Adjectives make English more descriptive. They help us explain what people, places, animals, objects and ideas are like.
Learning common adjectives is essential for anyone who wants to improve their English vocabulary and writing.
What is an adjective?
An adjective is a word that describes or gives more information about a noun or pronoun.
Examples:
- big
- small
- beautiful
- difficult
- easy
- interesting
- expensive
- cheap
- happy
- careful
Compare:
I bought a car.
I bought a new red car.
The adjectives new and red provide additional information about the car.
Common English adjectives
Size
- big
- small
- large
- tiny
- tall
- short
- long
- wide
- narrow
Appearance
- beautiful
- handsome
- attractive
- ugly
- clean
- dirty
- bright
- dark
Personality
- kind
- friendly
- polite
- honest
- patient
- helpful
- quiet
- confident
Feelings
- happy
- sad
- angry
- worried
- excited
- tired
- nervous
- surprised
Difficulty
- easy
- difficult
- simple
- complicated
- challenging
Adjectives before nouns
Adjectives commonly appear before nouns.
a large house
an interesting book
a friendly teacher
an expensive car
Adjectives after linking verbs
Adjectives can also appear after linking verbs such as be, seem, look, feel and become.
The food is delicious.
She looks tired.
The lesson seems difficult.
He became angry.
Comparative adjectives
Comparative adjectives are used to compare two things.
Short adjectives often use -er:
- tall → taller
- small → smaller
- fast → faster
Longer adjectives often use more:
- interesting → more interesting
- expensive → more expensive
- difficult → more difficult
Example:
Nairobi is larger than many towns in Kenya.
Superlative adjectives
Superlatives compare three or more things.
- tall → tallest
- small → smallest
- interesting → most interesting
- expensive → most expensive
Example:
This is the most interesting book I have read this year.
Common adjective mistakes
Incorrect: She is more taller than me.
Correct: She is taller than me.
Incorrect: He is a very kindness person.
Correct: He is a very kind person.
Incorrect: It was a bored film.
Correct: It was a boring film.
Adjectives ending in -ed and -ing
This difference is especially important.
-ed usually describes how someone feels:
I am bored.
-ing usually describes what causes the feeling:
The film is boring.
Other examples:
- interested / interesting
- excited / exciting
- confused / confusing
- tired / tiring