGIN GEOGRAPHICAL

green French blue Mexican lightnew beach yellow antique striped mountain ancient dark blue MATERIAL five-year- deep ceramic old purple brand-new pink cotton five-day- brown wooden

foul stupid silly ridiculous easy Using hyphens: color terms

CONDITION chipped broken rotten shiny

old centuryold mature middleage teenage

rose olive aqua

titanium TECHNOLOGICAL wireless high-defintiion 3-D

lime polkaprehistoric dot

Sentence Examples

NOUN + SENTENC APPEARANC ORIGIN/MATERI REST OF EVAL AGE COLOR E E / QUALITY AL SENTENC E

Who left a foul,

rotten,

twoweekold blackandpolyester white plaid, red-and- feathered, Chineseyellow dragon shiny, young black, , new white stainless-steel French 3-D Samba-reggae

banana in my desk drawer? seat cover. costume. sculpture. poodle stood quiety. iPad rhythms and performance .

We bought practical, little, a They wore a beautiful, life-size, The artist created a The fantastic, huge, mobiusshaped,

intelligen little, t,

This is my sleek "Olodum" is hypnotic, known for powerful, energetic its

Speakers rarely use more than three or four adjectives before a noun unless they are trying to be very descriptive.

Variations

Usually, the word order in the "appearance" category is size, shape, condition, but other variations occur as well. NOUN PHRASE man sat breathing heavily on the park bench. man sat breathing heavily on the park bench. man sat breathing heavily on the park bench.

APPEARANCE: (SIZE) A cute A cute A cute short short

(SHAPE) (CONDITION) round out-of -breath

out-of round -condition round

out-of short -condition

Number Modifiers
Using numbers as adjectives

Number-Noun Modifiers

NUMBER + NOUN MODIFIER When a number and noun are combined to modify a When a number (greater than one) noun, no plural form is used in the modifier. modifies a noun, the noun is plural. Adjectives do not take the plural form. The ladder had six steps. It was a six-step ladder. The book has 200 pages. It was a 200-page book. or It was a two-hundredpage book.

NUMBER MODIFIER

Bruce worked out for five minutes. It was a five-minute workout. Bruce worked ten days. It was a ten-day job.

Modifiers of Adjectives

SUBJECT - SPECIFIED VERB AMOUNT

ADJECTIVE

SUBJECT VERB

ADVERB OF DEGREE

ADJECTIVE

A specified amount can be used to modify another adjective. The measurements are plural. The bridge 746 feet / 227 tall. towers are meters The roadway 500 feet / 152 high over the is meters water. 8,981 feet / The bridge long. 2,737 meters The roadway 90 feet / 27 wide. is meters The water 242 feet / 74 deep. below is meters

An adverb can be used to modify the degree or extent of an adjective. The bridge towers are The roadway is The bridge is The roadway is The water below is very / rather/ tall. pretty so / high over the moderately water. pretty / quite long. fairly / adequately quite / extremely wide. deep.

With most other adjectives, specified amounts are not used: shallow, large, big, small, little.

So, very, rather, pretty, quite emphasize the adjective; fairly, moderately, somewhat de-emphasize (lessen) the adjective. See Adverbs of degree.

Tall High Long

TALL Tall measuring a long distance from the ground to the top This man is 170 centimeter s tall.

HIGH LONG High having great extent Long reaching or extending or reach upward; suspended horizontally (linear) above This man is fortyfeet high in the air. The baby is twentyfive inches long.

This is a tall window.

This is a high window.

This is a long window.

This is a tall rock formation. (More likely used with formations that have a baseline: monoliths such as Half Dome, Meteora, Ayers Rock or Cathedral

This is a high mountain . (a mountain that reaches upward; its baseline is not well defined)

This is a long mountain chain. ( a series of mountains that stretch a long distance on a continent)

Rock) tall glass (drinking) / tree high fence / wall / water long bed, table (dimension )

Adjective Expressions for Similarity and Differences

DIFFERENCE Use the expressions below to show Use the expressions below to show dissimilarity: not asas, differentfrom, similarity: asas, the sameas, like, etc. unlike, etc. This apple is as red as that apple. idiom The apple is different from/ than the orange. (adv - adv) (adj - conj) This apple has the same flavor as that This apple is not as sweet as this orange. (adv apple. (noun - adv) adv) This apple and the other apples are the The apple is more beautiful than the orange. same.* (adj - conj) This apple looks like that apple. (verb The apple is much more beautiful than the phrase) orange. (adv - adj - conj) This apple is similar to that apple. (adj - The apple grows on a tree unlike the tomato. prep) (prep) The apple is more like a pear than the orange. This apple is like that apple. (prep) (prep) This apple is just the same as that apple. The skin of the apple contrasts to the skin of (adv - pronoun - adv) the orange. (verb - prep) Both this apple and that one are sweet. The orange in contrast to the lemon is sweet. (paired conjunction) Neither this apple nor that one is sweet. The orange is sweet in contrast to the lemon (paired conjunction) which is bitter. Also see: Both - and (neither nor) More than and the same as *Same almost always occurs as the same in a comparison.

SIMILARITY

Sentence Transition Words for Similarity and Difference

SIMILARITY Use a transition word (with a comma after it) to begin a sentence. The word functions to transition the reader from the thought in one sentence to a similar thought in the next. This apple is tart. Similarly, this one is sour. (adverb phrase)

DIFFERENCE Use a transition word (with a comma after it) to begin a sentence. The word functions to transition the reader from the thought in one sentence to a differing thought in the next.

The apple is red. In contrast, the orange is orange. Some people think the apple is orange. On This apple is tart. In the same way, this one the contrary, the apple is red. (on the is sour. contrary = not true!) That orange is delicious. Likewise, this While / Whereas the orange is high in fiber, apple is very flavorful. the apple is not. (contrasts two items) On the one hand the lemon is high in fiber, on the other hand it is too bitter to eat. (Use when discussing "both sides of the coin".) Also see: Contrasts - but / but still

Comparative Nouns
-er and more

Content page for this grammar point: More than.

Comparing Qualities of Nouns

-ER MORE Use the suffix -er with one syllable Use the more with more-than-one syllable words words to make a comparative word form to make a comparative phrase with than. with than. This apple is better than that one. (good This apple is more beautiful than that one. - better)

This apple is redder than the other one. (red) This apple is more flavorful than the other one.

Same... as / As... as
Describing the similarity of two items

Adjectives

THE SAME ... AS AS ... AS Use the same (noun) as to compare Use as...as to compare the quality (adjective) or the aspects of two nouns. manner (adverb) of two items. ADJECTIVE NOUN The apple is as heavy as the orange. The apple is the same weight as the The apple is as light as the orange. orange. NOUN ADVERB

This car drives at the same speed as This car drives as fast as the other car. the other car. This car drives as slowly as the other car.

