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possible.
Types of Nouns
There are several types of nouns used to make up a sentence in the English language.
1. Proper Nouns
Proper nouns name specific persons, places or things.
Jonathan is my friend.
If a proper noun names a specific thing, it is usually prefixed by the definite article "the".
2. Common Nouns
Common nouns name any person, place or thing.
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Because a part on the bike was broken, Jonathan had to walk to the shop.
3. Concrete Nouns
Concrete nouns name things in their material forms.
Literary Devices
Metaphor and simile.
Comparisons. A simile uses the words as or like; a metaphor does not.
Examples: Hes a pig is a metaphor. He looks like a pig and Hes as fat as a pig
are similes.
Personification.
Attributing human or other animate characteristics to an inanimate object.
Example: Clouds cry.
Symbolism.
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Using one object to stand for something else or to mean something else. Actions can
also be symbolic, such as washing hands to indicate non-involvement. Some symbols are
universal, with generally accepted meanings, such as a crown to mean superiority or the color
red to mean danger. Some are specific to a particular work of literature, such as the white
whale in Moby Dick. Symbols, especially specific ones, often mean more than one thing.
Irony.
Conveys the opposite of what is meant or what would be expected.
Examples: Saying Youre so graceful! to someone who has just tripped is verbal
irony. A lifeguard drowning in a bathtub is irony of situation. A special kind of literary irony
is when the reader (or viewer) knows something the character doesnt. This is common in
horror movies. An example of this is when the heroine runs to Jason for help, when we know
hes the slasher.
Sarcasm is verbal irony with attitude, with a mean edge.
Hyperbole.
Literary exaggeration. Examples: Gilgamesh and Enkidu carried thirty score pounds
of weaponry. Ill give you the moon and stars.
Rhythm and meter.
Rhythm is the up & down, high & low series of emphases in speech. All speech has
rhythm, and each language has its own particular rhythm. Meter is regular rhythm, as in
poetry or music.
Rhyme.
Sounding alike at the end. Examples: maysay, pattermatter.
Assonance.
Sounding alike in the middle. Example: moody blues.
Alliteration.
Sounding alike at the beginning. Example: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled
peppers.
Repetition.
Saying the same thing over again. Seems obvious, but notice that the author has
intended to do this, for emphasis.
Onomatopoeia.
Words or phrases that sound like what they mean. Examples: pop, click. The pitterpatter of little feet is full of the T sound, which emphasizes the meaning.
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ADJECTIVES
Definition
Adjectivesarewordsthatdescribeormodifyanotherpersonorthinginthesentence.
TheArticlesa,an,andtheareadjectives.
thetallprofessor
thelugubriouslieutenant
asolidcommitment
amonth'spay
asixyearoldchild
theunhappiest,richestman
Ifagroupofwordscontainingasubjectandverbactsasanadjective,itiscalledan
AdjectiveClause.Mysister,whoismucholderthanIam,isanengineer.Ifanadjective
clauseisstrippedofitssubjectandverb,theresultingmodifierbecomesanAdjective
Phrase:Heisthemanwhoiskeepingmyfamilyinthepoorhouse.
Beforegettingintootherusageconsiderations,onegeneralnoteabouttheuseor
overuseofadjectives:Adjectivesarefrail;don'taskthemtodomoreworkthanthey
should.Letyourbroadshoulderedverbsandnounsdothehardworkofdescription.Be
particularlycautiousinyouruseofadjectivesthatdon'thavemuchtosayinthefirstplace:
interesting,beautiful,lovely,exciting.Itisyourjobasawritertocreatebeautyand
excitementandinterest,andwhenyousimplyinsistonitspresencewithoutshowingitto
yourreaderwell,you'reconvincingnoone.
ConsidertheusesofmodifiersinthisadjectivallyrichparagraphfromThomasWolfe's
LookHomeward,Angel.(CharlesScribner's,1929,p.69.)Adjectivesarehighlightedinthis
color;participles,verbformsactingasadjectives,arehighlightedinthisblue.Somepeople
wouldarguethatwordsthatarepartofanamelike"EastIndiaTeaHousearenot
reallyadjectivalandthatpossessivenounsfather's,farmer'sarenottechnically
adjectives,butwe'veincludedtheminouranalysisofWolfe'stext.
He remembered yet the EastIndiaTea House at the Fair, the sandalwood, the turbans, and
the robes, the cool interior and the smell of India tea; and he had felt now the nostalgic thrill
of dew-wet mornings in Spring, the cherry scent, the coolclarion earth, the wetloaminess of
the garden, the pungentbreakfast smells and the floating snow of blossoms. He knew the
inchoatesharp excitement of hot dandelions in young earth; in July, of watermelons bedded
in sweet hay, inside a farmer'scovered wagon; of cantaloupe and crated peaches; and the
scent of orange rind, bitter-sweet, before a fire of coals. He knew the goodmale smell of his
father's sitting-room; of the smoothwornleather sofa, with the gaping horse-hair rent; of the
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blisteredvarnished wood upon the hearth; of the heatedcalf-skin bindings; of the flatmoist
plug of apple tobacco, stuck with a red flag; of wood-smoke and burnt leaves in October; of
Anabundanceofadjectiveslikethiswouldbeuncommonincontemporaryprose.Whether
wehavelostsomethingornotisleftuptoyou.
