In academic writing, the writers frequently need to express states, attributes of entities and actions. For the successful description of these expressions, they require adjectives which sometimes do not exist in the category of basic adjectives. Therefore, they formulate new adjectives by adding affixes to nouns or verbs. When an adjective is formed from a noun or verb, it stays clearly linked to the source word in terms of its letters and meaning. This post deals with the adjectives formation in detail whether they are formed from nouns or verbs.
In new words formation from the existing ones, mostly adjectives emerge from nouns and verbs; and nouns from adjectives. For example, adjective terrific emerges from the verb terrify and noun consistence from adjective consistent. Thus, for the purpose of forming new words, some letters are added either at the start or end of the source word. If learners keep this sort of formation of words in mind, they can learn a large number of new words swiftly. They can also manage the new words in their reading and writing (Guinlist).
1. Word Classes that have Lexical and Semantic Relations
Three word-classes, i.e., nouns, verbs and adjectives are closely related in terms of lexis and semantics. They are lexically and semantically similar because they are drawn from each other. Further, they keep their lexical and semantic characteristics intact during this transformation. Adjectives can be formed from nouns and also from verbs. For example, the noun silk can be turned into adjective silky as in silky dress. Similarly, the verb open can stay as an adjective in the phrase ‘an open door’.
Semantic relationship between an adjective and a noun comes into being on the basis of a nominal theme that exists between them. In other words, this nominal theme is shared by both of them. Such relations that emerge between previously lexical and grammatical items give birth to new units and thus enrich language continually. Further, they bring economy to the language constructions (Beqiraj, 2013).
2. Adjectives Formed by Adjectivization
From the perspective of semantics, adjectives can be drawn from two sources. First, they are formed by adjectivization of prepositional phrases (e.g. the road by the river, the man with the black dress, etc.). Second, they are derived from verbs, nouns and other adjectives through the addition of prefixes (e.g., inactive, unforgiving, etc) or suffixes (e.g., understandable, useable, etc.). However, adjectives formed through adjectivisation of prepositional phrase are articulated adjectives.
2.1 Adjectivization of Prepositional Phrases
When a prepositional phrase is adjectivized, it stays after a noun as an adjective. Further, its preposition plays the role of a linking word between its preceding noun and its following noun, i.e., the object of preposition. The preposition in this position can describe its preceding noun by answering a number of questions such as how much, what kind, or which one? For example:
a. A glass of water … (how much?)
b. The man with long neck … (what kind?)
c. The tree in the backyard… (which one?)
3. Forming Adjectives from Nouns
Similarly, adjectives can be made from nouns, e.g., restful, lethargic, edgy, etc. However, in the formation of these adjectives, some letters are added to the base form of the source nouns.
3.1 Adjectivization of nouns with the addition of suffixes
Many nouns can be turned into adjectives with the addition of suffixes. These suffixes either bring negative or positive meanings to the adjectives that are thus produced. The table 1 demonstrates the adjectives derived from noun with the addition of suffixes.
Table 1: Nouns adjectivized with addition of suffixes
| Source Word | Suffix | Meanings | Derived Adjective |
| resource (noun) | less | without | resourceless |
| insight (noun) | full | full of | insightful |
| smell (noun) | y | full of | smelly |
| artifice (noun) | al | like | artificial |
| syntax (noun) | ic | having characteristic of something like | syntactic |
| earth (noun) | en | made of something like | earthen |
| pink (adj/noun) | ish | like | pinkish |
Adapted from Al-Nuaimi and Izreji (2022)
Table 2: List of Important Prefixes and Suffixes
| Prefixes | Suffixes (From nouns and verbs) | ||
| ab-, dis-, ant-, im-, in-, ir-, mal-, over-, | -able, -al, -ant, –ar, -ary, -ate, -ial, -ent, | -ist, -ive, -less, -like, -ly, -ory, -ious, -ish, | -ous, -some, -y. |
3.2. Formation of Adjectives with the Addition of Prefixes
A number of adjectives are formed by putting affixes before nouns, verbs, or other adjectives. These affixes add meaning (like lacking, extreme) to nouns, verbs, or adjectives, etc.
Table 3: Adjectives re-adjectivized by adding prefixes
| Source Word | Prefix | Meaning | Example |
| moral (adjective) | a- | not or without | amoral |
| colorize (verb) | de- | removal | decolorized |
| active (adjective) | hyper- | extreme | hyperactive |
| violet (adjective) | ultra- | beyond | ultraviolet |
| Atlantic (Noun) | trance | beyond | transatlantic |
4. Forming Adjectives from Verbs
There is another category of adjectives that are related to a verb or a noun. However, the source verb or noun and adjectives have their own spelling, e.g., restrictive (adjective), restrict (verb), and restriction (noun).
