Modifiers Mrs. S. Irizarry

Adjectives An adjective describes, or modifies, a noun or a pronoun. One adjective can change the meaning of a whole sentence. We take exciting trips. We take boring trips. Adjectives can tell what kind, which one, or how many. What kind?We climbed steep, rocky trails. Which one(s)?Those hikers met at this stream. How many?Several boys carried two canteens.

Sometimes adjectives come before the noun they describe. At other times, adjectives follow the noun they describe. Three hungry and tired campers stumbled home. Children, cheerful and noisy, called to us. You know that a predicate adjective follows a linking verb. A predicate adjective describes the subject of a sentence. Nina felt sleepy. An adjective may be more than one word. When such an adjective comes before a noun, it is usually hyphenated. I get paid weekly at my part-time job.

“Try It Out”: Circle the adjective(s). 1.Gene builds tiny, old-fashioned houses for dolls. 2.Most people think that they are attractive and unusual. 3.Some rooms, small and bright, are empty. 4.Little electric lights shine through clear windows. 5.This miniature house includes that fifty-year- old clock.

“On Your Own”: Underline each adjective and circle the word it describes. 1.Two salespeople showed us this green bike. 2.Other stores are selling bikes with twenty-seven speeds. 3.Good bikes are expensive. 4.Prices are high at all stores. 5.These bikes, shiny and bright, have different features. 6.This bike has handlebars with good grips. 7.Padded seats are uncomfortable.

Articles The words a, an, and the are special adjectives. They are called articles. An article can come before a noun or another adjective. The ball hit an old shed. A girl told the owner she was sorry. The refers to a specific item. It can be used with singular nouns (the dog) or plural nouns (the cats). A or an refers to any one item. Use a before words that begin with a consonant sound (a country, a helicopter, a knee). Use an before words that begin with a vowel sound (an elephant, an ankle, an hour).

Demonstratives Adjectives that tell which one are called demonstrative adjectives. They point out a specific person, place, or thing. This book is better than that magazine. These stories are more interesting than those stories. This and these point out people, places or things that are nearby. That and those point out people, places, or things that are farther away.

“Try It Out”: Circle the correct word that best completes the sentence. 1.(A, The) windmill in our back yard is very cold. 2.(A, The) blades still turn in (a, an) unusually strong wind. 3.(This, These) form of energy has been replaced by newer forms. 4.(That, Those) new forms create more power.

“On Your Own”: Circle the correct article or demonstrative adjective that completes each sentence correctly. 1.What (a, an) wonderful display this museum presented! 2.Many of (the, a) paintings show no people. 3.Do you know (this, these) artist’s work? 4.Edward Hopper is (a, an) admired American painter. 5.(This, That) painting over there is haunting. 6.(These, Those) people in the painting over there seem lonely.

Comparative and Superlative Adjectives: “TRY IT OUT”: What are the comparative and superlative forms of each adjective? 1.old 2.thin 3.fat 4.cute 5.hungry

“On Your Own”: Write the form of the adjective in parentheses that correctly completes each sentence. 1.Where is the ________ place in the world? (wet) 2.Is Spanish _________ for English speakers than Russian is? (easy) 3.What is the ______ building in the world? (tall) 4.Are blue whales _______ than right whales? (large) 5.Are animals _____ in the fall or in the spring? (hungry) 6.Do you feel ______ in the city or in the wild? (safe) 7.What conditions produce the ______ sunsets of all? (red)

More and Most: “TRY IT OUT”: What are the comparative and superlative forms of each adjective? 1.jealous 2.attractive 3.comfortable 4.generous 5.pleasant 6.comical

“On Your Own”: Write the form of the adjective in parentheses that correctly completes each sentence. 1.Rubies are _____________ than diamonds. (colorful) 2.In this state ___________ rain falls in August. (little) 3.Is the library of Congress the world’s ________ library? (good) 4.The food at the picnic was _______ than last week. (bad) 5.Are mules _________ than donkeys? (stubborn) 6.Do firefighters have the ___________ job? (dangerous) 7.Texas has ___________ rainfall than Arizona. (much) 8.Traffic seems __________ on Tuesday’s than on Fridays. (good)

Proper Adjectives: An adjective formed from a proper noun is called a proper adjective. Like a proper noun, a proper adjective is capitalized. Here is a Mexican silver bracelet. His Australian hat is made of leather. Did you go to the Hawaiian luau? *** You will find spelling changes in proper adjectives too. French cooking is popular in countries other than France. Norwegian sweaters are famous outside of Norway.

The endings most often used to change proper nouns into proper adjectives are -an, -ish, and -ese. Notice the other spelling changes when the ending is added. Proper NounEndingProper Adjective Ireland Britain Poland -ishIrish seacoast British accent Polish song Italy Brazil Canada -anItalian painting Brazilian leather Canadian money Japan China Vietnam - eseJapanese food Chinese language Vietnamese poem

“Try It Out”: What proper adjective is formed from each underlined noun? Give each phrase. 1.ruins of Rome 2.pottery from Mexico 3.dances of Poland 4.hotels of Europe 5.imports from China 6.pyramids in Egypt 7.settlers from England 8.rivers of Sweden

“On Your Own”: Write the proper adjective in each sentence. Remember to capitalize it. 1.The dachshund, a german breed, was used to hunt badgers. 2.An english sheepdog has a long, shaggy coat. 3.Pictures of greyhounds were found on the walls of ancient egyptian temples. 4.The pug is a chinese breed that has a snub nose. 5.The australian dingo is a wild dog. 6.Our neighbors own an irish setter pup. 7.This spaniel looks like the dogs on japanese vases. 8.An afghan hound has long, silky fur. 9.The scottish terrier was originally bred to hunt woodchucks.

Adverbs

An adverb is a word that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. Adverbs that modify verbs answer these questions: How? Where? When? Many such adverbs end in –ly. How (manner): Alma left quickly. Where (place): She arrived there. When (time/ frequency): Then she returned. When an adverb modifies an adjective or another adverb, it usually tells to what extent. A very large crowd gathered quite quickly.

“On Your Own”: Underline the adverbs and circle the verbs they modify. 1.Yesterday we packed. 2.I enjoyed our trip immensely. 3.Mom drove carefully and well. 4.Dad always checked the maps. 5.We usually headed north. 6.Finally, we arrived safely.

Extra Practice: Circle the word that each underlined adverb modifies. 1.a terribly long way 2.completely safe elevator 3.reads quite carefully 4.very realistic dreams 5.writes extremely well 6.sings very beautifully 7.smiles so happily 8.stands incredibly proudly

Circle the word that the underlined adverb modifies, and label it adjective or adverb. 1.She looked very thoroughly at all of her pictures. 2.One photograph had especially bright colors. 3.A beautiful sea scene rather suddenly caught her eye. 4.She thought quite carefully about each photograph. 5.Ms. Ramos wanted to win an extremely important photo contest.