ADJECTIVES Definition Example
TYPES Descriptive are words that describe nouns and I have a lovely neighbor
pronouns and, not surprisingly, I feel miserable
most adjectives fall into this
category. Also known as qualitative
adjectives, their function is to
attribute certain characteristics to
the thing that is being described.
Quantitative As the name suggests, these I ate seven pieces of cake
words describe the quantity of at the birthday party
the object being described: i.e.
I need to work more hours
they provide details as to how
this month if I want to pay
much or how many there is of
my rent
something. Quantitative
adjectives are not only
numbers. They can also be
words that modify a noun or
pronoun—these terms indicate
more or less of something
Demonstrative Also known as determiners, This dress makes me feel
demonstrative adjectives help frumpy (refers to a singular
identify a particular noun or noun that is close in
pronoun within a sentence and distance)
can confer a special importance
on the object (or objects) being That dog is always playing
described. in our rubbish bin (refers to
a singular noun that is far
away in distance)
Proper While most of us are familiar I was wearing
with proper nouns, the a Victorian wedding dress
concept of proper adjectives is
less well known. However, it’s Japanese food has a real
actually relatively kick to it
straightforward. These words I gave up on my diet and
are simply the adjectival form
had a McDonalds burger
of a proper noun
Possessive These terms denote the person My parents
to whom an object belongs
Her guitar
Their dog
Your laundry
Our television
Interrogative The function of these Which jacket matches this
adjectives (of which there are shirt?
just three examples) is to ask a
What subject do you prefer
question.
at school?
Whose turn is it to make
dinner?
Distributive The purpose of these Neither sister had a talent
adjectives is to describe certain for ballet
individuals or objects within a
group of many Every child in the class had
completed their homework
Each of these allegations is
untrue
Be aware that distributive
adjectives are normally
used with a singular form
of the noun.
compound One of the least complex Rachel had written Ross
adjective types on our list, a an 18-page letter
compound adjective is simply
Chelsea worked on a part-
two or more words that
time basis as a cleaner
together form an adjective.
These are often, although not His wife’s apologies had
always, joined by a hyphen. It started to sound all too
is common for compound familiar
adjectives to begin with a
number and end with a noun.
indefinite Writers often use these terms There were a few cows in
to describe non-specific items, the field
people, or objectives.
Indefinite adjectives can be Several of the windows
particularly useful if you don’t were open
possess all the information
regarding the noun being Many of the students were
described. late for school
