Base/Normal/Gradable adjectives and Strong/Ungradable Adjectives

Base / Normal / Gradable adjectives

Some adjectives are normal or base adjectives (good, bad, dirty). These adjectives are gradable. They suggest that a thing/person has more or less of a certain quality which can be made stronger or weaker.

boiling

hot

warm

cool

cold

freezing

Other gradable adjectives are:

angry bad - big busy comfortable common difficult dirty - good - happy - important influential - popular powerful pretty - quiet rich small - strong unimportant - weak young
If you want to describe these adjectives in more detail, there are certain adverbs (of degree) to choose from. For example, we can use "very" with a gradable adjective e.g.

very

good. Here are some other adverbs which you can use to describe gradable

adjectives:

deeply - dreadfully - enormously - extremely fairly hugely immensely pretty (informal) rather really reasonably - slightly - very

Strong / Ungradable adjectives

Other adjectives are strong adjectives (fantastic, awful, filthy, beautiful, etc). These adjectives are ungradable and cannot be made stronger or weaker because they are already extreme. Thus, boiling and hot/warm/cool and cold are gradable. Other ungradable adjectives are:

freezing above are ungradable whereas

amazed amazing - awful beautiful - clear - dreadful fantastic filthy - furious huge identical - impossible invaluable possible - terrible unchanged useful - useless - wonderful
If you want to describe these adjectives in more detail, there are certain adverbs (of degree) to choose from. For example, we can use "absolutely" with a strong adjective e.g. absolutely terrible. Here are some other adverbs which you can use to describe ungradable adjectives:

absolutely - completely entirely pretty really perfectly - severely - simply totally

utterly - virtually
Lindsey Haas/EnBW/Thorsten Ruprecht/Autumn 2010 1

Base/Normal/Gradable adjectives and Strong/Ungradable Adjectives

NB: Very fantastic or absolutely good are incorrect. However, we can use "really" or "pretty" with a base and/or strong adjective: The concert was really fantastic/really good. The concert was pretty fantastic/

pretty good.

Adverb/Adjective collocations
Be careful! Certain adverb/adjective word pairs work. Others don't. With time, you can get a feel for them. There is no explanation why some work and others don't. Example: I'm hugely sorry that you didn't get the job. I'm extremely/terribly sorry that you didn't get the job.

Typical word pairs

Gradable adjectives extremely dreadfully hugely
effective, difficult, hard angry, disappointed, sorry entertaining, enjoyable, successful
absolutely simply utterly

Ungradable adjectives
clear, necessary, sure, true awful, enormous, terrible exhausted, unbearable, unrecognisable

Lindsey Haas/EnBW/Thorsten Ruprecht/Autumn 2010

Base/Normal/Gradable adjectives and Strong/Ungradable Adjectives

1) Choose an appropriate adverb to describe each of these adjectives. 2) Give an example for each. a. an absolutely amazing story

1 __________________________________ amazing 2 _________________________________ interesting 3 __________________________________ nervous 4 __________________________________ frightened 5 __________________________________ hilarious 6 __________________________________ incredible 7 __________________________________ funny 8 __________________________________ dirty 9 __________________________________ perfect 10 __________________________________ thrilled 11 _________________________________ enormous 12 __________________________________ tasty 13 _________________________________ enjoyable 14 __________________________________ fantastic 15 __________________________________ pretty 16 __________________________________ angry 17 __________________________________ furious 18 __________________________________ lucky 19 __________________________________ terrified 20 __________________________________ exciting

Which adverb can describe these adjectives? It must be able to describe all 3. Choose from the box.

badly enormously perfectly severely terribly - virtually

.
Source: AGiU, u 83/92

boring important sorry identical impossible unchanged

acceptable adequate clear damaged needed wrong

..

handicapped limited weakened popular influential powerful

...

Lindsey Haas/EnBW/Thorsten Ruprecht/Autumn 2010