English – Adjective Order and Position – BAC Literary Stream

English – Adjective Order and Position – BAC Literary Stream

In English, when we use more than one adjective before a noun, there is a specific order to follow. This is called the Royal Order of Adjectives. Understanding this order will help you write more naturally and correctly in the BAC exam.

The Royal Order of Adjectives:

When multiple adjectives modify the same noun, they follow this order:

1. Determiner: a, an, the, my, your, this, that, these, those, etc.
2. Opinion: beautiful, ugly, nice, horrible, lovely, amazing, terrible, etc.
3. Size: big, small, tall, short, large, tiny, huge, etc.
4. Age: old, young, new, ancient, modern, etc.
5. Shape: round, square, flat, circular, oval, triangular, etc.
6. Color: red, blue, green, black, white, dark, light, etc.
7. Origin: Algerian, French, Chinese, American, African, etc.
8. Material: wooden, plastic, metal, silk, cotton, leather, etc.
9. Purpose: sleeping (bag), cooking (pot), running (shoes), etc.

Examples:

• A beautiful big old round wooden table. (Opinion → Size → Age → Shape → Material)
• An amazing new French sports car. (Opinion → Age → Origin → Purpose)
• She wears a lovely small silver necklace. (Opinion → Size → Material)
• They live in a modern large white house. (Age → Size → Color)

Position of Adjectives:

Adjectives can be placed in two main positions:

• Attributive position: Before the noun. “She is a smart student.”
• Predicative position: After a linking verb (be, seem, look, feel, become, etc.). “The student is smart.”

Some adjectives can only be used in predicative position: afraid, alive, alone, asleep, awake, well, ill, etc. “The baby is asleep.” (NOT “the asleep baby”)

Commas with Adjectives:

• Use commas between coordinate adjectives (from the same category): “a kind, generous, loving person”
• Don’t use commas between cumulative adjectives (different categories): “a beautiful big red ball”

BAC Exercise:

Put the adjectives in the correct order:
1. a (wooden, old, beautiful) box → a ___________ box
2. a (Chinese, big, red) vase → a ___________ vase
3. a (new, leather, black) jacket → a ___________ jacket
4. a (young, intelligent, French) student → an ___________ student
5. a (round, small, silver) coin → a ___________ coin

Answers: 1. a beautiful old wooden box, 2. a big red Chinese vase, 3. a new black leather jacket, 4. an intelligent young French student, 5. a small round silver coin

Similar Lessons

• English – Comparative and Superlative Adjectives
• English – Intensifiers and Downtoners: Expressing Degree

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• English Grammar and Writing — Causative Verbs: Have, Get, Let, Make — BAC Practice Part 14 — 3rd Year Secondary — Literary Stream