Unit 3 - Adjectives and Adverbs
Adjectives and Adverbs
Unit 3 - Adjectives and Adverbs
Sue: Tom drives quickly. Jim: Yes, Tom is a quick driver. Sue: He drives a red car and always turns carelessly around sharp corners. Jim: I saw him driving with his old grandmother and she looked unhappy. Sue: I feel badly for her! I hope she is happy now!
Adjectives give
information about nouns. For example:
- She's an excellent dancer.
- I've got a new apartment.
Adverbs modify verbs, they tell how something
is done. For example:
- She learns quickly.
- You can speak English well.
Adjectives
Adjectives come before
the noun. For example:
- This is a beautiful bird.
"This is a bird beautiful." is incorrect.
They provide information such as size (big,
small), shape (round, square), color (yellow,
green), nationality (Chinese, Polish), and opinion
(good, bad).
Adjectives don't
change depending on number. For example:
She has a cute puppy.
She has three cute puppies.
Note that the adjective doesn't change with
number.
Adjectives also come
after certain verbs such as be, feel, look,
and taste. For example:
- I'm really happy today.
- She's got a new job so she feels great.
- You look wonderful!
- This chicken tastes delicious.
Adverbs
Adverbs are often
formed by adding -ly to an adjective.
For example:
- quick (adjective) - He's quick at learning
new things.
- quickly (adverb) - He learns quickly.
- bad (adjective) - He didn't get a bad
test score.
- badly (adverb) - He didn't do badly
in his test.
For adverbs made
from adjectives ending in "-y" - change
"-y" to "-i" and add "-ly".
For example:
- easy (adjective) - He thinks math is
easy.
- easily (adverb) - He can do math easily.
- happy (adjective) - He's a happy man.
- happily (adverb) - He works happily
every day.
For adverbs made
from adjectives ending in "-le" -
change "-le" to "-ly". For
example:
- simple (adjective) - The teacher makes
difficult things simple.
- simply (adverb) - He teaches simply
and clearly.
Some adverbs are
the same as adjectives. For example:
- He runs fast (adverb) - He's a fast
runner. (adjective)
- He studies hard. (adverb) - It's a
hard life. (adjective)
The adverb of
"good" is "well".
For example:
- She's a good pianist.
- She plays the piano well.
Adverbs can also
modify adjectives and other adverbs. For example:
- That's a good book.
- That's a very good book.
- She's a talented girl.
- She's an incredibly talented girl.
- You're right!
- You're absolutely right!
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Grammar Exercises
Complete the sentences using an adjective or
an adverb.
Note: Act, look, grow, sound, and smell
are examples of verbs that can be linking verbs
in some sentences and action verbs in others.
Generally, adjectives follow linking verbs,
and adverbs follow action verbs.
Example: You can go anywhere you want if you
carry a clipboard and look _____.
a) serious
b) mad - Answer a) is correct.
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1. The rock band’s five-foot speakers
look _____ .
a) loud
b) loudly
2. The meat smells _____ . We’d better
throw it away.
a) bad
b) badly
3. I know I've acted _____. Please accept
my apologies.
a) bad
b) badly
4. This car turns _____. The power steering
is really great!
a) nice
b) nicely
5. When I called her name, the old woman
looked _____ at me.
a) strange
b) strangely
6. Mike acts _____ in class, but you can
tell he really doesn’t like you.
a) nice
b) nice
7. The musician has the striking ability
to make his lyrics sound _____ .
a) immediate
b) immediately
8. The conversation turned _____ when someone
started talking about UFOs.
a) strange
b) strangely
9. The cook handed him a bowl of sugar and
cinnamon, which he smelled _____ .
a) immediate
b) immediately
10. The alarm sounded _____ at its appointed
time, and I got up, showered, and shaved.
a) loud
b) loudly
Answers
"a", "a", "b", "b", "b", "a", "a", "a", "b", "b"
Jake: This test is really confusing. Michelle: Yes, I always feel confused in this class. Jake: I am surprised we don't understand this subject yet. Michelle: Me too. It is amazing that the teacher can't explain the subject. Jake: I agree. I'm amazed!
