FORM AND FUNCTION OF ADJECTIVES

موضوع: FORM AND FUNCTION OF ADJECTIVES 11/12/09, 05:12 am

FORM AND FUNCTION OF ADJECTIVES

Form of Adjectives

Rules

1. Adjectives are invariable:
They do not change their form depending on the gender or number of the noun.

A hot potato

Some hot potatoes

2. To emphasise or strengthen the meaning of an adjective use 'very' or 'really':

A very hot potato

Some really hot potatoes.

(BUT see also [ندعوك للتسجيل في المنتدى أو التعريف بنفسك لمعاينة هذا الرابط])

Position of adjectives

a) Usually in front of a noun: A beautiful girl.

b) After verbs like "to be", "to seem" , "to look", "to taste":

Examples

· The girl is beautiful

· You look tired

· This meat tastes funny.

c) After the noun: in some fixed expressions:

Examples

· The Princess Royal

· The President elect

· a court martial

d) After the noun with the adjectives involved, present, concerned:

Examples

I want to see the people involved/concerned (= the people who have something to do with the matter)

Here is a list of the people present (= the people who were in the building or at the meeting)

Be careful! When these adjectives are used before the noun they have a different meaning:

· An involved discussion = detailed, complex

· A concerned father = worried, anxious

· The present situation = current, happening now

FORM AND FUNCTION OF ADJECTIVES

Function of Adjectives

Adjectives can:

Describe feelings or qualities:

Examples

· He is a lonely man

· They are honest people

Give nationality or origin:

Examples

· Pierre is French

· This clock is German

· Our house is Victorian

Tell more about a thing's characteristics:

Examples

· A wooden table.

· The knife is sharp.

Tell us about age:

Examples

· He's young man

· My coat is very old

Tell us about size and measurement:

Examples

· John tall man.

· This is a very longfilm.

Tell us about colour:

Examples

· Paul wore a redshirt.

· The sunset was crimson and gold.

Tell us about material/what something is made of:

Examples

· It was a woodentable

· She wore a cotton dress

Tell us about shape:

Examples

· A rectangular box

· A square envelope

Express a judgement or a value:

Examples

· A fantasticfilm

· Grammar is boring.

FORM AND FUNCTION OF ADJECTIVES

Order of Adjectives

Rules

Where a number of adjectives are used together, the order depends on the function of the adjective. The usual order is:

Value/opinion, Size, Age/Temperature, Shape, Colour, Origin, Material

Value/opinion	delicious, lovely, charming
Size	small, huge, tiny
Age/Temperature	old, hot, young
Shape	round, square, rectangular
Colour	red, blonde, black
Origin	Swedish, Victorian, Chinese
Material	plastic, wooden, silver

Examples:

· a lovely old red post-box

· some small round plastic tables

· some charming small silver ornaments

￹FPRIVATE "TYPE=PICT;ALT=" COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES

COMPARATIVE + THAN

To compare the difference between two people, things or events.

Examples

· Mt. Everest is higher than Mt. Blanc.

· Thailand is sunnier than Norway.

· A car is more expensive than a bicycle.

· Albert is more intelligent than Arthur.

COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES

NOT AS + ADJECTIVE + AS

Difference can also be shown by using not so/as ...as:

Examples

· Mont Blanc is not as high as Mount Everest

· Norway is not as sunny as Thailand

· A bicycle is not as expensive as a car

· Arthur is not as intelligent as Albert