Adjectives

What is an Adjective?

• An adjective is a describing word.
• Its job is to give more information about a noun (a person, place, or thing).
• Adjectives make your sentences more interesting by telling us how something looks, feels, sounds, tastes, or smells.

What do Adjectives tell us? Adjectives answer the question: "What is it like?"

1. Appearance (How it looks)

• Colors: Red, blue, green, golden.
• Size: Big, tiny, tall, short, wide.
• Shape: Round, square, flat, pointy.
• Example: The tiny mouse ate the yellow cheese.

2. Texture (How it feels)

• Feel: Soft, hard, fuzzy, bumpy, sticky, cold.
• Example: I put on my fuzzy sweater.

3. Personality and Feelings

• Traits: Happy, brave, kind, silly, grumpy.
• Example: The brave knight fought the dragon.

4. Number (How many)

• Amount: One, seven, many, few, several.
• Example: I have three balloons.

Where do Adjectives go? In a sentence, adjectives usually hang out in two spots:

1. Before the noun: "The shiny coin."
2. After a helping verb: "The coin is shiny."

The "Adjective Test" If you aren't sure if a word is an adjective, try putting it into this sentence:

"The ______ dog."

• Does "Blue" fit? (Yes! The blue dog.) Adjective
• Does "Happy" fit? (Yes! The happy dog.) Adjective
• Does "Run" fit? (No! The run dog.) Not an adjective (That's a verb!)

Why Do We Use Adjectives?

• To be Specific: If you tell your friend, "Hand me the ball," they might not know which one. But if you say, "Hand me the large, striped ball," they know exactly which one you mean!
• To Paint a Picture: They help the person reading your story see what you see in your imagination.

Lesson Summary

• Adjectives describe nouns.
• They tell us about color, size, shape, number, and feelings.
• They make sentences much more detailed and fun!