A Structure and Sample Paragraph
An adjective is a word that describes a person, place, thing, or idea. Adjectives give more information about nouns by describing size, colour, age, shape, feelings, opinions, and many other qualities. They make your speaking and writing clearer, more interesting, and more descriptive.
Be + Adjective
My new apartment is small but very comfortable. It has a bright living room, a modern kitchen, and friendly neighbours. I feel happy living there every day.
Tip: Adjectives answer questions like:
What kind?
Which one?
What is it like?
Use adjectives to give more details about people, places, and things.
✓ She has a beautiful garden.
✓ The soup is hot.
✓ They bought a new car.
✗ She has a beauty garden.
✗ The soup is heat.
✗ They bought a newly car.
B Adjective + Noun
One of the most common ways to use an adjective is before a noun. The adjective gives more information about the person, place, animal, or thing. This pattern is very common in everyday conversations, emails, stories, and descriptions.
- a beautiful park
- an interesting book
- a friendly teacher
- a large house
- a busy street
- a comfortable chair
- She bought a new computer.
- We visited a beautiful lake.
- He lives in a quiet neighbourhood.
- They adopted a small puppy.
- The students completed a difficult assignment.
Tip: In English, adjectives usually come before the noun they describe. Remember this pattern:
Adjective + Noun
✓ a happy child
✓ an old building
✓ a clean classroom
✗ a child happy
✗ a building old
✗ a classroom clean
C Be + Adjective
Another common way to use an adjective is after the verb be (am, is, are, was, or were). In this pattern, the adjective describes the subject instead of coming before a noun. This structure is very common when talking about feelings, appearance, size, condition, and opinions.
- She is happy.
- The classroom is clean.
- My grandparents are healthy.
- The weather was cold.
- The movie was interesting.
- The roads were busy.
- My new phone is fast and easy to use.
- The restaurant was crowded on Saturday evening.
- Our neighbours are friendly and helpful.
- The test was difficult, but everyone finished it.
- His explanation was clear and easy to understand.
Tip: When you use the verb be, the adjective comes after the verb. Remember this pattern:
Subject + Be + Adjective
✓ The coffee is hot.
✓ My sister was tired after work.
✓ The children are excited about the trip.
✗ The coffee hot is.
✗ My sister was tire after work.
✗ The children are excitement about the trip.
D Common Verbs + Adjective
Some verbs are commonly followed by an adjective instead of a noun. These verbs do not describe an action. Instead, they describe a person, place, or thing. The most common verbs are look, feel, sound, smell, taste, become, get, and seem.
- She looks happy.
- I feel tired after work.
- The music sounds beautiful.
- The soup smells delicious.
- The cake tastes sweet.
- The weather became cold.
- He got angry during the meeting.
- The idea seems interesting.
- Your new haircut looks great.
- I feel nervous before every exam.
- The flowers smell wonderful.
- His explanation sounds reasonable.
- The children became excited when they saw the presents.
Tip: After these common verbs, use an adjective, not an adverb. Remember this pattern:
Subject + Verb + Adjective
✓ The pizza smells delicious.
✓ She looks happy today.
✓ The movie seems interesting.
✗ The pizza smells deliciously.
✗ She looks happily today.
✗ The movie seems interestingly.
E Main Descriptive Adjective Groups
Adjectives describe different qualities of people, places, animals, and things. Learning adjective groups helps you choose the right word when speaking or writing. Below are some of the most common groups of descriptive adjectives used in everyday English.
| Group | Examples |
|---|---|
| Opinion | beautiful, boring, interesting, wonderful |
| Size | big, small, tall, short, huge |
| Age | new, old, young, ancient |
| Shape | round, square, long, wide |
| Colour | red, blue, green, black, white |
| Condition | clean, dirty, broken, wet, dry |
| Feelings | happy, tired, excited, nervous, relaxed |
- She bought a beautiful dress. (Opinion)
- They live in a large house. (Size)
- He drives an old truck. (Age)
- We sat at a round table. (Shape)
- She is wearing a blue jacket. (Colour)
- The window is broken. (Condition)
- The children are excited about the trip. (Feelings)
Tip: Think about what kind of information you want to give.
