a n o te t o t h e te a c h e r adjectives · pdf filebrainstorm a list of adjectives and...

Speakers and writers create images of people and things through their choice of adjectives.

Adjectives give meaning and life to nouns. They are often chosen specifically to give a positive or a negative view of people, places, events and objects.

Advertisers know this very well, and choose adjectives that will display their products in the most desirable way. They use words like reliable, charming, immaculate, heavy-duty etc. Value can be outstanding, great or unbeatable.

The media too, selects adjectives designed to sway the audience to a particular view. Of a dictator it may use words like evil, vicious, ruthless, and the acts of such a person may be described as despicable, brutal, inhuman. Whereas a princess may be described as beautiful, stylish, graceful, performing acts that are generous, compassionate and admirable.

Adjectives give life and personality to all the people and things we speak and write about.

Adjectives can be placed before the noun they describe. e.g. I stroked the soft fur of the tiny, white

kitten.

Adjectives can be placed after the noun they describe.e.g. The door was wooden and heavy.

This orange is sweet and juicy.

Different adjectives have different jobs to do.

Descriptive adjectives give colour, shape, size and feeling to nouns.e.g. sharp pencil; choppy seas; haunting

melody; scruffy dog; long, dusty road; quaint, white-washed cottages

Verbal adjectives are participles used as adjectives. Participles end in –ing or –ed.e.g. a walking stick; falling rocks;

a deafening roar; scented roses; a puzzled look; a dazed expression

Number adjectives give quantity to the noun. e.g. ten geese, five marbles, sixth person,

first place

Indefinite adjectives give uncertain quantity to the noun. e.g. some children; few coins; many

soldiers; most people

Adjectives may show degree.

Adjectives of degree may describe nouns as they are (positive degree) e.g. I have a long rope,or compared to another (comparative degree) e.g. My rope is longer than yours,or compared to all others (superlative degree) e.g. Todd has the longest rope of all.

Suffixes –er and –est are usually used to make adjectives of degree. e.g. old, older, oldest; sweet, sweeter, sweetest

Other adjectives of degree are formed by placing more or most before the adjective.

More and most are used before adjectives that already end in a suffix. e.g. beautiful, more beautiful,

most beautiful; helpful, more helpful, most helpful; famous, more famous, most famous

SimilesAdjectives are used in similes – a figure of speech which likens one thing to another, to provide a clearer word picture of something or someone. e.g. as light as a feather; as cold as ice;

as white as snow

The Bare BonesAdjectives are words that give colour, shape, size, sound and feeling to nouns. Their job is

to paint clearer pictures of nouns.

Carl, a tall man, went to the

local shop to buy big bones

for his shaggy, brown dog.

ADJECTIVES A Note to

the Teacher

TARGETING GRAMMAR – UPPER PRIMARY © 2007 BLAKE EDUCATION

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Adjectives show opposite ways of describing nouns. Because the work of adjectives is to describe nouns, it is possible to use them in ways that will give opposing views of people and things. These adjectives are called antonyms.e.g. a short/tall person; fresh/stale cake;

sweet/sour oranges; dull/bright day; rough/smooth road

Adjective-forming suffixesA suffix (word ending) changes the way a word is used in a sentence. Some suffixes added to words form adjectives. e.g. funny, helpful, careless, comfortable, famous, tiresome, attractive, foolish, dependent

teaching notes aDJectiVes

Reviewing adjectives

• Remind the students that adjectives are very powerful tools that writers use to give life and meaning to people and things. Like artists, they paint pictures, using words as their colours. They have a large palette of words, from which they constantly draw, to give their nouns shape and colour, size and feeling. Writers, especially, create pictures of story settings and characters using word pictures.

• Tell the students that together you are going to paint a picture of a man. Write the word ‘man’ on the board. Say that today they are going to create that picture using adjectives.

• Write the key headings (below) across the board. Brainstorm a list of adjectives and write them under each heading.

• Ask the students to choose three adjectives to describe the man. Write several responses on the board. Explain that writers, generally, only use between 1 and 3 adjectives at any one time – more would be cumbersome, e.g. a short, plump, bearded man; a handsome, dark-skinned man; a stocky, ginger-haired man.

