What are Adjectives?

What are Adjectives?

Adjectives are the words which describe and clarify the verb.

Adjectives are the words which gives information about size, shape age, color and origin of the material.

For Example:

It is a big table.

Karachi is the largest city of Pakistan.

What 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, wholesome

Many 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 and verbs also end with -ate, so be careful with those.

Where Do Adjectives Go in a Sentence?

If you come across a word that ends in -y, -ary or -ate (or any other suffix for that matter), and you want to know whether it’s an adjective or not, just look at where it is and what it’s doing in the sentence. If it comes immediately before a noun, and especially if it comes between an article (a, an, the), a possessive adjective (my, his, her, its, your, our, their), a demonstrative (this, that, these, those) or an amount (some, most, all, a few) and a noun, then it’s probably an adjective.

·         The grassy field was wet with dew. – “Grassy” comes between an article (the) and a noun (field), so you know it’s an adjective.

·         These are my old trophies. – “Old” comes between a possessive adjective (my) and a noun (trophies), making it an adjective.

·         We had a few ordinary days. – “Ordinary” comes between an amount (a few) and a noun (days), so it’s definitely an adjective.

·         Did you see that immaculate kitchen? – “Immaculate” comes between a demonstrative (that) and a noun (kitchen), so it must be an adjective.

Adjectives also act as complements. Complements are words that complete the predicate of a sentence when the verb is “be.”

·         He is tall.

·         We’ve been teachers for five years.

·         You were my best friend.

·         He was smart, handsome and rich.

As you can see, not all complements are adjectives. In these examples, “tall” and “smart, handsome and rich” are adjectives, but “teachers for five years” and “my best friend” are both noun phrases. If the complement is only one word, there’s a good chance it’s an adjective. Also if the complement is a list of words, those are probably also adjectives. If an article (a, an, the) or a possessive (my, his, her, its, your, our, their, mine, his, hers, its, yours, ours, theirs) is involved, it’s a noun phrase.

What’s the Correct Order for Multiple Adjectives?

When you list several adjectives in a row, there’s 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 you’re learning English, you’ll 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 adjective

This 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.

If the adjectives come after the verb “be” as the complement, then the qualifier will stick with the noun at the beginning of the sentence. The adjectives in the complement are separated by commas with the final two being separated by “and.” For example, my coffee table is beautiful, big, circular, antique, brown, English and wooden.

1.    Adjectives of Quality - These adjectives are used to describe the nature of a noun. They give an idea about the characteristics of the noun by answering the question ‘what kind’.

- Honest, Kind, Large, Bulky, Beautiful, Ugly etc.

- New Delhi is a large city with many historical monuments.

- Sheila is a beautiful woman.

2.    Adjectives of Quantity - These adjectives help to show the amount or the approximate amount of the noun or pronoun. These adjectives do not provide exact numbers; rather they tell us the amount of the noun in relative or whole terms.

All, Half, Many, Few, Little, No, Enough, Great etc.
- They have finished most of the rice.
- Many people came to visit the fair.

3.    Adjectives of Number - These adjectives are used to show the number of nouns and their place in an order. There are three different sections within adjectives of number; they are -

Definite Numeral Adjective - Those which clearly denote an exact number of nouns or the order of the noun.

One, Two, Twenty, Thirty-Three etc. also known as Cardinals.
First, Second, Third, Seventh etc. also known as Ordinals.

Indefinite Numeral Adjective - Those adjectives that do not give an exact numerical amount but just give a general idea of the amount.

 Some, Many, Few, Any, Several, All etc.
E.g.: There were many people present at the meeting.

Distributive Numeral Adjective -Those adjectives that are used to refer to individual nouns within the whole amount.

Either, Neither, Each, Another, Other etc.
E.g: Taxes have to be paid by every employed citizen.

4.    Demonstrative Adjectives - These adjectives are used to point out or indicate a particular noun or pronoun using the adjectives - This, That, These andThose.

- That bag belongs to Neil.
- Try using this paintbrush in art class.
- I really like those shoes.
- These flowers are lovely.

5.    Interrogative Adjectives - These adjectives are used to ask questions about nouns or in relation to nouns, they are -Where, What, Which and Whose.

Where did he say he was going?
- What assignment did I miss out on?
- Which is your favorite author?
- Whose pen is this?

