Adjective Characteristics and Functions

Posted on Mar 30, 2025 in Linguistics and Applied Languages

Understanding Adjectives

Definition and Role

Adjectives modify nouns by indicating a quality. An adjective complements a noun, meaning it describes, qualifies, or limits the noun’s meaning. E.g., tall.

Morphological Analysis

Key aspects of adjective analysis include: grade, gender, and number.

Functions of Adjectives

Modifying Nouns

The adjective provides a quality or state to the noun it accompanies.

Example: Lead is heavy.

Example: The lamb is gentle.

Word Order and Apocope

Adjectives usually follow the noun they modify. However, they sometimes precede it, occasionally undergoing apocope (losing final letters or sounds). E.g., a big book vs. a great book (where *great* might be considered an apocopated form in some historical or linguistic contexts, though in modern English they are distinct words).

Adjectives Used as Nouns (Substantivization)

An adjective can function as a noun. This change in grammatical category is called substantivization.

Example: The ridiculous terrifies me. (Here, ‘ridiculous’ acts as a noun). This dress is ridiculous. (Here, ‘ridiculous’ is an adjective).

Degrees of Adjectives

Adjectives have three degrees indicating the intensity of the quality:

  • Positive: States the quality simply. Example: white.
  • Comparative: Compares the quality between two nouns. There are three types:
    • Superiority: More than another. E.g., whiter than…
    • Equality: The same degree as another. E.g., as white as…
    • Inferiority: A lesser degree than another. E.g., less white than…
  • Superlative: Expresses the highest degree of the quality. E.g., whitest. To form the superlative, you can often add suffixes (like -est) or use adverbs like most. Avoid using both methods simultaneously (e.g., not ‘most whitest’). Some adjectives have irregular forms (e.g., good -> best, bad -> worst). Others use most (e.g., most famous, poorest).

Gender and Number Agreement

In many languages (though less so in modern English), adjectives agree in gender and number with the noun they modify.

Example (English): The happy child; the happy girl; the happy children; the happy girls. (Note: ‘happy’ does not change form).

Usage Examples

Adjectives Modifying Nouns

Example with Adjectives (bold) and Nouns (underlined):

Varnished heads, spacious, tiny ants, and red ties pushed the dried body of a dead beetle.

Adjectives Used as Nouns

When preceded by an article (like ‘the’), adjectives can function as nouns. Examples (adjective used as noun in bold):

  • The French read a lot. (Compare: French books are expensive.)
  • The black struggle for freedom. (Compare: Black clothes are very elegant.)
  • The ridiculous terrifies me. (Compare: This dress is ridiculous.)
  • The old bask in the sun. (Compare: The old do not like it.)

Essential Qualities Examples

Sentences showing essential qualities (Adjectives in bold):

Honey is sweet; the desert is dry; the lemon is sour; vinegar is strong; the lamb is gentle and docile.

Common Errors and Corrections

Examples of common errors (Incorrect words struck through, corrections in bold):

  • This gum is worser worse than yours.
  • It was the worsest worst game of the season.
  • Your sister is more older older than I am.
  • We are very nearer near the port here.
  • It’s the more better best I could do.
  • Anise is of a lower an inferior quality than Chinchón.

Further Sentence Examples

Adjectives in bold, Nouns underlined:

  • Segovia’s famous Merino are present here.
  • On the main floor, the rooms and corridors are wide.
  • At the foot of the bed, bare feet land on warm, white skins of sheep with thick and thin wool.
  • The beds are cast away(?), with the mattress folded.
  • The old bask in the park. (Substantivized adjective)
  • The old do not like it. (Substantivized adjective)
  • Red is my favorite color.
  • She came with a red dress.
  • Do you sew the hem of the kilt?
  • A doorman politely opened the door. (Note: politely is an adverb modifying opened, not an adjective modifying doorman).

Related Linguistic Concepts

Synonyms and Antonyms

Synonyms

Words that have the same or similar meanings. E.g., fine and beautiful.

Antonyms

Words that have opposite meanings. E.g., black and white.

Polysemy and Homonymy

Polysemic Words

Words that have multiple, often related, meanings. E.g., *cape* (a piece of clothing; a piece of land extending into the sea – possibly related to the original example ‘coming from the earth at sea’). Other examples from the original text might include *degree* (of the army, temperature, etc.) and potentially *out* or *rope* depending on context.

Homonyms

Words that are spelled or pronounced the same but have different meanings (and sometimes origins). The meaning may depend on their function in a sentence.

Example: solar

  • ‘Solar energy is good.’ (Here, solar is an adjective modifying ‘energy’).
  • ‘The solar is for sale.’ (Here, solar is used as a noun, possibly meaning ‘plot of land’ in Spanish).