Nouns Adjectives

NOUN AGE BEAUTY BRIGHTNESS COLOR

ADJECTIVE / ADVERB young / old beautiful / ugly dark / light red, blue, yellow, green,

NOUN PRICE QUALITY SHAPE SIZE

ADJECTIVE / ADVERB expensive / inexpensive, cheap good, high / bad, low round, square, oblong, etc big, large / small, petite,

DEPTH DIRECTION DISTANCE HARDNESS HEIGHT INTELLIGENCE LENGTH

purple, etc. deep / shallow north / south near / far hard / soft tall / short smart, intelligent / stupid, unintelligent, dumb long / short

tiny SPEED slow / fast STRAIGHTNESS straight / crooked, bent STRENGTH strong / weak strong, stubborn / mild, DISPOSITION meek, docile spicy, bitter, sour / TASTE bland TENDERNESS WEIGHT tender / tough heavy / light

More / -er
Comparing the quality of two items

Adjectives

MORE With an adjective or adverb With a one-syllable word or a of more-than-one syllable, word ending in -y or -ly add use more to create the the suffix -er to form a comparative phrase with comparative phrase with than. than. This apple is better than that This apple is more beautiful one. (good - better) than that one. This apple is redder than the This apple is more flavorful other one. (red) than the other one. This apple is heavier than that This apple is more one. (heavy) exceptional than that one. This apple is uglier than that This apple is more desirable one. (ugly) than that one.

-ER

LESS With an adjective or adverb of more-than-one syllable, use less to create the comparative phrase with than. This apple is less beautiful than that one. This apple is less flavorful than the other one. This apple is less exceptional than that one. This apple is less desirable than that one.

Exceptions Adjectives with -er

angry angrier busy busier happy happier ugly uglier funny funnier

friendly friendlier / handsome handsomer more friendly gentle gentler / far farther (distance) / more gentle further (quantity, degree) clever cleverer / more little littler clever* simple simpler / more narrow narrower simple* fun funner / more fun (see silly sillier below)

good better bad worse little less (noncount nouns) few fewer (noncount nouns - regular) many / much more

Much
Adding Emphasis to a Comparison

Much -er / Much More

MUCH -ER MUCH MORE Use much (an adverb) to add emphasis to the Use much (an adverb) to add emphasis comparison word formed with -er. (also: to the comparison formed with more. much, far, rather, a bit a lot) (also: much, far, rather, a bit a lot) This apple is much better than that one. This apple is much more beautiful than that (good - better) one. This apple is much redder than the other This apple is far more flavorful than the one. (red) other one. This apple is a bit heavier than that one. This apple is a bit more exceptional than (heavy) that one. This apple is a lot more desirable than that This apple is far uglier than that one. (ugly) one. See: Much / More

Adverbial Comparisons

Comparing the manner of two actions

Adverbs

-ER MORE Use -er with a one-syllable adverb that Use more with most does not take the -ly ending (loud, adverbs ending in -ly. fast, hard, etc.) Can you drive more Can you drive faster than this? rapidly than this? You push more On this one, you push harder on the forcefully on the brake brake than on that one. than on that one. This car runs quieter than the other This car runs more one. (informal use) quietly than that one. This car warms up slower than that This car warms up more one. (informal use) slowly than that one. See Adverb exceptions.

LESS Use less with most adverbs ending in -ly. Can you drive less rapidly than this? You push less forcefully on the brake than on that one. This car runs less quietly than that one. This car warms up less quickly than that one.

Exceptions Adverbs with -er

bad worse high higher near nearer easy easier (informal) early earlier late later soon sooner loud louder (informal) fast faster long er well better slow slower (informal) hard low lower quick quicker (informal) harder

Clause Shortening
Subject v. Object Pronoun

Clause Shortening

SUBJECT PRONOUN IN CLAUSE

OBJECT PRONOUN IN CLAUSE

When making a comparison, two like things are In informal English, the object compared. The verbs should be parallel (the same pronoun occurs. This pattern seems form, tense). After than the main verb is not usually to treat than more like a repeated. Use the subject pronoun and optionally use preposition (the pronoun being the the auxiliary verb. (Use this form in business and object of the preposition). academic English.) I speak five languages. You speak six languages. You speak more languages than I do. / I . [than I You speak more languages than me. speak] You are an hour late. He is thirty minutes late. You are later than he is. / he. [than he is late] You are later than him. We liked the movie. Chelsea loved the movie. Chelsea liked the movie more than we did. / we. Chelsea liked the movie more than [than we liked it] we. He bought a new car this year. They bought a new

car last year. He has a newer car than they do. / they. (they have. He has a newer car than them. British English) He has been difficult to please. You have been difficult to please. He has been more difficult to He has been more difficult to please than you have. / pleasethan you. you. [than you have been] Swan 139.6, 429.2 Huddleston 460, 1113

Common Mistakes

ERROR FIX There are several new electric cars Tesla is a fast car. on the market. Tesla is a faster car. Tesla is a faster car than the other electric cars on Compared to what? the market. I bought a pretty dress. It is prettier than the one I returned. I bought a prettier dress. Do you We usually state the two items in the comparison want to see it. Compared to what? unless the second item is understood from earlier mention or shared knowledge. Eleni and Maria are a bit shorter than I. / I am. Eleni and Maria are a bit shorter than Adding the auxiliary verb after the pronoun often me. helps a speaker remember that a subject pronoun is needed.

I was working more quickly than he I was working more quickly than he was. [was did. working] Use parallel verb forms when making a comparison. Pop-Q "Shorter than"

Fun Noun v. Adj

NEW USAGE The word fun is a word that is changing in use. Originally used as a noun, it started to be used as a noun modifier and then an adjective dating to around 1850 to 1950. Currently, it is being used as an adjective along side of an earlier adjective form funny. Both words are in use now with different meanings. Let's have some fun. a noun

COMPARATIVE FORM The comparative form of fun is currently more fun; however, advertising is starting to use the expected grammatical pattern of funner. The use may change in time to the -er comparative form or it may remain frozen with the 'more' form. The new version is funner than the last one. causes more amusement - informal use!

This is game is fun. an adjective - informal The new version is more fun than the last use (amusing) one. informal to formal use This is a fun game. an adjective - informal The new version is funnier than the last one. use causes more laughter, or is odder This is a funny game. an adjective - causes laughter, or is odd or peculiar Pop-Q "Funner"

Most / -est
Indicating the unique quality of an item in a group

unique (adj) the only one of its kind

Superlative Adjectives

-EST With a one-syllable word or a word ending in -y or -ly add the suffix -est to form an optional superlative phrase with "of all". Dad says the Honeycrisp apple is the best of all. (good - best)

MOST

LEAST

With an adjective or With an adjective or adverb of more-than-one adverb of more-than-one syllable, use most. syllable, use least.

The Honeycrisp apple is The Honeycrisp apple is the most popular of all. the least popular of all. The Granny Smith apple The Granny Smith apple The Granny Smith apple is the tastiest is the most flavorful is the least flavorful baking apple. baking apple. baking apple. This Red Delicious This Red Delicious This Red Delicious apple is the reddest apple is the most apple is the least of all. exceptional of all. exceptional of all. This Golden Delicious This Golden Delicious This Golden Delicious apple is the apple is the most apple is the least sweetest apple. desirable apple. desirable apple.