In some instances, we find that we need to use more than one adjective to describe a noun in a satisfactory manner. In these cases, commas are used to separate the adjectives but some series of adjectives do not require a comma. Therefore, we need to know the difference between Coordinate and Non-coordinate Adjectives -

Coordinate Adjectives - Are those words which can be re-arranged in the series easily and are still grammatically sound. This kind of series makes use of commas. This series can also insert ‘and’ between them and still be correct.

- She was a kind, generous, loving human being.
- She was a generous, loving, kind human being.
- She was a loving, kind and generous human being.

Here we can see that all three sentences are grammatically correct. In this case, the adjectives only need to be separated by commas.

Non-coordinate Adjectives - These are those adjectives which cannot be rearranged in the series. These do not use commas to separate the adjectives. Also, this kind of series do not make sense if we insert ‘and’ between them.

She has two energetic playful dogs.
She has playful two energetic dogs.
She has energetic and playful and two dogs.

What are the Adverbs?

What are the Adverbs?

Adverbs are the words which describe verbs

For Example:

He quickly runs.

She slowly eats.

Identifying an Adverb

You can tell whether or not a word is an adverb by considering its function in the sentence. If it is describing one of those three parts of speech- a verb, adjective or other adverb- it is an adverb.

You can also tell whether something is an adverb by looking at the ending of the word. A lot of adverbs - not all, but a lot - end in “ly.” For example, happily, quickly, speedily, steadily, foolishly, and angrily are all adverbs. So, if you said:

·         He happily runs.

You can tell that happily is an adverb because it is describing the word runs and because it ends in ly.

Many frequency words are adverbs as well. For example, very, much, more and many can all be adverbs.

·         The very pretty girl was in the car.

·         The much smarter boy won the race.

Common Errors with Adverbs and Adjectives

People often mistakenly use adjectives when they should use an adverb and vice versa. For example, a sentence that reads:

·         He behaved very bad on the field trip.

Is incorrect, because bad is modifying or describing behaved, which is a verb. It should read

·         He behaved very badly.

On the other hand, if you said:

·         His behavior is bad.

That would be correct, because in this case, the word bad is an adjective describing the noun behavior. 

Good and Well

Confusing adverbs and adjectives is a common error with the words good and well.

·         Good is an adjective that should modify nouns (the good boy).

·         Well is an adverb that modifies a verb (he listens well), or even an adjective (the well educated boy).

To practice, identify the adverb in each of the following sentences.

1.    Jim will miss the many wonderful people at work.

2.    Joe walked slowly and steadily up the hill.

3.    Becky ate quickly and then felt sick.

4.    Joe is very late.

5.    Clark wanted to be the great big house.

Answers:

1.    Jim will miss the many wonderful people at work. Many is the adverb, which modifies the adjective wonderful, which modifies the noun people.

2.    Joe walked slowly and steadily up the hill. Slowly and steadily are both adverbs here, describing the way Joe walked.

3.    Becky ate quickly and then felt sick. Quickly is the adverb here, modifying the verb ate.

4.    Joe is very late. Very is an adverb modifying late which is an adjective modifying Joe.

5.    Clark wanted to be the great big house. Great is an adverb modifying big which is an adjective modifying house

What is Verb?

What is Verb?

Definition:

Verb is the word which shows action.
For Example: Drive, Run and Drink.

Kinds of Verbs:

Action Verbs

Most verbs are action verbs (also called dynamic verbs) – things you can do, things you can ask someone to demonstrate, things “Simon” tells you do when you’re playing “Simon Says.” Hop, skip, pat your head, make a pair of moccasins – these are all action verbs.

Static Verbs

Static verbs are much subtler and more difficult to identify as verbs. They describe a position or property, they have no duration, no beginning, and no end. They do not show any action, so if “Simon” tells you to do one, it is impossible for him to know whether or not you are doing it.

The static verbs used in English are:

·         Astonish - The magician astonished the crowd.

·         Be - I am what I am. He is a fool. I was a fool; then I met you.

·         Believe - Do you believe in life after love?

What are Pronouns

Pronouns

PRONOUN:

Pronoun is the word which is used in place of noun.

Example: Aslam is running. He is running fast. In this sentence ‘he’ is pronoun used instead of noun.

Pronouns are of three types.

	Subjective	Possessive	Objective
1st Person Pronouns	I We	Me Our	My Us
2nd Person Pronouns	You	Your	You
3rd Person Pronouns	He She They It	His Her Their Its	Him Her Them It

:

What Are Possessive Pronouns?

