English Grammar CHAPTER 9: THE ADJECTIVE

Chapter 9: The Adjective

Welcome to Chapter 9! In English grammar, nouns are the names of things, but we rarely just name things. We like to describe them, count them, and point them out. To do this, we use a special kind of word called an Adjective.

Introduction: What is an Adjective?

1. Explanation

Read the following sentences carefully:

• Sita is a clever girl. (Girl of what kind?)
• I don't like that boy. (Which boy?)
• He gave me five mangoes. (How many mangoes?)
• There is little time for preparation. (How much time?)

In sentence 1, clever shows what kind of girl Sita is; it describes her.
In sentence 2, that points out exactly which boy is meant.
In sentence 3, five tells us the exact number of mangoes.
In sentence 4, little tells us the quantity of time.

Definition: An Adjective is a word used with a noun to describe or point out the person, animal, place, or thing which the noun names, or to tell its number or quantity. Simply put, an adjective is a word used to add something to the meaning of a noun. (In fact, the word "Adjective" literally means "added to").

---

Topic 1: How We Use Adjectives (Attributive vs. Predicative)

1. Explanation

Adjectives can be placed in different parts of a sentence depending on how we want to use them. There are two main ways to use an adjective:

• Attributive Use: When the adjective is placed directly right next to the noun it describes (usually right before it). It acts as an attribute or epithet.
• Predicative Use: When the adjective is placed after the verb (like is, am, are, was, were) and forms part of the predicate. It describes the subject from across the verb.

2. Important Rules and Exceptions

Rule: Most adjectives can be used both attributively and predicatively.

Exception: Some adjectives can only be used predicatively. For example, the words afraid and well. You can say "The boy is afraid" or "I am quite well", but you cannot say "He is an afraid boy" or "I am a well man."

3. Solved Examples

• Attributive: The lazy boy was punished. (The adjective lazy is right next to the noun boy).
• Predicative: The boy is lazy. (The adjective lazy comes after the verb is).
• Predicative only: She is afraid of ghosts. (Correct).

4. Additional Practice Exercises

Identify the adjective in each sentence and state whether it is used Attributively or Predicatively:

1. The hungry lion roared loudly.
2. The sky grew dark.
3. She wore a beautiful dress.

5. Solutions and Explanations

1. hungry - Attributive (It is placed directly before the noun "lion").
2. dark - Predicative (It comes after the verb "grew" to describe the subject "sky").
3. beautiful - Attributive (It is placed directly before the noun "dress").

6. Common Mistakes and Tips

Mistake: Thinking that an adjective can only come before a noun.

Tip: Always look at what the word is describing. If it describes a noun or pronoun, it is an adjective, even if it is on the other side of the sentence after a verb!

7. Quick Summary

Attributive adjectives sit next to nouns (happy dog). Predicative adjectives follow verbs (The dog is happy).

---

Topic 2: Adjectives of Quality (Descriptive Adjectives)

1. Explanation

Adjectives of Quality show the kind, quality, or condition of a person or thing. They answer the question: Of what kind?

2. Important Rules and Exceptions

Rule: Adjectives formed from Proper Nouns (like countries or places) are called Proper Adjectives. They are generally classed together with Adjectives of Quality and should always start with a capital letter.

3. Solved Examples

• Kolkata is a large city. (What kind of city? Large.)
• He is an honest man.
• The foolish old crow tried to sing.
• This is a Grammar of the English language. (Proper Adjective)
• French wines, Turkish tobacco, Indian tea. (Proper Adjectives)

4. Additional Practice Exercises

Pick out the Adjectives of Quality in the following sentences:

1. The brave soldier saved the day.
2. I love eating Italian pizza.
3. He carried a heavy wooden box.

5. Solutions and Explanations

1. brave (Answers: What kind of soldier?)
2. Italian (Proper Adjective showing the quality/origin of the pizza).
3. heavy, wooden (Both describe the quality and material of the box).

6. Common Mistakes and Tips

Mistake: Forgetting to capitalize Proper Adjectives (writing "indian tea" instead of "Indian tea").

Tip: If the adjective comes from a specific name of a place or person, always capitalize it!

7. Quick Summary

Adjectives of Quality describe the nature or characteristics of a noun. They answer "Of what kind?".

---

Topic 3: Adjectives of Quantity vs. Adjectives of Number

1. Explanation

It is easy to confuse quantity and number, but English has a strict rule for them based on whether a noun can be counted or not.

• Adjectives of Quantity: Show how much of a thing is meant. They are used with uncountable nouns (things you cannot count, like rice, water, patience).
• Adjectives of Number (Numeral Adjectives): Show how many persons or things are meant, or in what order a person or thing stands. They are used with countable nouns (things you can count, like fingers, cats, boys).