Superlative Adjective Exception List (some)

angry angriest busy busiest happy happiest ugly ugliest funny funniest

friendly friendliest / handsome most friendly handsomest gentle gentlest / far farthest / furthest most gentle clever cleverest / little littlest most clever* simple simplest / narrow narrowest most simple* fun funnest / most silly silliest fun (see below)

good best bad worst little least (noncount nouns) few fewest (noncount nouns - regular) many / much most

Common Mistakes

ERROR This works more better than that one. (occurs in colloquial speech) John is my most best friend.

FIX This works better than that one. This works more efficiently than that one. John is my best friend. Most is redundant (repetitive). Delete it.

Superlative Adverbs
Indicating unique manner

Superlative Adverbs

-EST Use -est with a one-syllable adverb that does not take the -ly ending (loud, fast, hard, etc.) See adverb exceptions.

MOST

LEAST

Use most with most Use least with most adverbs ending in -ly. adverbs ending in -ly. The blades of blender D go the least rapidly of all Blender D runs the least quietly of all.

The blades of blender The blades of blender A go the fastest A go the most rapidly of all. of all. Blender A runs the quiest of all. (informal Blender A runs the use) most quietly of all.

Blender A liquefies the best of all. (well) We had to push the hardest on the buttons of blender D.

Blender A purees the Blender D purees the most efficiently of all. least efficiently of all. Blender B chops the most evenly of all. Blender C chops the least evenly of all.

blades (n.) the sharp cutting edges that spin in a circle chop (v.) to cut in small pieces. liquefy (v.) to turn into a liquid, pure

Other Adverbs with the -est Suffix

bad worst It was high highest He raining the worst ever. climbed the highest. early earliest He late latest He arrived the earliest. arrived the latest. fast fastest He ran long longest He the fastest. lasted the longest. hard hardest He low lowest He worked the hardest. bowed the lowest. *These words are in transitional use.

near nearest He came the nearest. soon soonest He arrived the soonest. well best He worked the best.

*easy easiest (informal) most easily *loud loudest (informal) most loudly *slow slowest (informal) most slowly *quick quickest (informal) most quickly

Superlative
Expressions

First, Ever, Of

FIRST EVER For record-setting events, For record-setting events, use first followed by an use ever.

OF / IN Use a superlative with a prepositional phrase (of, in,

infinitve phrase. She is the youngest child She is the first child to sail ever to sail around the around the world. world. He was the first eightyHe was the oldest person year old to swim the ever to swim the English English Channel. Channel. Michael Phelps won the Michael Phelps was the most Olympic gold medals first to win 14 gold medals. ever. It was the first 100 meter It was the longest hotdog hotdog ever made. (passive ever [to be] made voice) measuring 100 meters.

from) to define the group. She was the youngest child of all to sail around the world. He was the oldest of all the competitors to swim the English Channel. Michael Phelps won the most Olympic gold medals of all the swimmers. It was the longest hotdog in the world. (27 Sept 2008 Monterrey, Mexico)

Much / More
Increasing the amount of something

More + Noun

MORE + NONCOUNT NOUN Use more before a noncount noun for emphasis on a comparative amount. People have more knowledge about eating healthier food. Consuming more red wine may hold the secret to youth. More fiber helps digestion. More potassium helps regulate blood pressure.

MORE + COUNT NOUN Use more before a count noun for emphasis on a comparative number. More people are eating healthier food. People want to consume more antioxidants. Eating more vegetables adds fiber to one's diet. Eating more bananas adds potassium and vitamin C to your diet.

Much More / Many More + Noun

MUCH MORE + NONCOUNT NOUN Use much more before a noncount noun for emphasis on a greater amount. People have much more knowledge about eating right.

MANY MORE + COUNT NOUN Use many more before a count noun for emphasis on a greater number. Many more people are eating healthier diets. People take in many more calories than People eat much more food than they should. they need. How much more fiber does a banana have? How many more bananas can the monkey eat?

Too Much / Too Many + Noun

TOO MUCH + NONCOUNT NOUN TOO MANY + COUNT NOUN Use too much for an unacceptable, excessive Use too many for an unacceptable, amount. Use too (adv) to modify much, a excessive amount. Use too (adv) to modify quantifier to a noncount noun. many, a quantifier to a count noun. People eat too many chips, cookies and People eat too much fat, sugar and salt. candy bars. Prepared food includes too much packaging. Vending machines sell too many high(plastic, boxes, padding) calorie snacks. The cook put much too much salt in the The cook put far too many beans in the soup. (much too much is informal) soup. (far too many is informal) I have a little too much sugar in the tomato sauce. I have a few too many cloves of garlic in the tomato sauce.

Fewer / Less
Decreasing the amount of something

Fewer with Count Nouns / Less with Noncount Nouns

FEWER Fewer is used before a count noun to indicate a decreased number of items. COUNT NOUN Do you want fewer lines and wrinkles on your face? Eat fewer sweets. Drink fewer sodas/soft drinks. Smoke fewer cigarettes. Also see noncount nouns

LESS Less is used before a noncount noun to indicate a decreased number of items. NONCOUNT NOUN Do you want less wrinkling?

Eat less candy. Drink less beer. Inhale less tar and nicotine.

Common Mistake

ERROR FIX Eat more fruits and vegetables, get Eat more fruit and vegetables, get fewer wrinkles.

less wrinkles.

"Wrinkles" is a countable noun. "Fruit" is not generally used in the plural form.

Participial Adjectives 1 -ed / -ing

Agent vs. Receiver

A participial adjective modifies a noun and may indicate:

source (agent, cause) of feeling or emotion receiver of feeling or emotion

Receiver -ed / Source -ing Adjectives

RECEIVER -ED Past participial adjectives ending in -ed modify the receiver of the feeling or emotion. The past participle serves as an adjective formed from the passive form of the verb. RECEIVER

SOURCE -ING Present participial adjectives ending in -ing modify the source (agent or cause) of the feeling or emotion. The present participle serves as an adjective formed from an active verb. SOURCE

The family was entertained by the clown. (passive verb) The family was entertained. (past participial adjective )

The clown was entertaining the family. (active verb) The clown was entertaining. (present participial adjective )

Participial Adjective (receiver-source) List

RECEIVER OF THE FEELING SOURCE OF THE FEELING alarmed frustrated alarming frustrating amused humiliated amusing humiliating annoyed interested annoying interesting astonished intrigued astonishing intriguing bored overwhelmed boring overwhelming compelled perplexed compelling perplexing concerned pleased concerning pleasing confused relaxed confusing relaxing embarrassed relieved embarrassing relieving encouraged satisfied encouraging satisfying energized shocked energizing shocking enlightened stunned enlightening stunning entertained surprised entertaining surprising excited terrified exciting terrifying exhausted tired exhausting tiring frightened frightening

Common Mistakes

ERROR I was surprising to see sheep walking on the road.