Possessive pronouns show ownership. The term possessive pronoun covers possessive adjectivesand absolute possessive pronouns.

The possessive pronouns are:

Possessive Adjectives ·         my ·         your ·         his ·         her ·         its ·         our ·         their ·         whose

Absolute Possessive Pronouns ·         mine ·         yours ·         his ·         hers ·         ours ·         theirs

Possessive Pronouns Replace Nouns

Possessive pronouns are used to indicate who (or what) owns something. Like all pronouns, possessive pronouns take the place of nouns in sentences. 

Look at these examples:

·         Take Sarah's car to the party.

·         Take her car to the party.

(In this example, the possessive adjective her replaces Sarah.)

·         Take hers to the party.

(In this example, the absolute possessive pronoun hers replaces Sarah's car.)

Examples of Possessive Pronouns

Below are examples of possessive pronouns. (There is a mix of possessive adjectives and absolute possessive pronouns.)

·         Take her spoon and put it by your plate.

(These are both possessive adjectives.)

·         His view is that it's come to the end of its working life.

(These are both possessive adjectives.)

·         Anyone who goes to a psychiatrist ought to have his head examined. (Samuel Goldwyn, 1882-1974)

(This is a possessive adjective.)

·         Humans are the only animals that have children on purpose with the exception of guppies, who like to eat theirs. (P J O'Rourke)

(This is an absolute possessive pronoun.)

·         We cherish our friends not for their ability to amuse us, but for ours to amuse them. (Evelyn Waugh, 1903-1966)

(Our and their = possessive adjectives / ours = absolute possessive pronoun)

What is a Pronoun?

In grammar, a pronoun is defined as a word or phrase that may be substituted for a noun or noun phrase, which once replaced, is known as the pronoun’s antecedent. How is this possible? In a nutshell, it’s because pronouns can do everything that nouns can do. A pronoun can act as a subject, direct object, indirect object, object of the preposition, and more.

Without pronouns, we’d have to keep on repeating nouns, and that would make our speech and writing repetitive, not to mention cumbersome. Most pronouns are very short words. Examples include:

• He
• She
• They
• It
• We
• Who

As mentioned, pronouns are usually used to replace nouns, however they can also stand in for certain adverbs, adjectives, and other pronouns. Anytime you want to talk about a person, animal, place or thing, you can use pronouns to make your speech or writing flow better.

Types of Pronouns

Pronouns can be divided into numerous categories including:

• Indefinite pronouns – those referring to one or more unspecified objects, beings, or places
• Personal pronouns – those associated with a certain person, thing, or group; all except you have distinct forms that indicate singular or plural number
• Reflexive pronouns – those preceded by the adverb, adjective, pronoun, or noun to which they refer, and ending in –self or –selves
• Demonstrative pronouns – those used to point to something specific within a sentence
• Possessive pronouns – those designating possession or ownership
• Relative pronouns – those which refer to nouns mentioned previously, acting to introduce an adjective (relative) clause
• Interrogative pronouns – those which introduce a question
• Reciprocal pronouns – those expressing mutual actions or relationship; i.e. one another
• Intensive pronouns – those ending in –self or –selves and that serve to emphasize their antecedents

Pronoun Rules

There are a few important rules for using pronouns. As you read through these rules and the examples in the next section, notice how the pronoun rules are followed. Soon you’ll see that pronouns are easy to work with.

• Subject pronouns may be used to begin sentences. For example: We did a great job.
• Subject pronouns may also be used to rename the subject. For example: It was she who decided we should go to Hawaii.
• Indefinite pronouns don’t have antecedents. They are capable of standing on their own. For example: No one likes the sound of fingernails on a chalkboard.
• Object pronouns are used as direct objects, indirect objects, and objects of prepositions. These include: you, me, him, her, us, them, and it. For example: David talked to her about the mistake.
• Possessive pronouns show ownership. They do not need apostrophes. For example: The cat washed its whiskers.

Examples of Pronouns

In the following examples, the pronouns are italicized.

1. We are going on vacation.
2. Don’t tell me that you can’t go with us.
3. Anybody who says it won’t be fun has no cluewhat they are talking about.
4. These are terribly steep stairs.
5. We ran into each other at the mall.
6. I’m not sure which is worse: rain or snow.
7. It is one of the nicest Italian restaurants in town.
8. Richard stared at himself in the mirror.
9. The laundry isn’t going to do itself.
10. Someone spilled orange juice all over the counter top!