Practice
Adjectives exercise 1: describe people and things accurately
A small blue bag, not a blue small bag. English speakers usually place adjectives in a familiar order before the noun.
Choose common adjectives and put them in a natural order before a noun.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
a small blue bag /ə smɔːl bluː bæɡ/
The short answer
Put an adjective before the noun it describes. When several adjectives come before a noun, use a common order such as opinion, size, age, color, material, then noun.
She bought a beautiful old red bicycle.
Why it works: Beautiful gives an opinion, old gives age, and red gives color before the noun bicycle.
5 more examples
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We sat at a small round table near the window.
Size usually comes before shape.
Not this:We sat at a
round small tablenear the window. What changes: The meaning is understandable, but this order sounds less natural in ordinary English. -
He wore a clean white shirt for the interview.
An opinion or general quality can come before color.
Not this:He wore a
white clean shirtfor the interview. What changes: The sentence is possible in a special contrast, but clean white shirt is the usual neutral order. -
My aunt keeps her keys in a black leather bag.
Color normally comes before material.
Not this:My aunt keeps her keys in a
leather black bag. What changes: This order is harder to process because material usually follows color. -
They rented a comfortable modern apartment downtown.
A general opinion can come before age or style.
Not this:They rented a
modern comfortable apartmentdowntown. What changes: The meaning is clear, but comfortable modern apartment is the more expected order. -
The museum displayed three ancient gold coins.
A number comes before age, and material comes close to the noun.
Not this:The museum displayed
ancient three gold coins. What changes: Put a number before descriptive adjectives in this kind of noun phrase.
Read the full guide
First, find the noun. Then ask what information you want to add: size, color, feeling, age, or material. If you use more than one adjective, put each one in a natural sequence before the noun.
Find the word that the adjective describes
An adjective adds information about a noun. Start by finding the thing, person, or place named by the noun. Then check which word tells you more about it.
The noisy bus stopped outside the station.
Noisy describes the noun bus. It tells you what kind of bus it is.
We found a quiet café after work.
Quiet describes café. It comes before the noun in this phrase.
Which word is the adjective in a green umbrella?
Green. It gives the color of the umbrella.
Keep ordinary adjectives the same with plural nouns
A noun can change from singular to plural, but a normal adjective does not take a plural ending. Say a tall building and tall buildings.
The new employees started work on Monday.
New describes employees. Do not write news employees when you mean recently hired employees.
She has two friendly neighbors.
Friendly stays the same even though neighbors is plural.
Choose the natural phrase: three red cars or three reds cars.
Use three red cars. Red does not need an s before a plural noun.
Start with the meaning you need
Choose an adjective that gives useful information. A color can identify an object, while an opinion can tell a listener how you feel about it. The noun still carries the main meaning.
Could you pass me the blue folder?
Blue helps the listener choose the correct folder.
It was a difficult question.
Difficult gives an opinion about the question.
Avoid adding several adjectives when one clear detail is enough. In a real conversation, the best adjective is the one that helps the other person understand.
Put size before shape and color
When you use more than one adjective, size usually comes before shape and color. This is a common pattern in everyday noun phrases.
We need a large square box for the posters.
Large gives size and square gives shape, so large comes first.
I saw a tiny yellow bird in the garden.
Tiny gives size and yellow gives color, so tiny comes first.
Choose the usual order: a brown small suitcase or a small brown suitcase?
Use a small brown suitcase. Size normally comes before color.
Put age and color before material
Age words such as new, old, and ancient usually come before color. Material words such as wooden, plastic, and metal usually stay close to the noun.
We repaired an old wooden chair.
Old gives age, and wooden gives material. The material is next to chair.
She chose a new green notebook.
New gives age and green gives color, so new comes first.
Which phrase sounds natural: a silver new watch or a new silver watch?
Use a new silver watch. Age normally comes before material or color details.
Use a short order to check your answer
For this exercise, remember a short route: opinion, size, age, color, material, noun. You can add shape when you need it after size. Read the whole noun phrase aloud. If the order sounds heavy, use fewer adjectives or rewrite the sentence.
They bought a lovely small old house.
Lovely is an opinion, small gives size, and old gives age before house.
He packed a useful black plastic case.
Useful gives opinion, black gives color, and plastic gives material next to case.
Put these words in order before coat: wool, warm, gray.
Use a warm gray wool coat. Opinion or general quality comes before color, and material comes closest to the noun.
Before you go
Remember this
Find the noun, then place a descriptive adjective before it. Keep adjectives unchanged with plural nouns. For several adjectives, start with opinion or general quality, then move toward details such as size, age, color, and material before the noun.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Adjectives exercise 1: describe people and things accurately"
What is an adjective in English?
An adjective describes a noun or gives more information about it. In a small round table, small tells you the size of the table and round tells you its shape.
We sat at a small round table near the window.
Do adjectives change with plural nouns?
Usually, no. Use the same adjective before a singular or plural noun: a quiet room and quiet rooms. Do not add s to ordinary adjectives such as red, friendly, or old.
We sat at a round small table near the window.
What is the usual order of adjectives before a noun?
A useful basic order is opinion, size, age, color, material, then noun. For example, black leather bag puts color before material, and the material stays close to the noun.
He wore a clean white shirt for the interview.
Does size come before color in English adjective order?
Yes, in a neutral noun phrase size usually comes before color. Say a small brown suitcase, as in the exercise, rather than a brown small suitcase.
He wore a white clean shirt for the interview.
Can I use many adjectives before one noun?
You can, but most everyday noun phrases need only one or two. The phrase a comfortable modern apartment is clear because each adjective adds a useful detail. Remove details that do not help the listener identify the noun.
My aunt keeps her keys in a black leather bag.