FIX I was surprised to see sheep walking on the road. Use surprised instead of surprising as the

adjective for the receiver of the feeling or emotion. The towers of the Golden Gate Bridge are very The towers of the Golden Gate Bridge impressive from below. Use impressive instead of impressing as the are very impressing from below. adjective for the source of the feeling or emotion. Pop-Q "Impress" Pop-Q "Sheep" They were not expected by us. They were unexpected visitors We were not expecting them. We were surprised. (re-phrase) She was expecting. (a baby) The baby was expected in June. (passive)

We had some unexpecting visitors. We were unexpected.

Participial Adjectives
-ed (receiver) / -ing (source)

Receiver vs. Source

PRESENT PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVE -ING Receiver of the feeling or emotion The past The source of the feeling or emotion participle serves as an adjective formed from The present participle serves as an the passive form of the verb. adjective formed from an active verb. PAST PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVE -ED

an amused child

an amusing ride

The child receives the feeling of amusement. Interested people can sign up for the 2-day class. (The people feel interest in the subject.) Bored speakers should find something exciting to say. (The speaker feels boredom while speaking!) Amused viewers enjoy the short films. (The viewers feel the amusement.) Overwhelmed students end up dropping a course or two . (The students feel overwhelmed.)

The ride causes amusement. Interesting people will will speak during the 2-day class. (People cause others to feel interest.) Boring speakers put their attendees to sleep. (The speaker causes others to be bored.) Amusing short films are shown at the animated film festival. (The films cause the amusement.) Overwhelming amounts of work are given to University students. (The amount of work causes the overwhelming.)

Participial Adjectives 2 -ed / -ing

Ongoing Process vs. Completed State

A participial adjective modifies a noun and may indicate:

an ongoing process a completed process

Completed -ed /Ongoing -ing Adjectives

PAST PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVE PRESENT PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVE COMPLETED STATE ONGOING QUALITY OR STATE A completed state The past participle serves An ongoing state The present participle as an adjective formed from the passive form serves as an adjective formed from an

of the verb.

active verb.

still cooking! Grown children often move out of the house. Growing children need a lot of food. (Completed: they are finished growing.) (Ongoing: they are still growing.) Breaking dishes and shouts could be heard Broken dishes were all over the floor. in the kitchen. (Completed: they are finished growing.) (Ongoing: they are still breaking.) Fallen trees littered the forest floor. Falling trees are a danger to hikers. (Completed: they are down.) (Ongoing: they are coming down.) Fried potatoes would taste good right now. Frying potatoes smell delicious. (Completed: they are ready to eat.) (Ongoing: they are still frying.) Watch out for fallen rocks along the road Watch out for falling rocks along the road (Completed: they are obstacles; step over (Ongoing: they are still falling.) them.)

a roasted chicken done!

a roasting chicken

Participial Adjectives
Noun Modifiers

Completed or Natural Quality States

-ED COMPLETED STATES

-ED NATURAL QUALITY OR STATE

Past participial adjectives ending in -ed may describe a quality or state of a noun completed by someone.

Also, past participial adjectives may describe a natural quality or state (no agent). We saw a spotted owl making a nest. The recently spotted owl was making a nest. (an (an owl with natural coloring owl seen or located by someone) including spots) The black-eyed terrier walked into The black-eyed boxer walked into the ring. (an eye the ring. (a dog with naturally black that was harmed by another fighter) eyes) We made the pie with pitted cherries. (pits that were We made the sculpture from pitted removed by us) wood. (wood with natural scars) The freshly-washed dog sat in the sun. (a dog that The short-haired dog sat in the sun. (a was washed by someone) dog with naturally short hair) Would you like to visit the frozen Would you like some frozen yogurt. (yogurt that Antarctic tundra? (a region that is was frozen by someone) permanently frozen) She wore a shirt with rolled-up sleeves. (sleeves She wore a long-sleeved shirt. (a shirt that were rolled up by someone) with long-sleeves)

Ongoing Process or Function

PRESENT PARTICIPIAL ADJECTIVE PRESENT PARTICIPIAL ONGOING QUALITY OR STATE ADJECTIVE FUNCTION Describe something still undergoing a process Describes the function of something. or activity.

ONGOING QUALITY OR STATE We have a talking parrot (a parrot that talks.) Don't awaken a sleeping dog. (a dog that is sleeping) Look! It's a shooting star. ( a star that is shooting across the sky) It's a slow-moving train. (a train that is moving slowly) A hiking party was seen to the north of the volcano. (a group that is hiking) The waiting parents were very worried. (parents that are waiting)

FUNCTION We have a talking machine. (a device for talking, a text reader) Don't forget your sleeping bag. (a bag for sleeping) He practices his rifle skills at the shooting range. (an area for target practice) It's a moving van. (a truck for transporting households) Mr Hanson was wearing his hiking shoes (shoes that are for trekking.) The doctor's waiting room was brightly decorated. (a room for waiting)

Commonly Confused (by native speakers)

PITTED OLIVES

OLIVES

These olives have no pits. These olives have pits. While olives could be described as 'pitted olives' a natural quality or state of having pits more often they are just called Pitted olives are those 'olives'. The modifier is unnecessary: Does a naturally grown which have had the pit olive without a pit exist? Because of the confusion, some removed by someone. speakers clarify the terms as 'olives with pits' or 'olives without pits'.

Adjectives as Object Complements

Indicating resulting states

Resulting States

OBJECT COMPLEMENT With some verbs, an action and its resulting state can The state (the adjective) results be combined into one sentence. In these examples, the from the action indicated by the adjective indicating the resulting state is placed after verb. Each sentence means the the direct object. The adjective modifies the object (It. same as the sentence to the right. is the object complement.) Larry washed the car. The car is Larry washed the car clean. clean now. (resulting state) Larry painted the car. The car is Larry painted the car blue. red, white, green, etc. blue now. Larry pushed the door. The car is Larry pushed the door open. closed, ajar open now. The tornado blew the car. The car The tornado blew the car apart. to pieces is apart now. in parts, in pieces tornado (n) a violent, high-speed, spinning storm

ACTION RESULT

Compare: Adjective vs. Adverb

ADJECTIVE ADVERB The object complement tells how something The adverb tells how the action was resulted or ended up. performed. Larry washed the car clean. It is clean now. Larry washed the car thoroughly. completely Larry wiped the car dry. It is dry now. Larry wiped the car carefully Larry painted the car white. It is white He painted the car expertly. now. Larry pushed the door open. It is open now. He pushed the door gently. He got the car cleverly. (came to own it, Larry got the car ready. It is ready now. took possession of)

Verbs + Adjectives that follow this pattern

He washed his The thief blew the safe They pushed the The cold weather clothes clean/ open. exploded door open / closed. froze the water solid. spotless. Ted cracked the nut She cut my hair I must get my house She wiped the table open. split short. clean/ warm/ ready. dry / clean. They pulled the door She cropped the Let's paint the table They shot him dead. open / closed. picture small. white / blue / red. They jerked the door She brushed the He filled the bottle He boiled it hard. open / closed. tablecloth flat. full of oil. He drained the They knocked him He frightened us silly. They bored us stiff. bathtub dry. senseless. He hammered the The carpenter planed He drank the glass She rubbed the cat dry. nail flat/ down. the wood smooth. dry.

