A word that describes a noun — its size, colour, quality or state.
In precise terms
A lexical class modifying nouns, typically able to occur attributively (beside the noun) and predicatively (after a copula), and in many languages agreeing with the noun in gender, number or case.
An example
Un livre intéressant.
An interesting book.
What is going on here
'Intéressant' modifies 'livre'. In French most adjectives follow the noun and agree with it: 'une histoire intéressante' adds a feminine ending. English adjectives precede the noun and never agree.
Why this matters when you are learning a language
Adjective placement and agreement are among the first things that make a learner sound foreign. They are also among the easiest to fix, because the rules are usually short and highly regular.
Across languages
Not every language has adjectives as a separate class. In some, property concepts are expressed by verbs — a word meaning 'be red' behaving exactly like other verbs — and in others by nouns. Where adjectives do exist, they may precede the noun, follow it, or do both with a difference in meaning.
Related terms
- NounBeginner — A word for a thing, person, place, idea or quality.
- AdverbBeginner — A word that modifies a verb, an adjective, another adverb, or a whole clause — often saying how, when, where or to what degree.
- Modifier and complementIntermediate — A modifier adds optional information; a complement is required to complete the meaning.
- AgreementIntermediate — When one word changes form to match another — a verb matching its subject, an adjective matching its noun.
- CopulaBeginner — An overt grammatical element that supports some clauses with a nonverbal predicate.
Where to go next
- Language guides — See grammatical and lexical categories used in context.
- Terminology quiz — Test the terms on this page.