Adjectives

What is an adjective? The simplest definition of an adjective is that it is a word that describes or clarifies a noun. Adjectives describe nouns by giving some information about an object’s size, shape, age, colour, origin or material. It’s a big table. (size) It’s a round table. (shape) It’s an old table. (age) It’s a brown table. (colour) It’s an English table. (origin) It’s a wooden table. (material) It’s a lovely table. (opinion) It’s a broken table. (observation) It’s a coffee table. (purpose)

Find the adjectives in this passage. Sol watched as the scruffy old man trudged along, his tattered coat making patterns in the crisp snow. The features on his face were rugged and worn looking, and the cap that covered his head, a stained greyish-brown colour. His left arm was shorter than his right, but this had never stopped him from blowing long, grey wisps of smoke from his long pipe. Sol inhaled the distinct smell that his pipe produced, and wondered why he smoked an old pipe and not a cigarette.

Check Your Answers! Sol watched as the scruffy old man trudged along, his tattered coat making patterns in the crisp snow. The features on his face were rugged and worn looking, and the cap that covered his head, a stained greyish-brown colour. His left arm was shorter than his right, but this had never stopped him from blowing long, grey wisps of smoke from his long pipe. Sol inhaled the distinct smell that his pipe produced, and wondered why he smoked an old pipe and not a cigarette. Which types of words do adjectives usually proceed? (Hint: What are they describing?) Nouns