Common Mistakes

ERROR She heated the milk warm.

FIX She heated the milk until it was warm. This verb does not follow this pattern.

He sang the song beautifully. in a manner that was beautiful He sang the song beautiful. He sang the song so that it was beautiful. (before it was not) This verb does not follow this pattern.

Adjective Complements
Special verbs

Want vs. Find

DESIRE A RESULT With the word want (also, like, would like, prefer) the state is desired (in the future). Note that the adjective is a past participle form of the verb, which indicates desiring a service to be done. She wants her car cleaned. She wants her car to be cleaned. (service) She wants her car clean. She wants her car in a clean state.

EXPERIENCE A RESULT With the word found, the state is experienced or encountered by the person. (The item already exists in this state.) She found the car clean. She found that the car was clean. (in a clean state)

She found the car ready. She found She wants her car repaired. She wants her car to be that the car was ready, (in a readyrepaired. (service) for-use state) She wants the engine checked. She wants the She found the engine noisy. She engine to be checked. (service) found that the engine was noisy.

Have/ Get/ Make

ARRANGED IT Verbs have and get are used for having someone else do something. have/get + obj + participial adjective She had her car cleaned. Someone else caused it to happen. (service) She got her car repaired. Someone else causes it to happen. (service) Related pages Get-Passives | Make vs. Do

DID IT Verbs get and make are used doing something by one's self. make/get + obj + adjective She got her carpet clean. She worked until it was done. It was difficult. (self) She made/got the kids ready for bed. She caused it to happen. (self)

Slang Do

EXPRESSION These expressions (and other similar ones with good, bad, wrong and right) appear to include adjective complements.

MEANIANG The adjective state results from the action of the verb on the direct object.

He done her wrong. informal She done him good. very informal Do it right. informal You did us proud. informal

He did it so that it wronged her. unjustly treated She did it so that it pleased him. sexually, as in John Lennon's "Don't Let Me Down." Do it so that it is right. (Do it correctly / morally.) You did it so that it made us proud.

Adjective Suffixes
Changing word forms

Adjectives formed from nouns

NOUN FORM Some adjectives are formed from nouns. Others are formed from verbs. Some are formed from words in Latin, Greek or other languages. There is no simple rule for adding suffixes, but there are some common patterns. NOUN

ADJECTIVE FORM Adding a suffix onto a noun form is one way of forming an adjective. A suffix is a part added to the end of a word to mark the word form. We often use an adjective after a BE verb or a stative verb. . ADJECTIVE MODIFIER TO A NOUN It was a spectacular sky. It was a colorful sky. It was a reddish sky. It was an awesome sight.

The sky was a spectacle. (a very It was spectacular. beautiful thing to see) The sky was filled with colors. It was colorful. The sunset was red. It looked reddish. We felt awe. (a feeling of inspiration and It was awesome. respect)

Common suffixes that change nouns to adjectives

NOUN NOUN NOUN ADJECTIVE ADJECTIVE ADJECTIVE -AL accident region brute brutal relating to accidental regional -ARY relating to custom moment caution quality or customary momentary cautionary place -FUL full beauty wonder awe awful of beautiful wonderful -IC having the nature athlete history base basic of; caused athletic historic by -ICAL magic history having the logic logical magical historical nature of -ISH child origin, fool foolish self selfish childish nature -LESS power friend worth without powerless friendless worthless -LIKE like lifelike lady ladylike war warlike like friend month -LY like cost costly friendly monthly -OUS poison danger nerve quality, poisonous dangerous nervous nature SUFFIX -Y like rain rainy fun funny dirt dirty

NOUN NOUN ADJECTIVE ADJECTIVE universe person universal personal honor honorary skill skillful photograph photographic practice practical sheep sheepish use useless child childlike day daily mystery mysterious mess messy diet dietary success successful science scientific statistic statistical pink pinkish home homeless bird birdlike order orderly victory victorious dirt dirty

Pop-Q "historic / historical"

Adjective Forms 2
Adjectives from Verbs

Adjectives formed from verbs

VERB FORM Some adjectives are formed from verbs. VERB They create ideas. She is expecting a baby. They don't permit smoking here. They urge us to come immediately. Today's news interests me. Part Adj 1 -ed / -ing

ADJECTIVE FORM Adding a suffix onto a verb form is another way of forming an adjective. A suffix is a part added to the end of a word to mark the word form. We often use an adjective after a BE verb or a stative verb. . ADJECTIVE MODIFIER TO A NOUN They are creative. She is an expectant mother. Smoking is permissible. allowed The matter is urgent. The news is interesting. I am interested. They have creative minds. We congratulated the expectant mother. Smoking is a permissible activity. They called us about an urgent matter. We have interesting news. I am an interested reader.

Common suffixes that change verbs to adjectives

VERB VERB VERB VERB VERB ADJECTIVE ADJECTIVE ADJECTIVE ADJECTIVE ADJECTIVE -ABLE agree expand laugh remark pass passable able, can do agreeable expandable laughable remarkable -IBLE able, access force sense permit flex flexible can do accessible forcible sensible permissible -ANT please ignore resist performing rely reliant vacate vacant pleasant ignorant resistant agent -ENT excel depend confide differ performing urge urgent excellent dependent confident different agent -IVE attract create select posses prevent causing attractive creative selective possessive preventive effect -ING amuse excite confuse relax relaxing surprise causing amusing exciting confusing surprising SUFFIX

effect -ED receiving effect -EN receiving effect

amuse amused freeze frozen

excite excited lighten lightened

confuse confused darken darkened

relax relaxed widen widened

surprise surprised shorten shortened

Adjectives
Similar but Different

VERB

SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT PAIRS

NOUN

AWE

It was an awesome movie. having a great quality, inspiring CHILD It was an awful movie. having a terrible quality

SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT PAIRS It was childish behavior (behaviour). having immature behavior, negative It was childlike behavior. qualities like a child, positive

We have two dependent children. needing someone for care We are confident about We have two dependable children. winning. sure [L.confidere] DEPEND CONFIDE having a nature of completing The message is confidential. promises private [L. confidenti] The laughing child was playing. having a good nature The laughable car was powered LAUGH with tequila. impossible to be serious about LIGHT She has light hair. a natural quality She has lightened hair. an unnatural/changed quality It is a crisp day, today. cool and dry It is a crispy cracker. thin and crunchy (makes a pleasant sound ) We had a fun time at the movies. amusing We saw a funny movie. causing laughter

CRISP

FUN

LOVE

He is a loving son. having a quality of giving love He is a lovable son. having a nature of attracting love

TACT

The general made a tactical advance. military move [L. tacticus] He is a tactful politician. having skills handling situations [L. tactus] tact (n.) skill in dealing with difficult or delicate situations

He is selective a boo ut what he eats. having a quality of being choosy, picky SELECT They are selling selected TASTE items. particular, carefully chosen Select people can live there. a small number, exclusive, wealthy He is a sensible person. reasonable [sensibilis] SENSE WORTH He is a sensitive person. easily irritated or hurt [L. sensitivus]

Your food is tasty. having a good taste You are a tasteful dresser. having good judgment for fashion He is a worthy competitor. He is a worthless competitor.

