Unit 65: POSITION OF ADJECTIVES
Most adjectives can go either in a noun phrase (Unit 45) or alone.
In a noun phrase
a The adjective goes before the noun or pronoun:
a difficult exam (NOT exam difficult)
an open window (NOT window open)
happy people
the red one
b If you want to write two or more adjectives together in a noun phrase, the usual order is:
[F]: FEELING [S]: SIZE [A]: AGE [C]: COLOUR [P]: PLACE [T]: TYPE [N]: NOUN
[F] nice [S] big [C] green [T] sports [N] car
[A] old [P] Toronto [N] houses
[S] large [C] black [T] cotton [N] shirt
[F] wonderful [A] new [P] Japanese [T] MP3 [N] player
NOTICE: If the noun is something, anyone or a similar word (Unit 51: NOTICE), the adjective goes after the noun:
I want something large. (NOT large something)
NOTICE: The adjectives afraid, alive, alone, asleep, awake, ill and well cannot go in a noun phrase.
Alone
There are two positions:a After the verbs be, become, feel, get, look, seem, smell, sound and taste. For example:
The house was red.
Everybody became happy.
It feels cold.
He seemed friendly.
(Friendly is an adjective, NOT an adverb.)
b After a noun phrase and the verbs call, find, get, hate, have, leave, like, make, paint and want. For example:
They painted the house red.
He pushed a window open.
It made them happy.
I found him friendly.
NOTICE: Adjectives from nouns, and a few other adjectives (for example, main, only) cannot go alone.
