Adjectives

1. Adjectives Modifier of Nouns and Pronouns

2. Definition • Word used to modify (describe or make the meaning more definite) a noun or pronoun • Answers the questions • What kind? • blue skies, nuclear missile, beautiful women • Which one? • next day, last chance, that girl • How many? • five fingers, three birds, many people

3. Demonstrative Adjectives • Remember the Demonstrative Pronouns? • this, that, these, and those • These words can be used as pronouns or adjectives. • When they take the place of nouns, they are pronouns. • When they modify nouns or pronouns, they are adjectives. • i.e. This is my book (pronoun). This book is the one I lost (adjective).

4. Noun or Adjective? • Just like demonstrative pronouns and adjectives, other words can be used as nouns or pronouns. • Examples: cheese, winter, steel, Picasso, American • Choose three of the above and write six sentences (two for each word – one using the word as a noun and one using the word as an adjective).

5. The Articles • The words “a,” “an,” and “the” are your articles. Can you distinguish which ones are definite and which are indefinite? • Articles are considered to be adjectives because they answer the question “Which one?”