Adjectives -ic and -ical

-ICAL The -ical form is often added to a word that There is no particular way to know already has a final -ic. For example,. historic whether a word will use the -ic or the -ical (of history) and historical (related to ending. The suffix -ic comes from French something that is historic). Such adjectives -ique, or Greek -ikos. and means having often have a different or an additional the nature of , or causing something. meaning from the more basic -ic form. academic, algebraic, arithmetic, artistic, athletic, catholic, domestic, dramatic, biological, chemical, critical, cynical, egoistic, emphatic, energetic, fantastic, grammatical, fanatical, illogical, logical, geometric, strategic, linguistic, majestic, mathematical, mechanical, medical, musical, neurotic, pathetic, pedagogic, phonetic, pedagogical, physical, radical, surgical public, semantic, syntactic, systematic, tactical, topical tragic We listen to classical music. from a cultural He buys classic cars. traditional, old style (sometimes Greek, Roman, European) source, or 18thC. His comic verse filled books. artistic His comical verse entertained audiences.

-IC

comedy funny His economic theory was proved unsound. His economical car was unsound. cheap of the science of economics An electric motor powered the car. a Electrical equipment makes our work easier. particular machine general, mass That was a/an historic moment. recorded in This is a/an historical moment. worthy of past history being recorded in history The hysteric / hysterical woman was out of The movie was hysterical. very funny, causing control. unable to control your behaviour uncontrollable laughter or emotions The little girl played with a magic wand. It was a magical experience. mysterious, of a mysterious source wonderful, exciting He was a medic in the military. intern or He did medical research. related to medicine doctor He wrote in a poetic speech. imaginative, He wrote in a poetical manner. having the having the quality of poetry, like poetry form of poetry It's not politic to ask such questions wise It was a political question. concerning government and politics

Comparisons
Describing similarities and differences

Adjectives for Similarity and Difference

SIMILARITY Use these comparative words to show similarity. The apples are the same. (pronoun) These apples are alike. (adj) The apples are similar. (adj) The apples ripen similarly. (adv) This apple is like that apple. (prep) Related page: Parallel Phrasing

DIFFERENCE Use these comparative words to show difference. The apple and the orange are different. (adj) The apple and the orange are unalike / not alike. (adj) The apple and the orange are dissimilar. (adj) The apple and the orange grow differently. (adv) The apple is unlike the orange. (prep)

Adjective Expressions for Similarity and Differences

DIFFERENCE Use the expressions below to show Use the expressions below to show dissimilarity: not asas, differentfrom, similarity: asas, the sameas, like, etc. unlike, etc. This apple is as red as that apple. idiom The apple is different from/ than the orange. (adv - adv) (adj - conj) This apple has the same flavor as that This apple is not as sweet as this orange. (adv apple. (noun - adv) adv) This apple and the other apples are the The apple is more beautiful than the orange. same.* (adj - conj) This apple looks like that apple. (verb The apple is much more beautiful than the phrase) orange. (adv - adj - conj) This apple is similar to that apple. (adj - The apple grows on a tree unlike the tomato. prep) (prep) The apple is more like a pear than the orange. This apple is like that apple. (prep) (prep) This apple is just the same as that apple. The skin of the apple contrasts to the skin of (adv - pronoun - adv) the orange. (verb - prep) Both this apple and that one are sweet. The orange in contrast to the lemon is sweet. (paired conjunction) Neither this apple nor that one is sweet. The orange is sweet in contrast to the lemon (paired conjunction) which is bitter. Also see: Both - and (neither nor) More than and the same as *Same almost always occurs as the same in a comparison.

SIMILARITY

Sentence Transition Words for Similarity and Difference

SIMILARITY DIFFERENCE Use a transition word (with a comma after Use a transition word (with a comma after it) it) to begin a sentence. The word functions to begin a sentence. The word functions to to transition the reader from the thought in transition the reader from the thought in one

one sentence to a similar thought in the next. This apple is tart. Similarly, this one is sour. (adverb phrase)

sentence to a differing thought in the next.

The apple is red. In contrast, the orange is orange. Some people think the apple is orange. On This apple is tart. In the same way, this one the contrary, the apple is red. (on the is sour. contrary = not true!) That orange is delicious. Likewise, this While / Whereas the orange is high in fiber, apple is very flavorful. the apple is not. (contrasts two items) On the one hand the lemon is high in fiber, on the other hand it is too bitter to eat. (Use when discussing "both sides of the coin".) Also see: Contrasts - but / but still

Comparative Nouns
-er and more

Content page for this grammar point: More than.

Comparing Qualities of Nouns

-ER MORE Use the suffix -er with one syllable Use the more with more-than-one syllable words words to make a comparative word form to make a comparative phrase with than. with than. This apple is better than that one. (good This apple is more beautiful than that one. - better) This apple is redder than the other one. (red) This apple is more flavorful than the other one.

The more, the more

Two things vary together

Related Activities

THE MORE, THE We use a reduced clause in each part of a The more, the expression. A comparative word form is used in each part. A comma separates the two clauses. The more the building shook, the more we held on.

AS MORE, THEN The meaning varies from cause-effect actions to simply same-time occurrences. Not every As more, then sentence can be restated as a The more, the expression. As/Because the shaking of the building grew stronger, we held on more. As/Because the wave rose higher, we ran The more the wave rose, the faster we ran. faster. The more we saw, the less we could As we saw more (destruction), it was harder believe. to believe (what we saw). The more we looked, the fewer things we As we looked, we found fewer things to found to retrieve. retrieve (from the debris). retrieve (v.) to find something and bring it back debris (n.) the pieces of something that are left after it has been destroyed in an accident, explosion Related page More / -er

Expected vs. Unexpected Outcome

EXPECTED OUTCOME In some expressions, the second variation is expected. Note that the word, verb, phrase and clause forms are parallel in each part of the expression.

UNEXPECTED OUTCOME In other expressions, the second variation is unexpected or contrary. The word forms should be parallel in each half of the expression.

THE + NOUN The larger the paycheck, the greater the purchase. noun-noun The lower the rates, the more the borrowers. THE + ADJECTIVE

THE + NOUN The larger the paycheck, the higher the tax. The lower the rates, the fewer the lenders. THE + ADJECTIVE

*The stronger, the better. (coffee, nations, The stronger, the worse. (Unclear context, will) adjective-adjective not an expression) The bigger, the better. (toys, cars) adjective- The smaller, the better. (computers, adjective phones, microchips) adjective-adjective The more, the merrier. (people) adjectiveadjective (Less is better.) THE + CLAUSE The higher they rise, the more they benefit. clause-clause The older I get, the more I understand. The more you give, the more you receive. (love, wealth) The more you learn, the more your earn. (education) THE + CLAUSE The higher they rise, the harder they fall. (politicians, leaders, businessmen) The older I get, the younger I feel. The more your take, the more you lose. (love, wealth) The more I learn, the less I know.