Position of Adjectives
UnlikeAdverbs,whichoftenseemcapableofpoppingupalmostanywhereina
sentence,adjectivesnearlyalwaysappearimmediatelybeforethenounornounphrasethat
theymodify.Sometimestheyappearinastringofadjectives,andwhentheydo,theyappear
inasetorderaccordingtocategory.(SeeBelow.)Whenindefinitepronounssuchas
something,someone,anybodyaremodifiedbyanadjective,theadjectivecomesafterthe
pronoun:
Anyone capable of doing something horrible to someone nice should be punished.
Something wicked this way comes.
Andtherearecertainadjectivesthat,incombinationwithcertainwords,arealways
"postpositive"(comingafterthethingtheymodify):
The president elect, heir apparent to the Glitzy fortune, lives in New York proper.
See,also,thenoteonaadjectives,below,forthepositionofsuchwordsas"ablaze,
aloof,aghast."
Degrees of Adjectives
Adjectivescanexpressdegreesofmodification:
Gladysisarichwoman,butJosieisricherthanGladys,andSadieistherichestwoman
intown.
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Positive
Comparative
Superlative
rich
richer
richest
lovely
lovelier
loveliest
beautiful
more beautiful
most beautiful
Certainadjectiveshaveirregularformsinthecomparativeandsuperlativedegrees:
Irregular Comparative and Superlative
Forms
good
better
best
bad
worse
worst
little
less
least
much
many
some
more
most
far
further
furthest
Becarefulnottoformcomparativesorsuperlativesofadjectiveswhichalreadyexpress
anextremeofcomparisonunique,forinstancealthoughitprobablyispossibletoform
comparativeformsofmostadjectives:somethingcanbemoreperfect,andsomeonecanhave
afullerfigure.Peoplewhoarguethatonewomancannotbemorepregnantthananotherhave
neverbeenninemonthspregnantwithtwins.e s p o n s e
AccordingtoBryanGarner,"complete"isoneofthoseadjectivesthatdoesnotadmitof
comparativedegrees.Wecouldsay,however,"morenearlycomplete."IamsurethatIhave
notbeenconsistentinmyapplicationofthisprincipleintheGuide(Icanhearmyself,now,
sayingsomethinglike"lessadequate"or"morepreferable"or"lessfatal").Other
adjectivesthatGarnerwouldincludeinthislistareasfollows:
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absolute
impossible
principal
adequate
inevitable
stationary
chief
irrevocable
sufficient
complete
main
unanimous
devoid
manifest
unavoidable
entire
minor
unbroken
fatal
paramount
unique
final
perpetual
universal
ideal
preferable
whole
FromTheOxfordDictionaryofAmericanUsageandStylebyBryanGarner.Copyright
1995byBryanA.Garner.PublishedbyOxfordUniversityPress,Inc.,www.oupusa.org,and
usedwiththegraciousconsentofOxfordUniversityPress.
Becareful,also,nottousemorealongwithacomparativeadjectiveformedwithernor
tousemostalongwithasuperlativeadjectiveformedwithest(e.g.,donotwritethat
somethingismoreheavierormostheaviest).
Theasasconstructionisusedtocreateacomparisonexpressingequality:
Heisasfoolishasheislarge.
Sheisasbrightashermother.
Wewerealotmorecarefulthistime.
Heworksalotlesscarefullythantheotherjewelerintown.
Welikehisworksomuchbetter.
You'llgetyourwatchbackallthefaster.
Thesameprocesscanbeusedtodownplaythedegree:
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Theweatherthisweekhasbeensomewhatbetter.
Heapproacheshisschoolworkalittlelessindustriouslythanhisbrotherdoes.
Andsometimesasetphrase,usuallyaninformalnounphrase,isusedforthispurpose:
Hearrivedawholelotsoonerthanweexpected.
That'saheckofalotbetter.
Iftheintensifierveryaccompaniesthesuperlative,adeterminerisalsorequired:
Sheiswearingherveryfinestoutfitfortheinterview.
They'redoingtheverybesttheycan.
Occasionally,thecomparativeorsuperlativeformappearswithadeterminerandthe
thingbeingmodifiedisunderstood:
OfallthewinesproducedinConnecticut,Ilikethisonethemost.
Thequickeryoufinishthisproject,thebetter.
