Download Grammar 3.1 - Mr. F. Rivera

Grammar 3.1
What Is an Adjective; Predicate Adjectives
What Is an Adjective?
An adjective is a word that modifies, or describes, a noun or a pronoun.
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Extraordinary weather can cause strange events.
Extraordinary weather can cause strange events.
○ Extraordinary and strange are adjectives that modify weather and
events.
Adjectives make a noun or pronoun special or distinct from all others of its type.
● The cat → Which cat exactly?
○ The ugly cat - http://bit.ly/tHSPjK
○ The enormous cat - http://bit.ly/Nnef9P
○ The fuzzy cat - http://bit.ly/GAkc5B
What Is an Adjective? (cont.)
Adjectives help you see, feel, taste, hear, and smell all the experiences you
read about. Notice how adjectives make the second sentence in this pair
descriptive.
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During a storm, a boat capsized in the waves.
During a violent storm, a large boat capsized in the enormous waves.
Adjectives answer the questions what kind, which one, how many, and how
much.
What kind?
a sudden blizzard
a brisk wind
Which one or ones?
the first warning
the Mexican earthquake
How many or how much?
several tornadoes
a few drifts
What Is an Adjective? (cont.)
Articles
The most commonly used adjectives are the articles a, an, and the. A and an
are forms of the indefinite article. The indefinite article is used before a noun
that names an unspecified person, place, thing, or idea. It represents a
hypothetical, not a specific noun.
●
A weather radar can predict an unusual storm.
○ Any weather radar could predict any unusual storm. No specific radar
is mentioned, nor a specific storm.
Use a before a word beginning with a consonant sound (“a ball”); use an before
a word beginning with a vowel sound (“an egg”).
An is also used before words with a silent h.
● An hour
● An heiress
● An herb
What Is an Adjective? (cont.)
The is the definite article. It points to a particular person, place, thing, or idea.
●
The six-o’clock news predicted the tornado.
○ Not any other six-o’clock news, nor any other tornado.
What Is an Adjective?
Many adjectives are formed from common nouns.
Common noun
cloud
nation
statue
friend
Common adjective
cloudy
national
statuesque
friendly
A proper adjective is formed from a proper noun. Proper adjectives, like
proper nouns are always capitalized.
Proper noun
North America
Olympus
Islam
(Queen) Elizabeth
Proper adjective
North American
Olympic
Islamic
Elizabethan
Predicate Adjectives
A predicate adjective is an adjective that follows a linking verb and describes
the verb’s subject. The linking verb connects the predicate adjective with the
subject.
●
●
Some people are extraordinary.
Some people are extraordinary.
○ Extraordinary describes the subject. Notice that extraordinary is an
adjective that does not precede (or come before) a noun.
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●
They are very energetic or calm.
They are very energetic or calm.
○ Energetic or calm describe they (situationally).
Predicate Adjectives (cont.)
Predicate adjectives can follow linking verbs other than forms of be. Predicate
nouns and pronouns usually only follow forms of be.
Forms of taste, smell, feel, look, become, and seem are often used as linkng
verbs.
●
●
You usually feel lucky to know such a person.
You usually feel lucky to know such a person.
○ Feel is our linking verb. You is the subject. Lucky is describing
how you feel, as a predicate should.