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Writing Center ECHO: Adjectives and Adverbs

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ECHO: Adjectives and Adverbs

What are adjectives and adverbs?

Both adjectives and adverbs are descriptive words.


Adjectives
describe (modify) a noun or a pronoun.

  • They often explain what kind, which one, or how many.
  • For example:

    His
    dark
    eyes
    lit up when he heard that soft, familiar
    voice


    .



    • dark

      describes the noun

      eyes

      .



    • soft

      and

      familiar

      both describe the noun

      voice

      — it gives us a hint of what this voice is like and to whom it could belong.

  • Another example:


    The hungry
    sparrows feasted on the two
    bowls of birdseed.




    • hungry

      describes the noun

      sparrows

      — this distinguishes them from the other kinds of sparrows that could be imagined.



    • two

      describes the noun

      bowls

      —the author specifies how many bowls there are, not how big the bowls are or what color they are.


Adverbs
describe (modify) verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs.

  • They often explain how, in what manner, when, and to what extent.
  • For example:

    Marla walked
    slowly through the woods




    .



    • slowly

      describes the verb

      walked

      — how Marla walked, the manner in which she walked.

  • Another example:

    Joe was really
    nice to my mother



    .



    • really

      describes the adjective

      nice

      — how nice he was to my mother.

  • One more example:

    The car swerved very
    quickly to avoid the turtle






    .



    • very

      describes the adverb

      quickly

      (i.e. how quickly), which itself describes how the car swerved.

After the verb "to be" you will always find an adjective, not an adverb.

How to change an adjective into an adverb

Many, but not all, adjectives can be changed into adverbs by adding an
-ly
ending.

For example:


  • quick
    >
    quick


    ly

  • slow
    >
    slow
    ly

  • sad
    >
    sad
    ly

The difference between the

Comparative

and the

Superlative

degree of adjectives and adverbs

The

comparative

of an adjective or adverb compares the qualities of
two
people or things.

  • For example:
    I am
    taller
    than Tim.

The

superlative

of an adjective or adverb compares
three or more
qualities of people or things.

  • For example:
    I am the

    tallest

    person in the class.

How to Form the

Comparative

and the

Superlative

degrees:

  • Adjectives or adverbs with
    one


    syllable
    :


    • comparative
      > add

      -er

      , e.g.
      tall
      er
      .

    • superlative
      > add

      -est

      , e.g.
      tall
      est
      .
  • Adjectives or adverbs with
    more than one syllable
    :


    • comparative
      > add
      more
      , e.g. more graceful.

    • superlative
      > add
      most
      , e.g.
      most graceful
      .
  • In adjectives that
    end in -y

    , the "
    y
    " changes to an "
    i
    "before adding -
    er

    or -
    est

    .

The "Good," the "Bad," and the Ugly...

Pay special attention to these two tough cases:





Adjective

 

Comparative

 

Superlative


good
 
better
 
best

bad
 
worse
 
worst
         


Adverb

 

Comparative

 

Superlative


well
 
better
 
best

badly
 
worse
 
worst


Remember:



  • good = adjective, e.g. She is a good friend.



  • well = adverb, e.g. He sings well.

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