Adjectives - Shortcut Rules - Part 1

Friends, in our English Grammar Shortcut rules series today we shall discuss the Rules of Adjectives. Before going into details lets start with the basic definition of Adjectives followed by some examples.

Basic Definition of Adjective : Simply we can say that Adjectives are describing words. Adjectives are words that describe or modify nouns.

Examples :

• Sizes : big, small, large, thin, thick
• Shapes : triangular, round, square, circular
• Colors : black, blue, white, green, red
• Personality : happy, sad, angry, depressed
• Time : Yearly , monthly, annually
• Ages : new, young, old, brand-new, second-hand
• Sounds : Loud, noisy, quiet, silent
• Tastes : juicy, sweet
• Qualities : good, bad, mediocre

now lets have a look at the Rules on Adjectives :

Shortcut Rule 1 : In a comparision, the conjunction 'than' should be followed by 'any other' If a person / thing is compared with any other person / thing among some / many.

• Mumbai is greater than any city in India. ☓
• Mumbai is greater than any other city in India.  ✔

Shortcut Rule 2 : In comparisons, the monosyllable words like "hot / easy / tall / small" should not be used with more / most.

• This question is more easier than that. ✔
• This question is easier than that. ✔

• He is more taller than Kumar. ☓
• He is taller than Kumar. ✔

 Shortcut Rule 3 :

• Elder / Eldest should be used with the members of the same family.
• Older/ Oldest these comparative adjective denote the age of person / thing.

 Ex :

• He is elder to me. (He and me belong to one family).
• Ronald Reagan was the oldest person elected to the Presidency in US history (Not specifying a family)

• This is the eldest tree in the garden ☓
• This is the oldest tree in the garden. ✔

Shortcut Rule 4 : While comparing the objects, we should see that a noun is compared with another but not with some other word.

• The population of Hyderabad is greater than Nagpur ☓
• The population of Hyderabad is greater than that of Nagpur (OR) ✔
• The population of Hyderabad is greater than the population of Nagpur. ✔

• The climate of Ooty is better than Chennai. ☓
• The climate of Ooty is better than that of Chennai. ✔

Read more Shortcut Rules of Adjectives from Here >>