Adjectives: Modifiers to Adjectives

Modifiers to Adjectives

Indicating how much or to what degree

Golden Gate

Modifiers of Adjectives

SUBJECT - VERB	SPECIFIED AMOUNT	ADJECTIVE	SUBJECT - VERB	ADVERB OF DEGREE	ADJECTIVE
A specified amount can be used to modify another adjective. The measurements are plural.			An adverb can be used to modify the degree or extent of an adjective.
The bridge towers are	746 feet / 227 meters	tall.	The bridge towers are	very / rather/ pretty	tall.
The roadway is	500 feet / 152 meters	high over the water.	The roadway is	so / moderately	high over the water.
The bridge	8,981 feet / 2,737 meters	long.	The bridge is	pretty / quite	long.
The roadway is	90 feet / 27 meters	wide.	The roadway is	fairly / adequately	wide.
The water below is	242 feet / 74 meters	deep.	The water below is	quite / extremely	deep.

With most other adjectives, specified amounts are not used: shallow, large, big, small, little.
So, very, rather, pretty, quite – emphasize the adjective; fairly, moderately, somewhat – de-emphasize (lessen) the adjective. See Adverbs of degree.

Tall – High – Long

TALL		HIGH		LONG
Tall – measuring a long distance from the ground to the top		High – having great extent or reach upward; suspended above		Long – reaching or extending horizontally (linear)
	This man is 170 centimeters tall.		This man is forty-feet high in the air.		The baby is twenty-five inches long.
	This is a tall window.		This is a high window.		This is a long window.
	This is a tall rock formation. (More likely used with formations that have a baseline: monoliths such as Half Dome, Meteora, Ayers Rock or Cathedral Rock)		This is a high mountain. (a mountain that reaches upward; its baseline is not well defined)		This is a long mountain chain. ( a series of mountains that stretch a long distance on a continent)
	tall glass (drinking) / tree		high fence / wall / water		long bed, table (dimension)

Modifiers of Color

SUBJECT - VERB	NOUN	ADJECTIVE	SUBJECT - VERB	ADJECTIVE	ADJECTIVE
A color can be modified with an item (noun) that naturally occurs with a variation of the color.			A color can also be modified with other adjectives to indicate intensity, hue or pattern of the color.
This color is	moss	green.	This color is	light / pale	green.
	neon (lights)	green.		dark / deep	green.
	lime	green.		yellow / yellowish	green.
	emerald	green.		dirty / dusty	green.
	hunter (worn by hunters)	green.		striped	green.

Common Mistakes

ERROR	FIX
The statue is eight-foot high and stands on a two-foot tall pedestal. 01/31/2010 – "High"	The statue is eight-feet high and stands on a two-foot tall pedestal. The modifier "eight feet" modifies an adjective "high". Quantities that modify adjectives may be singular or plural ( eight feet, one foot). In contrast, the modifier "two-foot" modifies a noun. Noun modifiers are almost always singular.

ERROR

FIX

The statue is eight-foot high and stands on a two-foot tall pedestal.

01/31/2010 – "High"

The statue is eight-feet high and stands on a two-foot tall pedestal.

The modifier "eight feet" modifies an adjective "high". Quantities that modify adjectives may be singular or plural ( eight feet, one foot). In contrast, the modifier "two-foot" modifies a noun. Noun modifiers are almost always singular.

Practice

Specified Amounts

Select the modifier that best completes the sentence.

#	YOUR RESPONSE	CHECK ANSWER
1.	My dog, Scout, is tall.
2.	Still she can jump high.
3.	She is only wide.
4.	Some people thinks it is amazing that a dog can jump so high.
5.	It's not surprising that a pet eats so little food.

Practice 2

Tall, High or Long?

#	YOUR RESPONSE	CHECK ANSWER
6.	This kite is very in the sky.
7.	This ship is
8.	The basketball player on the left is extremely .
9.	He can place a basket ball in a hoop ten feet .
10	His mattress needs to be extra .
11	The tower is quite .
12	The San Andreas earthquake fault line is very . fault (n.) – a large crack in the earth's surface

Practice 3

Color Modifiers

Colors are often modified by items having that particular color. Below are some modifiers you might hear in everyday speech. Select the color that each noun modifies.

#	COMPLETE SENTENCE WITH PUNCTUATION	CHECK ANSWER
13.	My new car is cherry .
14.	She bought a new hot- lipstick .
15.	She's wearing a watermelon- shirt .
16.	I bought some baby- socks.
17.	The baby's eyes are sky .
18.	He painted the walls of our house chocolate .
19.	I wanted the walls to be eggshell .
20.	My sweater is grass .
21.	She bought some eggplant - shoes.