What is the order of adjectives? Here are some examples.
ORDER OF ADJECTIVES – This order follows a certain set of rules when more than one adjective precedes a noun or pronoun.
Adjectives are words that describe or modify a noun or pronoun. They provide attributes such as color, size, and others. They help make the subject of the sentence vivid and clear by providing more details and information. This is the crucial role adjectives play in sentence construction.
If there is more than one adjective in a sentence that precedes a noun or a pronoun, the order of adjectives is made and is obeyed for correct grammar and sentence construction. This order follows a certain set of rules and a specific pattern based on category, which depends on the aspects of the noun they describe.
The order
- Quantity (such as “one,” “seven,” “few”)
- Opinion (such as “silly,” “smart,” “pretty”)
- Size (such as “small,” “huge,” “tall”)
- Physical quality (such as “ragged,” “neat,” “muscular”)
- Age or shape (such as “old,” “round,” “young”)
- Color (such as “scarlet,” “purplish,” “graying”)
- Origin or religion (such as “Polish,” “animist,” “Southern”)
- Material (such as “pearl,” “iron,” “nylon”)
- Type (such as “electric,” “two-sided,” “pick-up”)
- Purpose (such as “welding,” “polishing,” “sports”)
In other cases, the first adjective will be preceded by a determiner, such as “a,” “an,” “some,” “all,” and others, and the noun follows after the final adjective.
Here are some examples
1. He was a big, green-eyed man. (size – physical quality)
2. My sister has a beautiful small tricolored cat. (opinion – size – color)
3. I have an oversized new pair of French trousers. (determiner – age – origin)
4. I read a thrilling old American novel. (opinion – age – origin)
5. I bought a pair of black leather shoes. (color – material)
6. Our house has an old Italian clock. (determiner – age – origin)
7. I have three strong reasons why I don’t like pineapples in my pizza. (quantity – opinion)
8. I want to buy that big old red antique rug. (size – color – origin)
9. We took a ride on an old blue Chinese bus. (age – color)
10. Their family owns a comfortable, luxurious limousine. (opinion)
Using commas with adjectives
If two or more adjectives come from the same category, they need to be separated by commas.
If two or more adjectives come from different categories, they are not to be separated by commas.