The stronger, the better "Note that in this structure, the word the is not really the definite article it was originally a form of the demonstrative pronoun, meaning 'by that much'." Swan (139.5)

The more expression used with count and noncount nouns

COUNT NOUN For some nouns, both a plural and singular forms exists. In this case, expressions that are more specific, tend to use the plural count noun. The better your education is, the greater opportunities you will have. (rewards) The more you plan, the better experiences you will have.

NONCOUNT NOUN General expressions tend to use the noncount noun or singular noun (but not always). Proverbs tend to use noncount nouns. The better the education, the greater the opportunity. (reward) The better the planning, the better the experience.

The more input we have, the better our conversations will be. The better we sleep, the more rested our minds will be.

The more the input, the better the conversation. The better the sleep, the more rested the mind.

Related page Count / Noncount (both sing. & pl.)

Common Mistakes

ERROR The more we saw, the more our disbelief. Unbalance, unparallel clause structure "The more"

FIX The more we saw, the less we could believe / the more we couldn't believe. The greater the disaster, the more the disbelief. Does the number of cars allowed into the city center cause traffic? (add context) The more (cars), the worse (the traffic).

The more, the worse. Unclear reference The more it rains, the worse the flooding is. (complete the clause) The more the rain, the worse the flooding. (or add the)

The more rain, the worse flood. Phrasing problem

A Nationality Names (Demonyms)

Referring to a person from a country

Referring to Nationality

ORIGIN / LANGUAGE Use no article with a Use no article single-name country. before an Use the before countries adjective for with of in the name: national origin. The Repuplic of, The COUNTRY

THE PEOPLE When referring to the national name of the people in general, no article is used. (Use plural form). When

A PERSON Use a / an before a national noun for a person. A nationality ending in -ese sounds better as an adjective

United__of, The Democratic __ of , etc. And use the before island countries: the Philippines, the Maldives, etc. See TheCountries PATTERN 1 -AN, -IAN

referring to the group followed by a noun specifically, use the such as citizen, before the name for national or person. the people.

Mexico is in North America. M Mexic exican chocolate ans are an ethnically is delicious. diverse people. The official Mexican language is Spanish. The Mexicans are made up of native and European immigrants.

A Mexican, Frida Kahlo, was an extraordinary artist. PERSON

PATTERN 2 -ESE A Japanese baseball player, Ichiro, plays for the Seattle Mariners. Japane Ja se people consist of panese economy people who are 95.5% influences the of Japanese origin. rest of the world. The Japanese people Japanese is have the longest life spoken here. expectancy in the world. A Japanese person, Fujita, invented a scale for rating tornado intensity. A Japanese / A Japanese man / Two Japanese men (woman, citizen, individual, person.)

Japan is in the north Pacific Ocean.

PATTERN 3 -I

S Saudi Arabia is locted on the Arabian Peninsula. audi (Arabian) A dates are Saudis Saudi can receive free exported around (Saudi Arabians) education. the world. speak three variations of Arabic. A Saudi woman can Arabic is spoken also receive an here. The Saudis come from education. a variety of regions.

PATTERN 4 -ish, sh, ch nglish tea is known around the world.

E He is an Englishman. There are two Englishmen here. An Englishman spoke to us about the history of England.

England English is used is in northern Europe. around the world. The English language is spoken here. PATTERN OTHERS

The English are proud of their history. The Englishes/ English drink tea.

Greece is in southern Europe. he letters are

T Greeks are proud of

A Greek won the race.

Greek.

their teams.

The Greeks are the Greek is spoken first to enter the here. games.

Pop-Q "Nationality" | Also see The Group

Common Mistakes

ERROR FIX One neighbor is a Turk and the other is an One neighbor is a Turk and the other is an Englishman. (noun) English. (noun) The Englishes colonized The English colonized North America. North America. English built the Titanic and the Queen Mary. The English built the Titanic and the Queen Mary. ships One neighbor is an Irishman and the other is a Chinese national or citizen / is from China. (noun) One neighbor is a Irishman and the other is A Chinese sounds awkward. Adding a noun such as citizen, a Chinaman. (not used national, person, etc is a quick fix. National names for people anymore) change through time. It is best to look the name up: Hong Konger, Taiwaner, Argentine, etc. Google "demonyms"

Country, Origin and People

Referring to nationality

Pattern 1 AN / -IAN

THE COUNTRY a noun -AN

THE ORIGIN / CULTURE THE PEOPLE / LANGUAGE an adjective for people, a noncount noun culture and sometimes their (always plural) language

A PERSON a count noun (singular or plural)

Afghan (Dari Persian, Pashto, an Afghan (Afghani the Afghans others) is the the currency) Africa African the Africans an African Chile Chilean the Chileans a Chilean Germany German the Germans a German Jamaican (culture only) Jamaica the Jamaicans a Jamaican English / Creole Mexico Mexican the Mexicans a Mexican Morocco Moroccan the Moroccans a Moroccan Palau Palauan the Palauans a Palauan Tonga Tongan the Tongans a Tongan United States of the Americans, U.S. an American, a U.S. American (culture only) America Americans American Venezuela Venezuela the Venezuela a Venezuelan Afghanistan -IAN Argentina Austria Australia Belgium Brazil Cambodia Canada Colombia Croatia El Salvador Argentinean Austrian Australian Belgian Brazilian Cambodian Canadian Colombian Croatian Salvadoran the Argentineans / the Argentines the Austrians the Australians the Belgians the Brazilians the Cambodians the Canadians the Colombian the Croats, Croatians the Salvadorans, an Argentinean / Argentine an Austrian an Australian a Belgian a Brazilian a Cambodian a Canadian a Colombian a Croat, a Croatian a Salvadoran,

Hungary India Indonesia Iran Norway Peru Rumania Russia Saudi Arabia Tunisia Ukraine

Hungarian Indian Indonesian Iranian Norwegian Peruvian Rumanian Russian Saudi, Saudi Arabian Tunisian Ukrainian

Salvadorians the Hungarians the Indians the Indonesians the Iranians the Norwegians the Peruvians the Rumanians the Russians the Saudis, the Saudi Arabians the Tunisians the Ukrainians

Salvadorian a Hungarian an Indian an Indonesian an Iranian a Norwegian a Peruvian a Rumanian a Russian a Saudi, a Saudi Arabian a Tunisian a Ukrainian

Pattern 2 ese

COUNTRY

a noun

ORIGIN / CULTURE / LANGUAGE an adjective for people, culture and sometimes their language

