Verbs express actions or states (run, think, be). Adjectives describe nouns (happy, tall, blue). Knowing how they work together helps you build accurate, natural sentences.
Linking Verbs + Adjectives
Linking verbs connect the subject to an adjective that describes it. Common linking verbs: be, seem, look, feel, sound, taste, smell, become, get, appear.
- The soup smells delicious. (not deliciously)
- You look tired.
- She became famous.
Adjective or Adverb?
Use an adjective after a linking verb. Use an adverb to describe an action verb.
- She is quick. (adjective) / She runs quickly. (adverb)
- I feel bad. (correct) / I feel badly. (incorrect in most contexts)
- He looked angry. (his appearance) / He looked angrily at me. (the way he looked)
-ed and -ing Adjectives
Many adjectives come from verbs. -ed describes how someone feels; -ing describes the thing that causes the feeling.
- I am bored. The film is boring.
- She was interested. The lesson was interesting.
Order of Adjectives
When you use several adjectives before a noun, they usually follow this order:
opinion → size → age → shape → colour → origin → material → purpose + noun
a lovely small old round red Italian wooden dining table (in practice, use no more than two or three).
Adjective + Preposition Combinations
| Combination | Example |
|---|---|
| good at | She is good at maths. |
| interested in | I’m interested in history. |
| afraid of | He’s afraid of dogs. |
| proud of | We are proud of you. |
| responsible for | Who is responsible for this? |
| similar to | This is similar to that. |
| keen on | They’re keen on football. |
Comparatives and Superlatives
- Short adjectives: tall → taller → the tallest
- Long adjectives: beautiful → more beautiful → the most beautiful
- Irregular: good → better → best; bad → worse → worst; far → further → furthest
Avoid double comparatives such as more better.
See also: basic English grammar rules.