Adjectives: -ed / -ing Forms
Many adjectives can
end in -ed or -ing. For example:
- I'm excited about tomorrow.
- This is an exciting book.
When the adjective
ends in -ed, it describes the feeling
of something. For example:
- I'm interested in modern art. (This is my
personal feeling)
- I was really bored yesterday.
When the adjective
ends in -ing, it describes the feeling given
by something. For example:
- Modern art is interesting. ("Modern art"
can't feel, but it makes me feel interested.).
- The news was shocking. (The "news"
gives us a shocking feeling)
Compare:
- He's bored. - He has nothing to do, he's not
enjoying himself. This describes his feeling.
- He's boring. - He's not an interesting person.
This describes the feeling he gives to other
people.
Below are
some common adjective pairs using -ed/-ing.
Note that the adjective doesn't change with
number.
|
-ed Adjective annoy
- I don't get annoyed easily. |
-ing Adjective annoying
- Noisy mobile phones can be annoying. |
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Grammar Exercises
Complete the sentences using -ing adjectives or -ed adjectives.
Example: The girl seemed _____ in my
thoughts and opinions.
a) interested
b) interested - Answer a) is correct.
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1. The children looked _____ by the old toys.
a) fascinated
b) fascinating
2. I felt _____ after just a short time in
the forest.
a) invigorated
b) invigorating
3. It was very _____ to win our first game
of the season.
a) bad
b) badly
4. The recent downward trend in poverty seems
_____.
a) encouraged
b) encouraging
5. _____ at the thought of moving away, Jonathon
began to cry.
a) Terrified
b) Terrifying
6. When you're not in good spirits, it is
_____ to stay in bed all day.
a) tempted
b) tempting
7. One finding that appeared _____ was that
birth rates were declining.
a) troubled
b) troubling
8. Never had Ann felt so _____ by the landscape
she traveled through.
a) charmed
b) charming
9. As _____ as it is to be with others, it's
crucial to spend some time alone. .
a) comforted
b) comforting
10. The working mother was _____ at the thought
of being labeled a "homemaker."
a) amused
b) amusing
Answers
"a", "a", "b", "b", "a", "b", "b", "a", "b", "a"
Chelsy: You won't believe what I saw yesterday. Sam: What was it? Chelsy: I saw a big, old, green tree lying in the middle of the road! Sam: Were you driving on the long, curvy, gravel road on the east side of town? Chelsy: Yes. My small, 15 year old car almost couldn't drive on it. Sam: Did you have to go down that short, paved road to go around the tree? Chelsy: Yes. My cute, little, brown dog was with me and she was scared. Sam: I'm sure you're happy to be finished with that tree! Chelsy: I sure am!
Adjective Order
When we use more
than one adjective they should be used in the
correct order. Adjective order is not entirely
fixed but the general sequence is:
-- Determiner - Opinion - Size - Age - Shape
- Color - Origin - Material --> Noun
Determiners are words such as a, an , the,
this, that. These words are also kinds of
adjectives.
For example:
- a famous, old painting
- a big, round table
- an American, cotton shirt
Adjectives of opinion
come before adjectives of fact, for example:
- a beautiful, white flower.
"A white, beautiful flower" sounds
unusual.
With two or more
adjectives commas are optional. For example:
- "A long, dark tunnel" or "A
long dark tunnel" are both acceptable.
With two or more
color adjectives use and. For example:
- She's got a black and white kitten.
Adjectives other than colors don't use and.
For example:
- She's got a little, black kitten.
"She's got a little and black kitten"
is incorrect.
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Grammar Exercises
Put the adjectives
in the correct order.
Determiner - Opinion - Size - Age - Shape
- Color - Origin - Material - Noun
Example: Mary has denim a jacket blue -
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