2. Important Rules and Exceptions (Kinds of Numeral Adjectives)

Adjectives of Number are divided into three main kinds:

1. Definite Numeral Adjectives: Denote an exact number.
   • Cardinals: One, two, three (denote how many).
   • Ordinals: First, second, third (denote the order of things in a series).
2. Indefinite Numeral Adjectives: Do not denote an exact number (e.g., All, no, many, few, some, any, certain, several, sundry).
3. Distributive Numeral Adjectives: Refer to each one of a number individually (e.g., Each, every, either, neither).

Crucial Rule: The same word can be an Adjective of Quantity or an Adjective of Number, depending entirely on the noun it describes!

3. Solved Examples

Adjectives of Quantity (Uncountable):

• I ate some rice.
• He showed much patience.
• He has little intelligence.
• We have had enough exercise.
• He has lost all his wealth.
• You have no sense.
• He did not eat any rice.
• Take great care of your health.
• He claimed his half share of the booty.
• There has not been sufficient rain this year.
• The whole sum was expended.

Adjectives of Number (Countable):

• The hand has five fingers. (Definite - Cardinal)
• Sunday is the first day of the week. (Definite - Ordinal)
• Few cats like cold water. (Indefinite)
• There are no pictures in this book. (Indefinite)
• I have taught you many things. (Indefinite)
• All men must die. (Indefinite)
• Here are some ripe mangoes. (Indefinite)
• Most boys like cricket. (Indefinite)
• There are several mistakes in your exercise. (Indefinite)
• Each boy must take his turn. (Distributive)
• India expects every man to do his duty. (Distributive)
• Every word of it is false. (Distributive)
• Either pen will do. / On either side is a narrow lane. (Distributive)
• Neither accusation is true. (Distributive)

Comparing the Same Word in Different Uses:

Adjectives of Quantity (Uncountable)	Adjectives of Number (Countable)
I ate some rice.	Some boys are clever.
He has lost all his wealth.	All men must die.
You have no sense.	There are no pictures in this book.
He did not eat any rice.	Are there any mango-trees in this garden?
I have enough sugar.	There are not enough spoons.

4. Additional Practice Exercises

Identify whether the underlined adjective is of Quantity (Q) or Number (N):

1. I need more water.
2. We need more chairs.
3. She has little hope left.
4. Few students understood the lesson.

5. Solutions and Explanations

1. Quantity (Q): Water is uncountable.
2. Number (N): Chairs are countable.
3. Quantity (Q): Hope is uncountable.
4. Number (N): Students are countable.

6. Common Mistakes and Tips

Mistake: Using "few" for uncountables (e.g., "I have few water") or "little" for countables (e.g., "I have little pens").

Tip: Much/Little = Uncountable (Quantity). Many/Few = Countable (Number).

7. Quick Summary

Quantity answers "How much?" for uncountables. Number answers "How many?" for countables and can be Definite, Indefinite, or Distributive.

---

Topic 4: Demonstrative and Interrogative Adjectives

1. Explanation

• Demonstrative Adjectives: Point out exactly which person or thing is meant. They answer the question: Which?
• Interrogative Adjectives: Are used with nouns to ask questions. They are what, which, and whose.

2. Important Rules and Exceptions

Rule on Inflection (Change of Form): Demonstrative adjectives are special. This and that are the only adjectives in the English language that change their spelling to show singular or plural numbers.

• This (singular) becomes These (plural). They indicate something near to the speaker.
• That (singular) becomes Those (plural). They indicate more distant objects.

3. Solved Examples

Demonstrative:

• This boy is stronger than Hari. (Singular, near)
• That boy is industrious. (Singular, distant)
• These mangoes are sour. (Plural, near)
• Those rascals must be punished. (Plural, distant)
• Yonder fort once belonged to Shivaji. ("Yonder" means distant but within sight).
• Don't be in such a hurry. / I hate such things.

Interrogative:

• What manner of man is he? ("What" is used in a general sense).
• Which way shall we go? ("Which" is used in a selective sense, choosing from a specific group).
• Whose book is this? (Asking about possession).

4. Additional Practice Exercises

Identify the Demonstrative or Interrogative adjective in the sentences:

1. Which shirt do you want to buy?
2. Those apples look rotten.
3. I cannot believe such nonsense.

5. Solutions and Explanations

1. Which (Interrogative Adjective, asking a question about the noun "shirt").
2. Those (Demonstrative Adjective, pointing out specific, distant plural "apples").
3. such (Demonstrative Adjective, pointing out the kind of "nonsense").

6. Common Mistakes and Tips

Mistake: Confusing Interrogative Pronouns with Interrogative Adjectives.

Tip: An adjective must sit next to a noun. "Which car is yours?" = Adjective (sits next to noun 'car'). "Which is your car?" = Pronoun (sits next to verb 'is').