• Discuss how we order adjectives in a logical way – a big, fat man rather than a fat, big man.

• Discuss the use of commas when using more than one adjective – a tall, skinny, long-legged man.

• Tell the students that the adjective/s can be placed before or after the nouns they describe, e.g. an angry man, bald and overweight; a large man, kind and friendly.

• Show the students how to build sentences around these words e.g. An angry man, bald and overweight, stomped into the room; He was a large man, kind and friendly.

• Ask the students to build a picture of a man using adjectives, then to build a sentence around them. Share their responses.

• Ask them to reflect on how their choice of words changed the picture of the man.

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The Lookbaldbeardedstoopedflamboyanthandsomeregal...

The Shapeplumpthinfatskinnylong-leggedstocky...

The Sizetallshorttoweringlargeoverweightsmall...

The Colourpaleginger-hairedfreckledpimplydark-skinnedswarthy...

The Feelingsadangryoldfriendlylonelyexcited...

exploring ADJECTIVES aDJectiVes teaching notes

collectors’ cornerDivide the class into small groups. Supply each group with magazines, papers and junk mail. Nominate a topic for each group,

e.g. sport, fashion, cars, animals, movie/rock stars, food, travel etc.Ask each group to find and paste pictures about their topic, collage-style, onto an A3-sized sheet of paper. Ask them to write any number of describing

adjectives on a label to paste on/below each picture. On completion, the groups could pin

up their sheets, side by side, to create a large mural of adjectives.

Setting the ScenePrepare some sheets of paper headed with a range of story settings, e.g. beach, city, sporting venue, countryside, train

station, street carnival, the mountains etc.Give each pair of students a prepared sheet of paper. Ask them to list some ‘things’ they would expect to see, hear, feel and touch in that setting. They could then add one

or two adjectives to describe their ‘things’, e.g. golden sand; broken shells; loud, crashing waves; colourful beach umbrellas;

laughing children; rocks, wet and jagged…After 15 minutes or so, pairs present and display their lists.

In a second session, you could return the lists to their authors and ask them to write a short paragraph to

describe their particular setting.

Point of ViewExplain that most material we read in

newspapers is biased in some way – the

reporter or advertiser is writing from

a particular point of view. Provide the

students with newspapers. Ask them

to work in pairs to scan some articles

and advertisements and list adjectives

under two headings: Positive and

Negative. Direct the students to the

real estate section, letters to the editor,

articles about political, environmental

or economic issues, and to general

advertising. Share their findings.


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Goodies

and Baddies

Explain that storytellers use

adjectives very effectively to build

images of their characters, either

in a positive way or a negative way.

Give examples of Cinderella and

the ugly step-sisters, Red Riding

Hood and the wolf. Provide the

students with a range of fairytales,

folktales, myths and legends. Ask

them to work in pairs to list the

adjectives that describe the ‘goodies’

and the ‘baddies’. Share their

findings.

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Descriptive

Adjectives

adjectives are words we use to describe nouns, for example: a blue sky; a large river; tasty food; a noisy truck; a beautiful lady; rough roads.

1 Wecanplaceanadjectiveinfrontofthenounwewanttodescribe. Writeanadjectiveineachspacetodescribethenoun.

a We had ______________ soup for tea.

b I gave the boy a ______________ biscuit to eat.

c The girl is brushing her ______________ hair.

d The ______________ soldier stumbled back to camp.

e I heard a ______________ noise coming from the ______________ house.

2 Wecanplaceanadjectiveafterthenounwewanttodescribe.Circletheadjectivesthatdescribetheunderlinednouns.

a My mother is pretty.

b The horse was young and frisky.

c An elephant is strong.

d The man was old and grey.

e Helen is tall and thin.

3 Theadjectivesareunderlined. Drawarrowstoshowwhichnounstheydescribe.

a The tired man said the box was heavy.

b The boy was sorry he missed the exciting football game.

c The night was dark and the road was long.

d My dog was happy to get a great, big bone to eat.

e The young girl spoke to the kind and friendly teacher.

Adjectives give shape, size, sound, colour and feeling to nouns.

Adjectives and nouns work together to give clear pictures of people, places and things.

