The Adjective
An adjective is a word used to modify a noun or a pronoun.
To modify means "to describe or to make more definite." Adjectives modify nouns or pronouns by telling what kind, which one, or how many (how much).
| WHAT KIND? | ripe apples happy child blue sky loud music |
| WHICH ONE? | this book last straw those girls next step |
| HOW MANY? | two students both answers several choices many people |
| HOW MUCH? | some news enough time more money less trouble |
An adjective usually precedes the word it modifies.
EXAMPLE
The tired and hungry hikers straggled into camp.
For emphasis, however, a writer may place an adjective after the word it modifies.
EXAMPLE
The hikers, tired and hungry, straggled into camp.
A predicate adjective is separated from the word it modifies by a linking verb.
EXAMPLES
The hikers were hungry and tired.
The hikers felt hungry and tired.
Articles
The most frequently used adjectives are a, an , and the. These words are called articles.
A and an are indefinite articles; they refer to any one of a general group. A is used before words beginning with a consonant sound; an is used before words beginning with a vowel sound.
EXAMPLES
Felipe added a tomato and an avocado to the salad. It's an honor to be here.
Notice in the second example above that an is used before honor because the h in honor is not pronounced; honor is pronounced as though it began with a vowel. Remember that the sound of the noun, not the spelling, determines which indefinite article to use.
The is the definite article. It specifies a particular person, place, thing, or idea.
EXAMPLE
We spent the hour discussing the revolution of the slaves that began in 1791 in Haiti.
Adjective or Pronoun?
In different contexts, a word may be used as different parts of speech. For example, the following words may be used as adjectives or as pronouns.
| all | either | much | some | what |
| another | few | neither | that | which |
| any | many | one | these | whose |
| both | more | other | this | |
| each | most | several | those |
Remember that an adjective modifies a noun and that a pronoun takes the place of a noun.
ADJECTIVE
These books are overdue. [These modifies the noun books.]
PRONOUN
These are overdue. [These takes the place of the noun books.]
ADJECTIVE
Ntozake Shange wrote both poems. [Both modifies the noun poems]
PRONOUN
Ntozake Shange wrote both. [Both takes the place of the noun poems.]
NOTE:
In this website the words my, your, his, her, its, our, and their are called possessive pronouns. Since they precede nouns and tell which one or whose, some teachers prefer to call these words possessive adjectives.
EXAMPLES
my job, your essay, their plans
Follow your teacher's instructions in labeling these words.
Category:
Grammar