7. Quick Summary

Demonstratives (this, that, these, those, such, yonder) point things out. Interrogatives (what, which, whose) ask questions about nouns.

---

Topic 5: Emphasizing and Exclamatory Adjectives

1. Explanation

Sometimes we want to put extra emotional weight or emphasis on a noun. We can do this using special adjectives.

• Emphasizing Adjectives: The words own and very are used to emphasize a point heavily.
• Exclamatory Adjectives: The word what is sometimes used not to ask a question, but to exclaim in surprise or strong emotion.

2. Solved Examples

Emphasizing Adjectives:

• I saw it with my own eyes.
• He was beaten at his own game.
• Mind your own business.
• He is his own master.
• That is the very thing we want. (Here, 'very' means 'exact' or 'particular').
• "When all else left my cause, My very adversary took my part."

Exclamatory Adjectives:

• What genius!
• What folly!
• What an idea!
• What a blessing!
• What a piece of work is man!

3. Additional Practice Exercises

Identify the Emphasizing or Exclamatory adjective:

1. What a tragedy!
2. She built this house with her own hands.

4. Solutions and Explanations

1. What (Exclamatory Adjective, showing strong emotion).
2. own (Emphasizing Adjective, stressing that she did it herself).

5. Common Mistakes and Tips

Mistake: Thinking "very" is always an adverb.

Tip: Usually, "very" is an adverb (e.g., "He is very tall"). But when placed right before a noun to mean "exact" (e.g., "the very book I needed"), it acts as an Emphasizing Adjective.

6. Quick Summary

Use "own" and "very" to emphasize a noun. Use "What" before a noun to express exclamation.

---

Topic 6: Formation of Adjectives

1. Explanation

Many adjectives are not original words; they are built by adding suffixes (endings) to other words like Nouns, Verbs, or even other Adjectives.

2. Important Rules

By adding suffixes like -y, -ful, -able, -less, -ish, -en, -ous, -ic, we can change the part of speech of a word into an adjective.

3. Solved Examples (Formation Tables)

(i) Adjectives formed from Nouns:

Noun	Adjective	Noun	Adjective
Boy	boyish	Fool	foolish
Dirt	dirty	Storm	stormy
Care	careful	Pardon	pardonable
Play	playful	Laugh	laughable
Hope	hopeful	Outrage	outrageous
Venture	venturesome	Courage	courageous
Trouble	troublesome	Glory	glorious
Shame	shameless	Envy	envious
Sense	senseless	Man	manly
Silk	silken	King	kingly
Gold	golden	Gift	gifted

(ii) Adjectives formed from Verbs:

Verb	Adjective
Tire	tireless
Cease	ceaseless
Talk	talkative
Move	moveable

(iii) Adjectives formed from other Adjectives:

Base Adjective	New Adjective
Tragic	tragical
Black	blackish
Whole	wholesome
White	whitish
Three	threefold
Sick	sickly

4. Additional Practice Exercises

Form adjectives from the following words:

1. Peace (Noun)
2. Doubt (Noun)
3. Use (Verb)

5. Solutions and Explanations

1. Peaceful (Adding the suffix -ful).
2. Doubtful (Adding the suffix -ful).
3. Useful or Useless (Depending on meaning).

6. Common Mistakes and Tips

Mistake: Spelling errors when changing forms (e.g., writing "couragous" instead of "courageous").

Tip: Always double-check spelling rules when adding suffixes, especially with words ending in 'e' or 'y'.

7. Quick Summary

Adjectives can easily be created from nouns, verbs, and other adjectives by adding specific endings.

---

Comprehensive Application (From Original Exercises 6-12)

Here is a selection of sentences and models from the original grammar exercises demonstrating adjectives in action:

• The ship sustained heavy (Quality) damage.
• I have called several (Number - Indefinite) times.
• Every (Number - Distributive) dog has his day.
• A live (Quality) ass is better than a dead (Quality) lion.
• Say the same (Demonstrative) thing twice over.
• He is a man of few (Number - Indefinite) words.
• Neither (Number - Distributive) party is quite in the right.
• What (Interrogative) time is it?
• Which (Interrogative) pen do you prefer?
• Abdul won the second (Number - Definite Ordinal) prize.
• The child fell down from a great (Quality) height.
• Good wine needs no (Quantity) bush.
• It is an ill (Quality) wind that blows nobody any (Quantity) good.

Applying Adjectives to Nouns (Models):

• A soft answer turneth away wrath.
• His polite manners have endeared him to all.
• Swimming is a healthy exercise.
• A certain man fell among thieves.
• A violent storm; A long siege; A decisive victory; A populous city; A devoted husband.
• A narrow street, a wide street, a crooked street, a dirty street, a clean street.
• A deliberate lie, a black lie, a white lie.