Work sheet 13

TARGETING GRAMMAR – MIDDLE PRIMARY © 2007 BLAKE EDUCATION

Name___________________________________________Date_________________22

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Name ___________________________________________ Date _________________

Describing

Adjectives 1

adjectives are words we use to give life and meaning to noun: for example: a famous actor; a long-awaited letter; exciting news; a shaggy, black dog.

Adjectives give shape, size, sound, colour and feeling to nouns.

Adjectives and nouns work together to give clear pictures of people, places and things.

Work sheet 17

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1 We can place an adjective in front of the noun we want to describe. Write one or two adjectives in each space to describe the noun. (You might like to try some alliteration.)

a He looked in the ______________ mirror, and what do you think he saw?

b I have two ______________ sandwiches in my lunch box and a piece of

______________ cake.

c ______________ lions and ______________ elephants roam the grasslands of Africa.

d In the heart of Australia there is a _____________________ desert.

e The students made some ______________ puppets for the ______________ concert.

2 We can place adjective after the nouns we want to describe. Circle the adjectives that describe the underlined nouns.

a I stepped into the room. It was cold and uninviting.

b Thomas will be anxious if I’m not there.

c The miners stood, alert and watchful, as the fuse was lit.

d A man rushed into the room, his face flushed and angry.

e Strange creatures, wild and untamed, roam the high mountains.

3 Place the adjectives in the best order before the noun.

a __________________________________________ apples (red, tasty, six)

b __________________________________________ geese (wild, seven, flying)

c __________________________________________ books (well-read, dusty, old)

adjectives are used to describe nouns: for example: an open window; sticky fingers; clothes, elegant and expensive.

Describing

Adjectives 2

Work sheet 18


Name ___________________________________________ Date _________________ 27

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1 Replace each space with a suitable adjective from the list below.

Sports Day finally arrived!

It was a a _________________ day. I dressed quickly in my b _________________

T-shirt and c _________________ shorts, and pulled on my d _________________

sneakers, with their e _________________ laces. I had a f _________________

breakfast and rushed off to school on my g _________________ bike.

After Assembly, we all gathered on the oval in our teams.

I was the h _________________ runner in my race.

We all rushed over the finishing line. I was i _________________.

Wait till you see what a j _________________ jumper I am!

a sunny cloudy cold windyb new green school cleanc black comfortable old greyd well-worn white smelly favouritee fluoro unmatched flat multicolouredf quick tasty light hotg racing shiny mountain redh slowest youngest fastest fittesti first disqualified last fifthj great awful wonderful awkward

2 Use these adjectives in sentences: popular tasty stubborn

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

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© P. Clutterbuck, Good Grammar! Book 2. This page may be reproduced for classroom use.

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AdjectivesName Grammar BLM 27Describing adjectives are used to describe a noun orpronoun.

1. Complete each sentence by adding the correct describing adjective from the box.

soft strong empty raw fast open

a. I put water in the bucket.

b. We went through the door.

c. An elephant is a animal.

d. A pillow made of feathers is .

e. We have to cook the meat.

f. A cheetah is a very runner.


brown red white black green blue

a. The cow ate the grass.

b. Coal is .

c. I dived into the water.

d. I ate the apple.

e. She drank the milk.

f. A chocolate bar is usually .

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Adjectives


Name Grammar BLM 28Describing adjectives are used to describe a noun orpronoun.


tiny huge sharp long savage hard

a. I cut the bread with a knife.

b. A mouse is a animal.

c. A giraffe has a neck.

d. A whale is a animal.

e. A tiger is a animal.

f. An old crab has a shell.

2. Add a describing adjective of your own in each space.

Last week a boy and his

friend were walking along a street. They looked at

the top of a tree and saw a

bird sitting on a branch. The bird swooped down

and landed on a fence where it had started to build

a nest.

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1. Draw a line to match each describing adjective with a noun.

Describing Adjectives Nouns

fast dooropen peachhard waterhot rockdeep runnerinteresting hairdark fireripe book

2. In each sentence, rearrange the jumbled letters to make a describing adjective.

a. Tom is very for his age. (llta)

b. This is a very building. (lod)

c. Here is a jumper. (eancl)

d. This is a piece of wool. (lbue)

e. Mat does writing in his book. (enat)

f. This is a very river. (edep)

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Adjectives


Name Grammar BLM 30Describing adjectives are used to describe a noun orpronoun.

