Adjectives

What is an adjective? An adjective describes a noun or pronoun. Examples: The tall man walked down the street. The young students performed a play. adjective adjective

Types of Adjectives Descriptive Adjectives Comparative Adjectives Superlative Adjectives Predicate Adjectives

Descriptive Adjectives Descriptive adjectives add detail or describe a noun or pronoun. Examples: My hat is on the top shelf. The white snow falls slowly to the ground.

Comparative Adjectives Comparative adjectives compare two nouns. Examples: Bill is taller than Joe. Jelly beans are sweeter than gummy bears. Noun #1 Noun #2

Forming Comparative Adjectives “Than” is usually used after comparative adjectives -er is added to the end of a 1-syllable adjective cold = colder tall = taller -er is added to the end of an adjective with 2 syllables, if the word ends in -y. early = earlier happy = happier "more" or “less” is used for words that have 2 or more syllables, except words that end in –y. honest = more honest expensive = more expensive adjectives that end in -e, only -r is added to end of the adjective nice = nicer safe = safer adjectives that end in a consonant, vowel, consonant - the last consonant is doubled big = bigger hot = hotter

Superlative Adjectives Superlative adjectives are used when comparing three or more nouns. Examples: Between all of my classes, 5th period is loudest. These shoes are the most comfortable.

Forming Superlative Adjectives -est is added to the end of a 1-syllable adjective cold = coldest If the word ends in –y, change the y to an –i and add -est to the end of an adjective with 2 syllables. early = earliest happy = happiest "most" and "least" are used for adjectives that contain 2 or more syllables expensive = most expensive difficult = least difficult If an adjectives ends in -e, then only –st is added to end of the adjective nice = nicest safe = safest Adjectives that end in a consonant, vowel, consonant - the last consonant is doubled and -est is added to the end of the adjective. big = biggest hot = hottest

Predicate Adjectives Predicate adjectives come after a linking verb and are used to describe the subject Example: Mr. Smith is a lonely man. Predicate adjective Linking verb