---

Chapter Assessment: Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs)

1. An adjective is a word used to add meaning to a:
A) Verb
B) Preposition
C) Noun or Pronoun
D) Conjunction

Answer: C. Explanation: An adjective's primary role is to describe or modify a noun or pronoun.

2. In the sentence "The boy is lazy", how is the adjective "lazy" used?
A) Attributively
B) Predicatively
C) As a Demonstrative
D) As an Emphasizing adjective

Answer: B. Explanation: It is placed after the verb "is" and forms part of the predicate.

3. Which of the following adjectives can ONLY be used predicatively?
A) Beautiful
B) Tall
C) Afraid
D) Smart

Answer: C. Explanation: We say "He is afraid," but we do not say "He is an afraid boy."

4. "Indian tea" and "French wines" contain examples of:
A) Adjectives of Number
B) Distributive Adjectives
C) Proper Adjectives
D) Interrogative Adjectives

Answer: C. Explanation: Adjectives derived from Proper Nouns are called Proper Adjectives (classed under Adjectives of Quality).

5. Adjectives of Quantity are used primarily with:
A) Countable nouns
B) Uncountable nouns
C) Proper nouns
D) Pronouns only

Answer: B. Explanation: Quantity shows "how much" and is used for things that cannot be counted, like water, rice, or patience.

6. In the sentence "I ate some rice", the word "some" is an Adjective of:
A) Quantity
B) Quality
C) Number
D) Demonstration

Answer: A. Explanation: Because "rice" is uncountable, "some" indicates quantity (how much).

7. In the sentence "Some boys are clever", the word "some" is an Adjective of:
A) Quantity
B) Quality
C) Number
D) Exclamation

Answer: C. Explanation: Because "boys" are countable, "some" indicates number (how many).

8. Words like "First, second, third" are called:
A) Cardinal Numbers
B) Ordinal Numbers
C) Distributive Adjectives
D) Emphasizing Adjectives

Answer: B. Explanation: Ordinals show the order of things in a series.

9. "Each", "every", "either", and "neither" belong to which category?
A) Demonstrative Adjectives
B) Definite Numeral Adjectives
C) Distributive Numeral Adjectives
D) Adjectives of Quality

Answer: C. Explanation: Distributives refer to each one of a number individually.

10. Which question do Demonstrative Adjectives answer?
A) How many?
B) How much?
C) What kind?
D) Which?

Answer: D. Explanation: Demonstratives (this, that, these, those) point out exactly "which" noun is meant.

11. Which of the following adjectives changes its form to show singular and plural numbers?
A) Beautiful
B) This
C) Own
D) What

Answer: B. Explanation: "This" and "that" are the only adjectives that inflect for number (becoming "these" and "those").

12. "Those rascals must be punished." The word "Those" indicates objects that are:
A) Near to the speaker
B) Abstract
C) Distant from the speaker
D) Uncountable

Answer: C. Explanation: "That" and "those" point out things that are further away.

13. Which of the following is an Interrogative Adjective?
A) Such
B) Yonder
C) Whose
D) Every

Answer: C. Explanation: "Whose" is used with a noun to ask a question (e.g., "Whose book is this?").

14. In the sentence "I saw it with my own eyes," the word "own" is used as a(n):
A) Exclamatory Adjective
B) Emphasizing Adjective
C) Interrogative Adjective
D) Adjective of Quality

Answer: B. Explanation: "Own" is used to put strong emphasis on the noun "eyes."

15. In "That is the very thing we want", what does the Emphasizing Adjective "very" mean?
A) Much
B) Fast
C) Exact or particular
D) Distant

Answer: C. Explanation: When used as an adjective before a noun, "very" means "the exact" thing.

16. "What a piece of work is man!" The word "What" here is a(n):
A) Interrogative Adjective
B) Exclamatory Adjective
C) Demonstrative Adjective
D) Distributive Adjective

Answer: B. Explanation: It is not asking a question; it is expressing strong emotion or exclamation.

17. The adjective "talkative" is formed from which part of speech?
A) Noun
B) Adjective
C) Verb
D) Preposition

Answer: C. Explanation: It is formed from the verb "talk."

18. Which adjective is correctly formed from the noun "courage"?
A) Couragish
B) Courageful
C) Courageous
D) Couraging

Answer: C. Explanation: "Courageous" is the proper adjective form.

19. "He is a man of few words." The word "few" is an Adjective of:
A) Quality
B) Quantity
C) Definite Number
D) Indefinite Number

Answer: D. Explanation: "Words" are countable, making it an adjective of number. Since it does not state an exact number, it is indefinite.

20. "Sunday is the first day of the week." The word "first" is a(n):
A) Cardinal Numeral Adjective
B) Ordinal Numeral Adjective
C) Demonstrative Adjective
D) Adjective of Quantity

Answer: B. Explanation: "First" shows the order in a series, which is an ordinal numeral adjective.