4.1 Verbs Adjectivized by Adding ‘-ive’ Suffix
The verbs such as conduct, act, assert, connect, create, destruct, indicate, predict, reflect, suggest, etc. can be turned into adjectives with the addition of ‘-ive’ suffix. The adjectives that emerge from these verbs are conductive/conducive, active, assertive, connective, creative, destructive, indicative, predictive, reflective, suggestive. The adjectives achieved by adding ‘-ive’ suffix to verb words play the role of indicating tendency to do something.
4. 2 Verbs Adjectivized by Adding Suffixes “-ing” and “-ed”
The verb words with the “-ing” and “-ed” suffixes can serve as adjectives productively. The adjectives that emerge in the result of these additions are such as working paper, caring mother, astonished viewers, lost toys, surprised audience, etc. These endings also stay with verbs and make present and past participles. However, the role of present and past participles is different from that of adjectives.
Frequently, present participles (-ing form of verb) and past participles (-ed form of verb) are used as adjectives. It means the source of these adjectives are verbs. Corresponding to their source verbs, present participle adjectives semantically indicate that their head nouns are in active role e.g., running business, smiling face, etc. On the other hand, the past participle adjectives indicate that their head nouns are in passive role, e.g., suppressed people, sold goods, etc. (Al-Nuaimi and Izreji, 2022).
4. 3 Verbs Adjectivized by Adding Suffixes “-ible” and “-able”
Certain verb words can be turned into adjectives with the addition of suffixes “-ible” and “able”. The examples of verbs that take suffix “-able” for becoming adjectives are debateable, notable, readable, (im)movable,(un)suitable, (in)dispensable, (ir)replaceable, etc. On the other hand, the examples of the verbs that take “-ible” suffixes are negligible, suggestible, (ir)resistible, (in)divisible, (un)intelligible, (im)possible, etc. The adjectives thus formed indicate the ability or inability of their head noun to do something. Further, the meaning given by these adjectives are equal to passive meaning of the verb. On account of this quality, these derived adjectives can help writers avoid undesirable uses of passive verbs. For example:
a. The doctor can be accessed today.
b. The doctor is accessible today.
4. 4 Verbs Adjectivized by Adding Suffixes “-ant” and “-ent”
The suffixes “-ant” and “-ent” can help derive adjectives from verb words. The adjectives derived with the help of the suffix “-ant” are significant, stagnant, dominant, abundant, resistant, etc. Similarly, the adjectives derived from verb words with the addition of the suffix “-ent” are consistent, competent, dependent, resident, emergent, etc. Some of these adjectives an active equivalent of a passive -able/-ible adjective. It is important to keep in mind that many adjectives with endings “-ant” and ‘-ent’ are not verb-derived adjectives, e.g., recent, brilliant, …. etc.
4. 5 Verbs Adjectivized by Adding Suffixes “-tory”
Adjectives can be derived from certain verbs by adding suffix “-tory”. Usually thus made adjectives are introductory, expository, exploratory, confirmatory, regulatory, etc.
4. 6 Verbs Adjectivized by Adding Suffixes “- ic”
A number of verbs can be adjectivized by the addition of suffix “-ic”, e.g. energetic, synthetic, specific, etc.
5. Verb Words Used as Adjectives
When a writer needs to form an adjective from some verb, s(he) should first note the base form of the verb concerned. In some cases, adjectives in terms of their spelling are similar to their source verbs, e.g., perfect, empty, double, etc. Many verb words can also be used as adjectives, e.g., complete, open, perfect, direct, clear, clean, etc. It means no additional ending is added to them when they are used as adjectives. However, in case of some verbs used as adjectives pronunciation remains same and in others pronunciation goes different. When the word perfect is used as a verb, its pronunciation is perFECT, i.e., the second syllable is stressed. In case it is used as an adjective, its first syllable is stressed, i.e., PERfect. On the other hand, the verb words such as clear and clean when used as adjectives, their pronunciation stays same.
Note: Some verbs (e.g., deny, endanger, begin, concern, reach, etc.) cannot be adjectivized by the addition of some suffix. These verbs can stay in preposition phrase which play the role of adjectives (e.g. in denial, in danger, at the beginning, of concern, within reach, etc.)
In sum, adjectives are formed in different ways. First, prepositional phrases are adjectivized or given the role of adjectives. Second, adjectives are formed by adding prefixes or suffixes to nouns. Third, adjectives are formed by adding suffixes to verbs. In case of verbs, there is a good number of suffixes that help turn verbs into adjectives. An important point to keep in mind is that when adjectives are formed from nouns, or verbs, semantically these adjectives stay closely linked to their source nouns and verbs.
Sources Cited:
- Beqiraj, X. (2013).Adjectives as a Word Class with Nominal and Verbal Features. The 1st International Conference on Research and Education – Challenges Toward the Future (ICRAE2013)
2. https://guinlist.wordpress.com/
3. Al-Nuaimi, H. S. S. and Izreji, A.S. (2022). On English Order of Adjectives. Journal of Language Studies.Vol.5, No. 4, Pages (78-88)