Ofthetwobrothers,heisbyfarthefaster.
Authority for this section: A University Grammar of English by Randolph Quirk and Sidney Greenbaum. Longman
Group: Essex, England. 1993. Used with permission.
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Taller than I / me ??
When making a comparison with "than" do we end with a subject form
or object form, "taller than I/she" or "taller than me/her." The correct
response is "taller than I/she." We are looking for the subject form: "He
is taller than I am/she is tall." (Except we leave out the verb in the
second clause, "am" or "is.") Some good writers, however, will argue
that the word "than" should be allowed to function as a preposition. If
we can say "He is tall like me/her," then (if "than" could be
prepositional like like) we should be able to say, "He is taller than
me/her." It's an interesting argument, but for now, anyway in
formal, academic prose, use the subject form in such comparisons.
Wealsowanttobecarefulinasentencesuchas"Ilikehimbetterthan
she/her."The"she"wouldmeanthatyoulikethispersonbetterthanshelikes
him;the"her"wouldmeanthatyoulikethismalepersonbetterthanyoulikethat
femaleperson.(Toavoidambiguityandtheslipperyuseofthan,wecouldwrite
"Ilikehimbetterthanshedoes"or"IlikehimbetterthanIlikeher.")
Determinersarticlesandotherlimiters.SeeDeterminers
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II.
Observationpostdeterminersandlimiteradjectives(e.g.,arealhero,aperfectidiot)
andadjectivessubjecttosubjectivemeasure(e.g.,beautiful,interesting)
III.
SizeandShapeadjectivessubjecttoobjectivemeasure(e.g.,wealthy,large,round)
IV.
Ageadjectivesdenotingage(e.g.,young,old,new,ancient)
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
Coloradjectivesdenotingcolor(e.g.,red,black,pale)
Origindenominaladjectivesdenotingsourceofnoun(e.g.,French,American,
Canadian)
Materialdenominaladjectivesdenotingwhatsomethingismadeof(e.g.,woolen,
metallic,wooden)
Qualifierfinallimiter,oftenregardedaspartofthenoun(e.g.,rockingchair,
huntingcabin,passengercar,bookcover)
Physical Description
Size
Shap
e
Age
beautiful
old
an
expensiv
e
antiq
ue
four
gorgeou
s
her
our
those
that
several
Italian
red
short
bla
ck
old
silver
mirror
silk
roses
Englis
h
sheepd
og
wood
en
dilapidat
little
ed
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touring car
hair
square
enorm
Mate Qualifi
Noun
rial
er
Col
or
longstem
med
big
Origin
youn
Ameri
hat
boxes
huntin
g
cabin
basket
player
ous
some
delicious
can
Thai
ball
s
food
This chart is probably too wide to print on a standard piece of paper. If you click
HERE, you will get a one-page duplicate of this chart, which you can print out on a
regular piece of paper.
Itwouldbefolly,ofcourse,torunmorethantwoorthree(atthemost)adjectives
together.Furthermore,whenadjectivesbelongtothesameclass,theybecomewhatwecall
coordinatedadjectives,andyouwillwanttoputacommabetweenthem:theinexpensive,
comfortableshoes.Theruleforinsertingthecommaworksthisway:ifyoucouldhave
insertedaconjunctionandorbutbetweenthetwoadjectives,useacomma.Wecould
saytheseare"inexpensivebutcomfortableshoes,"sowewoulduseacommabetweenthem
(whenthe"but"isn'tthere).Whenyouhavethreecoordinatedadjectives,separatethemall
withcommas,butdon'tinsertacommabetweenthelastadjectiveandthenoun(inspiteof
thetemptationtodosobecauseyouoftenpausethere):
a popular, respected, and good looking student
SeethesectiononCommasforadditionalhelpinpunctuatingcoordinatedadjectives.
aFaulknerianstyle,Jeffersoniandemocracy.Someperiodsoftimehavetakenonthe
statusofproperadjectives:theNixonera,aRenaissance/Romantic/Victorianpoet(buta
contemporarynovelistandmedievalwriter).Directionalandseasonaladjectivesarenot
capitalizedunlessthey'repartofatitle:
We took the northwest route during the spring thaw. We stayed there until the town's annual
Fall Festival of Small Appliances.
SeethesectiononCapitalizationforfurtherhelponthismatter.
Collective Adjectives
Whenthedefinitearticle,the,iscombinedwithanadjectivedescribingaclassorgroup
ofpeople,theresultingphrasecanactasanoun:thepoor,therich,theoppressed,the
homeless,thelonely,theunlettered,theunwashed,thegathered,thedeardeparted.The
differencebetweenaCollectiveNoun(whichisusuallyregardedassingularbutwhichcanbe
pluralincertaincontexts)andacollectiveadjectiveisthatthelatterisalwayspluraland
requiresapluralverb:
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Theruralpoorhavebeenignoredbythemedia.
