Unit 1.2

Attributive and Predicative Adjectives

Adjectives - 2 minutes

Introduction

Adjectives are determiners that can be placed in two different positions within a sentence to modify or describe a person or a thing.

They can be attributive or predicative, depending on their position.

Form

We use adjectives in two positions to modify or describe a person or a thing:

Attributive adjectives come before the noun;
Predicative adjectives come after the verb.

NOTE: In Literary language it’s possible to find adjectives after nouns.

Example

Attributive adjectives

I saw a black cat on my name day.
I watched a sad movie the day before yesterday.
I bought a large suitcase for my trip.

Predicative adjectives

The cat I saw on my nameday was black.
This movie I watched the day before yesterday was sad.
The suitcase I bought for my trip is large.

Use

We use some adjectives in attributive position and other adjectives in predicative position, to modify or describe a person or a thing.

Summary

Adjectives are determiners used to describe or modify a person or a thing, and depending on their position in a sentence.

They can be attributive or predicative:

In the attributive position: when the adjective is followed by a noun.
In the predicative position: when the adjective is placed after a verb.

For example:
— “A blue umbrella” = The adjective blue is placed before the noun umbrella, therefore this is an attributive adjective.
— “The umbrella is blue.” = The adjective blue is placed after the noun umbrella and after the linking verb to be, therefore this is a predicative adjective.

Let’s revise this content within the {Form} section. Take a look at the {Example} section that shows its use within a context.

Exercise

License