Are you describing:
• an opinion?
• a size?
• an age?
• a shape?
• a colour?
• a condition?
• a feeling?
Choosing the correct adjective helps your listener or reader picture the person or thing more clearly.
✓ a small dog
✓ a green backpack
✓ a friendly neighbour
✗ a friend neighbour
✗ a greenly backpack
✗ a smallness dog
F Participle Adjectives (-ed / -ing)
Many adjectives end in -ed or -ing. Although they come from verbs, they are used as adjectives to describe feelings or the thing that causes the feeling. Learning the difference between these two forms will help you speak and write more naturally.
-ing → describes the person, thing, or situation that causes the feeling
| -ed Adjective | -ing Adjective |
|---|---|
| excited | exciting |
| interested | interesting |
| bored | boring |
| surprised | surprising |
| tired | tiring |
- I was excited about the concert.
- The concert was exciting.
- She is interested in science.
- Science is interesting.
- The students felt bored during the long meeting.
- The meeting was boring.
Tip: A simple way to remember the difference is:
-ed = How someone feels
-ing = What causes the feeling
Ask yourself: "Who has the feeling?" Use an -ed adjective.
Ask yourself: "What causes the feeling?" Use an -ing adjective.
✓ The movie was interesting.
✓ We were interested in the movie.
✓ The children were excited about the trip.
✗ The movie was interested.
✗ We were interesting in the movie.
✗ The children were exciting about the trip.
G Adjective Order
Sometimes we use more than one adjective before a noun. In English, adjectives usually follow a specific order. Native speakers normally use this order automatically, so following it will make your English sound more natural. You do not need to memorize every rule, but learning the most common order will help you describe people and things correctly.
- a beautiful small old house
- a large round table
- a new blue backpack
- an interesting old book
- a beautiful long black dress
- ✓ a beautiful small garden
- ✗ a small beautiful garden
- ✓ a large old building
- ✗ an old large building
- ✓ a nice new red car
- ✗ a red nice new car
Tip: When using two or more adjectives, try to follow this order:
Opinion → Size → Age → Shape → Colour → Noun
You do not need to use every group. Simply use the groups that describe the noun.
✓ a beautiful old house
✓ a small black dog
✓ an interesting new movie
✗ an old beautiful house
✗ a black small dog
✗ a new interesting movie
As you read and listen to English, you will begin to recognize this order naturally.
H Points to Remember
Adjectives make your English more clear, more interesting, and more descriptive. They help you describe people, places, things, and feelings. Learning where adjectives go in a sentence and how to choose the correct adjective will make your speaking and writing sound more natural.
Adjective + Noun
Be + Adjective
Common Verb + Adjective
Opinion → Size → Age → Shape → Colour → Noun
- Adjectives usually come before a noun.
- After be and common linking verbs such as look, feel, sound, smell, and taste, use an adjective.
- -ed adjectives describe how someone feels.
- -ing adjectives describe the person, thing, or situation that causes the feeling.
- When using several adjectives, follow the basic adjective order whenever possible.
- She has a beautiful garden.
- The weather is warm.
- The soup smells delicious.
- The students were excited.
- It was an exciting lesson.
- They bought a beautiful small old house.
Final Tip: When you use an adjective, ask yourself these questions:
1. Am I describing a noun? → Place the adjective before the noun.
2. Am I using be or another linking verb? → Place the adjective after the verb.
3. Am I describing a feeling or the thing that causes the feeling? → Use -ed for feelings and -ing for the cause.
4. Am I using more than one adjective? → Follow the basic adjective order: Opinion → Size → Age → Shape → Colour → Noun
The more descriptive adjectives you use correctly, the more natural, accurate, and interesting your English will become.