Order of Adjectives In English

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In this lesson,

You will learn the meaning of Order of Adjectives, how to identify its questions and the use of (ANOSASCOMP) to correctly answer questions on Order of Adjectives in English exam.

ALSO SEE: HOW TO ANSWER EMPHATIC STRESS IN ENGLISH

Take note.

Different exam questions for you to practice has been given at the end of this lesson.

Ensure to complete this lesson before the questions to improve your score in any English exam.

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What is Order of Adjectives?

Order of Adjectives refers to the arrangement of multiple adjectives in a sentence.

The correct order of adjectives is always required when more than one adjective is describing a particular noun in a sentence.

Example of question on Order of Adjectives

The tourist bought _______ pot.

• a brown small Nigerian earthen
• a small brown Nigerian earthen
• an earthen brown small Nigerian
• a Nigerian small brown earthen

Notice that each option has FOUR different adjectives all describing the noun “pot”.

How then do you arrange these adjectives in their correct order?

Simple formula: ANOSASCOMP.

Meaning of ANOSASCOMP in Order of Adjectives

Each letter in “ANOSASCOMP” represents a quality that adjectives describe.

They must always be arranged according to how the letters are listed, i.e. A before N before O before S before A before S, and so on.

But what does the letters mean?

1. ‘A’ for Article

Articles in English grammar are “a, an, the”.

When present, place them first.

• There is an article in our sample question, which is _____.

2. ‘N’ for Number

This can be plain numbers like “1, 2, 3, four, sixteen, five hundred, etc” or words describing quantity like “any, all, more, several, less, etc”.

When present , place them immediately after the article.

• There is NO adjective of number in our sample question.

3. ‘O’ for Opinion

These are those descriptions that vary with individual’s perspective.

For example.

A movie you thought was “interesting” may not be interesting to me or someone else.

Opinions can also be tagged as QUALITIES – – aspects of someone or something that may not always be visible but noticeable.

More examples: careful, ugly, fine, dull, beautiful, sharp, smart, sweet, exciting, etc.

When present, place them immediately after adjective of number.

• There is NO adjective of opinion in our sample question.

4. ‘S’ for Size

This adjectives describe either the horizontal size “long, lengthy, huge, big, narrow, wide, large, etc” or the vertical size “tall, short, long, full, empty, etc”.

When present, place them immediately after the adjective of opinion.

• There is an adjective of size in our sample question, which is _____.

5. ‘A’ for Age

These adjectives describe periods of time like “old (long time ago), recent (not long ago), young, modern, outdated, old-fashioned, current, latest, etc.

When present, place them immediately after the adjective of size.

• There is NO adjective of age in our sample question.

6. ‘S’ for Shape

These adjectives describe something or someone according to any of those shapes in Fine Arts or drawing.

• Rectangle = rectangular, etc.
• Sphere = spherical , etc.
• Round = roundish, round-shaped, etc.

Other include “flat, oval, square, cylindrical, triangular, boxed, circular, etc.

When present, place them immediately after adjective of age.

• There is NO adjective of shape in our sample question.

7. ‘C’ for Colour

This could be any of the primary, secondary or tertiary colours like “red, yellow, skyblue, etc” or expressions describing colour like “dark-complexion, light-skinned, etc”.

When present, place them immediately after adjective of shape.

• There is an adjective of colour in our sample question, which is _____.

8. ‘O’ for Origin

These adjectives tells you the country, state, region, province, tribe or ethnic group WHERE that person or thing originated from.

• Africa = African
• Britain = British
• Israel = Israeli

Other include “American, Chinese, Eastern, Asian, Northern, Ghanaian, Afghan, etc”.

When present, place them immediately after adjective of colour.

• There is an adjective of origin in our sample question, which is _____.

9. ‘M’ for Material

These adjectives tells you WHAT that noun is made of.

• Leather = leathery, etc.
• Metallic = metal, etc.
• Golden = gold, etc.

Other include “plastic, wooden, iron, rubber, sandy, muddy, airy, etc”.

When present, place them immediately after adjective of origin.

• There is an adjective of material in our sample question, which is _____.

10. ‘P’ for Purpose

These adjectives tells you what that noun represents or is made FOR.

They are usually verbs (ending with –ed, –ing, or –en) used as an adjective.

• want (verb) = wanted man.
• walk (verb) = walking stick.
• stole (verb) = stolen car.

When present, place them last (immediately before the noun).

• There is NO adjective of purpose in our sample question.

Conclusion

So the correct option: B

• The tourist bought “a small brown Nigerian earthen” pot.

Practice questions on Order of Adjectives in English

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Source: Cambridge.

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