THE PEOPLE

A PERSON a count noun (singular) Use this form as an adjective with a noun such as: citizen, national, or person. a Burmese (person) a Chinese (person) a Portuguese (person) a Japanese (person) a Lebanese (person) a Sudanese (person) a Taiwanese person a Vietnamese (person)

a noun (plural) the Burmese The Burmese are a strong people. the Chinese the Portuguese the Japanese the Lebanese the Sudanese the Taiwanese the Vietnamese

Burma He is Burmese He is from Burma. Burmese. China Portugal Japan Lebanon Sudan Taiwan Vietnam Chinese Portuguese Japanese Lebanese Sudanese Taiwanese Vietnamese

Pattern 3 i

THE ORIGIN / THE PEOPLE CULTURE / LANGUAGE an adjective for people, a noncount noun a noun culture and often language (always plural) Bangladesh Bangladesh(i) the Bangladeshi Iraq Iraqi the Iraqis Israel Israeli the Israelis Pakistan Pakistani the Pakistanis the Saudis, the Saudi Arabia Saudi, Saudi Arabian Saudi Arabians The United Arab the Emirian, the Emirian, Emirati Emirates Emirati Yemen Yemeni, Yemenite the Yemenis THE COUNTRY

A PERSON a count noun (singular or plural) a Bangladeshi an Iraqi an Israeli a Pakistani a Saudi, a Saudi Arabian an Emirian, an Emirati a Yemeni

Pattern 4 ish, -sh, -ch / -man, -woman

THE COUNTRY a noun England France Holland Ireland Wales

THE ORIGIN / THE PEOPLE A PERSON CULTURE / LANGUAGE an adjective for people, a noncount noun a count noun (singular culture and often language (always plural) or plural) two Englishmen / English the English Englishwomen a Frenchman/ French the French Frenchwoman a Dutchman/ Dutch the Dutch Dutchwoman an Irishman/ Irish the Irish Irishwoman a Welshman/ Welsh the Welsh Welshwoman

Others

THE COUNTRY a noun Argentina Bangladesh Croatia the Czech Republic Denmark Finland Greece Iceland Iraq Israel Liechtenstein the Philippines Poland Saudi Arabia Scotland Serbia The Slovak Republic Spain Sweden Switzerland Thailand The United Arab Emirates Turkey Yemen Yugoslavia

THE ORIGIN / CULTURE / THE PEOPLE LANGUAGE an adjective for people, a noncount noun culture and often language (always plural) the Argentineans / Argentinean Argentines Bangladesh(i) the Bangladeshi Croatian the Croats Czech Danish Finnish Greek Icelandic Iraqi Israeli Liechtensteiner Philippine Polish Saudi, Saudi Arabian Scottish Serbian Slovak Spanish Swedish Swiss Thai Emirian, Emirati Turkish Yemeni, Yemenite Yugoslav the Czechs the Danes the Finns the Greeks the Icelanders the Iraqis the Israelis the Liechtensteiners the Filipinos the Poles the Saudis, the Saudi Arabians the Scots the Serbs the Slovaks the Spaniards the Swedes the Swiss (no plural) the Thais the Emirian, the Emirati the Turks the Yemenis the Yugoslavs

A PERSON a count noun (singular or plural) an Argentinean / Argentine a Bangladeshi a Croat a Czech a Dane a Finn a Greek an Icelander an Iraqi an Israeli a Liechtensteiner a Filipino / a Filipina a Pole a Saudi, a Saudi Arabian a Scot a Serb a Slovak a Spaniard a Swede a Swiss a Thai an Emirian, an Emirati a Turk a Yemeni a Yugoslav

The Group
The before adjectives without nouns

Adjective-Group Names

THE + ADJECTIVE However, in some cases, we use the + adjective Usually when we use an adjective as (without a noun) to talk about a particular group of a modifier, both the adjective and people who are in a particular physical or social the noun are present together. condition. A blind person uses assistive The blind use assistive technology. (the deaf, the technology. handicapped) A young person expects to be able to The young expect to be able to find jobs. (the find a job. restless) An accused man was sent to jail to The accused was sent to jail to await his trial. (the await his trial. undersigned, the deceased legal terms) A poor person hopes to live a better The poor hope to live a better life. (the rich, the life. wealthy,the homeless) An unemployed person hopes to find The unemployed hope to find new jobs quickly. a new job quickly. (the retired, the underemployed, the jobless) The living should prepare themselves. (the dead, the A dying person should prepare dying, the deceased) himself. assistive technology (n.) portable reading devices, talking GPS and so on.

A + ADJECTIVE

AdjectiveNationality Names

AN + ADJECTIVE An adjective for a particular nationality can be used to modify a singular noun, such as person, man, woman, child, etc. An English person enjoys a good strong cup of tea. (English tea is strong and black.)

THE + ADJECTIVE With some nationalities, the + adjective is used if no noun exists. The singular word (a mass noun) uses plural agreement. The English drink strong black tea. (French, Irish, Dutch Welsh) The Chinese are optimistic about their country's future. (Japanese, Burmese, Lebanese, Vietnamese, Portuguese)

A Chinese person can be optimistic about her country's future.

See previous page: A-Nationality -ese / -ish

Selected-Quality Name
The (adjective)

Named by a Selected Quality

AN + ADJECTIVE When thinking about a choice between two or more things, we often use an adjective. Only a wheat and a sour dough roll is

THE + ADJECTIVE When the choice has already been mentioned, we often leave out a noun, especially with colors, material, ingredients and size. He'll take the wheat. (the noun is not repeated)

left. (Two) We have a a white or a blue car. Would you like a large or a small coffee? "a coffee" (a cup of coffee) is restaurant speech I would like the blue. I'd like the large, please.

Unique-Quality Name
The (adjective)

The former / The latter

THE + ADJECTIVE After a sentence in which one or more items is mentioned, former refers to the earliest item mentioned and latter refers to Either former or latter can the last item mentioned. The word should be placed close to be used as a modifier to a the word or idea to which it refers so as not to confuse the noun. reader. Another option is to simply repeat the noun instead of using former or latter. Michael Jackson, a former Michael Jackson(1) and Elizabeth Taylor(2) appeared at a pop star, died in June birthday celebration together in 1997. 2009. (past, previously, no longer) The former(1) was the King of Pop and the latter(1) was a Hollywood legend.

A + ADJECTIVE

Elizabeth Taylor's career peaked near the latter half of the 20th century. (comparatively near the end)

PopQ "Latter" (about using former and latter)

Unique in Order

A + ADJECTIVE THE + ADJECTIVE A word indicating order first or After a sentence in which an adjective and noun have last can be used to modify a been mention, the second mention may use just the noun. adjective: first refers to the earliest one (unique). A first kiss is something a young The first is always the most memorable. man or woman looks forward to. A last child quickly learns to outguess his/her siblings. (brothers The last learns quickly to survive. and sisters)

Superlative Unique in Quality

AN + ADJECTIVE When an adjective modifies a noun, the noun is included. He's the tallest guy in my class. She is the most hardworking employee of all.

THE + ADJECTIVE However, after superlative adjectives, nouns are often left out . He's the tallest in my class. (the noun is not repeated) She is the most hardworking of all.