Types of Adjectives

Adjectives

Adjectives

Adjectives are words that describe or modify the nouns or pronouns. Adjectives modify or express the qualities of people, animals and things. They give us more information about noun or pronoun. Adjectives are used after the verb or before the noun or pronoun it modifies.

Examples: The underline words are adjectives in the following examples.

He is an intelligent boy.

This is a big house.

They are laughing loudly.

Types of Adjectives

Adjectives can be separated into different types based on their functions when used in a sentence. The different types of adjectives are:

 

1. Possessive Adjectives

A possessive adjective is used before a noun or a pronoun to show whom it belongs to.

Possessive adjectives are my, your, his, her, its, our, their.

This is my pen.

The child has left his toys in the park.

I have returned your book.

Possessive adjectives function like pronouns. Possessive pronouns and possessive adjectives are quite confusing. Possessive pronouns replace noun and possessive adjectives go before nouns to modify them.

 

2. Demonstrative Adjectives

Demonstrative adjectives are used to indicate or demonstrate specific people, animals, or things. These, those, this and that are demonstrative adjectives.

A demonstrative adjective may be singular or plural and it always presents space or time. This and these indicate noun is close, while that and those indicate it is further away in space and time.

Examples:

These copies belong to Ali.

This pen is my favorite.

Please put those books on the table.

 

3. Descriptive adjectives

Descriptive adjectives as named; they describe the modification of a noun or pronoun via qualities like appearance, shape, texture, smell, and taste. They are used next to the noun or pronoun they’re modifying

Examples:     

The Lion has soft skin.

He cut the green grass on the ground.

He is an intelligent man.

4. Interrogative adjectives

Interrogative adjectives are most used for posturing a question, and they always go before a noun or pronoun. The words what, which  and  whose are the most common interrogative adjectives

Examples:

Whose book is on table?

What is your favorite dish?

Which subject do you like most?

5. Proper Adjectives

 

A proper adjective is an adjective that is derived from a proper noun and is therefore it starts with capital letter.

Examples:

African, Brazilian, British, Christian.

 

6. Quantitative Adjective

Quantitative adjective is adjective which shows the amount or number of something.

Examples:

A lot, Abundant, All, Any, Couple, Double, Each, Empty, Enough, Enough of, Every.

He eats a few apples from the basket.

Each of them has submitted his  paper.

I have a little money to start my business.

7. Distributive Adjective

A distributive adjective is a describing word that refers to separate things. It refers to each individual member of the group individually. Distributive adjectives such as, each, every, either, neither and any, are describing words that refer to specific things out of a group.

Examples:

Each girl must bring her own book.

They were both American.

Each of us takes medicine daily.