TherichofConnecticutareresponsible.
Theelderlyarebeginningtodemandtheirrights.
Theyoungatheartarealwaysajoytobearound.
Adjectival Opposites
Theoppositeorthenegativeaspectofanadjectivecanbeformedinanumberofways.
Oneway,ofcourse,istofindanadjectivetomeantheoppositeanantonym.Theopposite
ofbeautifulisugly,theoppositeoftallisshort.Athesauruscanhelpyoufindanappropriate
opposite.Anotherwaytoformtheoppositeofanadjectiveiswithanumberofprefixes.The
oppositeoffortunateisunfortunate,theoppositeofprudentisimprudent,theoppositeof
considerateisinconsiderate,theoppositeofhonorableisdishonorable,theoppositeof
alcoholicisnonalcoholic,theoppositeofbeingproperlyfiledismisfiled.Ifyouarenotsure
ofthespellingofadjectivesmodifiedinthiswaybyprefixes(orwhichistheappropriate
prefix),youwillhavetoconsultadictionary,astherulesfortheselectionofaprefixare
complexandtooshiftytobetrusted.Themeaningitselfcanbetricky;forinstance,
flammableandinflammablemeanthesamething.
Athirdmeansforcreatingtheoppositeofanadjectiveistocombineitwithlessorleast
tocreateacomparisonwhichpointsintheoppositedirection.Interestingshadesofmeaning
andtonebecomeavailablewiththisusage.Itiskindertosaythat"Thisistheleastbeautiful
cityinthestate."thanitistosaythat"Thisistheugliestcityinthestate."(Italsohasa
slightlydifferentmeaning.)Acandidateforajobcanstillbeworthyandyetbe"lessworthy
ofconsideration"thananothercandidate.It'sprobablynotagoodideatousethis
constructionwithanadjectivethatisalreadyanegative:"Heislessunluckythanhis
brother,"althoughthatisnotthesamethingassayingheisluckierthanhisbrother.Usethe
comparativelesswhenthecomparisonisbetweentwothingsorpeople;usethesuperlative
leastwhenthecomparisonisamongmanythingsorpeople.
Mymotherislesspatientthanmyfather.
Ofallthenewsitcoms,thisismyleastfavoriteshow.
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He swims well.
He knows only too well who the murderer is.
However, when using a linking verb or a verb that has to do with the
five human senses, you want to use the adjective instead.
How are you? I'm feeling good, thank you.
After a bath, the baby smells so good.
Even after my careful paint job, this room doesn't look good.
Many careful writers, however, will use well after linking verbs relating
to health, and this is perfectly all right. In fact, to say that you are good
or that you feel good usually implies not only that you're OK physically
but also that your spirits are high.
"How are you?"
"I am well, thank you."
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meansthatthenoundescribedhasamoreactiveroleyouarenotmakinganysensesoyou
areconfusing(toothers,includingyourprofessor).
Theedendingmodifiersareoftenaccompaniedbyprepositions(thesearenottheonly
choices):
Wewereamazedatallthecircusanimals.
Wewereamusedbytheclowns.
Wewereannoyedbytheelephants.
Wewereboredbytheringmaster.
Wewereconfusedbythenoise.
Weweredisappointedbythemotorcycledaredevils.
Weweredisappointedintheirperformance.
Wewereembarrassedbymybrother.
Wewereexhaustedfromalltheexcitement.
Wewereexcitedbytheliontamer.
Wewereexcitedaboutthehighwireact,too.
Wewerefrightenedbythelions.
Wewereintroducedtotheringmaster.
Wewereinterestedinthetent.
Wewereirritatedbytheheat.
Wewereopposedtoleavingearly.
Weweresatisfiedwiththecircus.
Wewereshockedatthelevelofnoiseunderthebigtent.
Weweresurprisedbythefans'response.
Weweresurprisedattheirindifference.
Weweretiredofallthelightsafterawhile.
Wewereworriedaboutthetrafficleavingtheparkinglot.
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A- Adjectives
Themostcommonofthesocalledaadjectivesareablaze,afloat,afraid,aghast,alert,
alike,alive,alone,aloof,ashamed,asleep,averse,awake,aware.Theseadjectiveswill
primarilyshowupaspredicateadjectives(i.e.,theycomeafteralinkingverb).
Thechildrenwereashamed.
Theprofessorremainedaloof.
Thetreeswereablaze.
Occasionally,however,youwillfindaadjectivesbeforethewordtheymodify:thealert
patient,thealoofphysician.Mostofthem,whenfoundbeforethewordtheymodify,are
themselvesmodified:thenearlyawakestudent,theterriblyalonescholar.Andaadjectives
aresometimesmodifiedby"verymuch":verymuchafraid,verymuchalone,verymuch
ashamed,etc.
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