1. Read the passage and circle all the describing adjectives. Then answer the questionsbelow.

My best friend, Chan, has black hair and large, brown eyes. One dayhe was walking along a busy street bouncing his rubber basketballwhen he heard a strange noise coming from the top of a tall oaktree. He looked up and on the highest branch he saw a magpie witha broken wing being attacked by a hawk. The hawk was brown andhad a strong beak.

a. What are Chan’s eyes like?

b. How good a friend is Chan to the writer?

c. What colour hair does Chan have?

d. What type of street was Chan walking along?

e. What type of noise did Chan hear?

f. What was wrong with the magpie’s wing?

2. Add an adjective of your own to describe each noun.

a. a teacher

b. a meal

c. a tree

d. a fish

e. a flower

f. a game49

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1. Write a suitable describing adjective in each space.

a. A girl lifted a table.

b. A dog chased a boy.

c. The cat followed the mouse.

d. It was a day when we went to the

forest.

e. A bird laid three eggs in the nest.

f. I put the lock back in the container.

2. Now write two descriptive adjectives to complete these sentences.

a. Teacher should be and .

b. The grass was and .

c. The flowers were and .

d. My dog is and .

e. My best friend is and

.

f. A book should be and .

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Describing adjectives are used to describe a noun or pronoun.

1. Choose a word from the box to complete each sentence.

circular fragile broad careful perilous stupid

a. A river that is wide is .b. Something easily broken is .c. If something is round it is .d. A foolish person is .e. If something is dangerous it is .f. If a person is cautious he or she is .

2. Choose the most suitable describing adjective from the box.

delicious rusty sunny savage interesting woollen ripe clever

a. storyb. studentc. knifed. food

3. Rewrite the story replacing each underlined adjective with one of a similar meaningfrom the box.

big minute scared thick strong high sour fat

As we walked through the dense forest we saw a plump bird eating somebitter fruit that grew on a tall tree. My brother Sam, a sturdy lad, threw a tinypebble at the bird. The frightened bird flew to the safety of a gigantic bush.


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AdjectivesGrammar BLMName 23

e. jumperf. weatherg. appleh. watchdog

Describing adjectives are used to describe a noun or pronoun.

1. Choose the describing adjective from the box that has the opposite meaning to theadjective in the brackets.

plump foolish dangerous false fresh deep

a. This loaf of bread is . (stale)b. This is a spot to swim. (safe)c. The pool is very here. (shallow)d. I knew his statement was . (true)e. This pig is quite . (thin)f. Tom is a boy. (wise)

2. Choose the describing adjective from the box that has a similar meaning to theadjective in the brackets.

careful sudden peculiar serious sharp sacred

a. I found her to be a person. (odd)b. Paul is a very boy. (cautious)c. We were startled by the movement. (abrupt)d. It was a breach of rules. (grave)e. She felt a pain in her arm. (acute)f. We entered the temple quietly. (holy)

3. If the adjectives have a similar meaning write S. If they have an oppositemeaning write O.

a. plentiful abundantb. dreary excitingc. soft tenderd. private public


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e. cordial friendlyf. feeble strongg. awkward gracefulh. drowsy sleepy

Proper adjectives are formed from proper nouns. Proper adjectives alsobegin with a capital letter.

1. Write the proper adjective formed from the proper noun in brackets.

a. I ate some food. (China)

b. The guide showed us around the village. (Wales)

c. Is this a watch? (Switzerland)

d. The flag is blue and white. (Greece)

e. My mother’s friend speaks with a accent. (Scotland)

f. My uncle bought a bottle of wine. (France)

2. Write the proper adjective formed from the proper noun.

a. Turkey

b. Sweden

c. Britain

d. Tibet

3. The following athletes represent their countries. Underline the proper adjective andwrite the proper noun on the line.

a. A Turkish runner won the marathon.

b. A Dutch weight-lifter won the gold medal.

c. An Irish athlete won the 200m hurdle.

d. A Norwegian swimmer won her heat in the distance event.

e. A Spanish team won the rowing event.

f. A Brazilian boxer won the lightweight contest.


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e. Mexico

f. Japan

g. Italy

h. Egypt

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