dimshinyspottedmutedbeautifulprettyfair

smoothfuzzyslickspicyanxiousdemocraticboring

wrinkledcrackedhazysweetsadmeangood

moldysharpfrozensouruglynicebad

What do these words have in common?

dimshinyspottedmutedbeautifulprettyfair

smoothfuzzyslickspicyanxiousdemocraticboring

wrinkledcrackedhazysweetsadmeangood

moldysharpfrozensouruglynicebad

They're all ADJECTIVES!

Adjectives

What is an adjective?

Tell what you think an adjective is: ____________.

Adjectives

Adjectives are words that describe, or give more information about, nouns and pronouns.

Adjectives tell which: this frog, that giant, those dwarfs.

Adjectives tell what kind: the green frog, the lonely giant, the frozen lake.

Adjectives tell how many: many frogs, several giants, one lake.

Adjectives can also work together: this green frog, that lonely giant, those seven

dwarfs.

Adjectives

The blue adjectives at the beginning were concrete adjectives. They described using the five senses.

The green adjectives were abstract adjectives. They described feelings or ideas.

Adjectives Practice I

Rewrite the following sentences. Revise the adjective to make it more vivid. Underline the word you change.1. On winter afternoons, I sometimes walk home

after band practice rather than ride on a crowded bus.

2. I hardly even notice the heavy traffic that streams past me on the street.

3. The wet sidewalk glistens in the bright lights from the windows of stores.

Adjectives Practice IRewrite the following sentences. Revise the adjective to make it more vivid. Underline the word you change.4. The stoplights throw green, yellow, and red

splashes on the pavement.5. At last, I reach my peaceful home.6. I know they are glad to see me.7. The hikers went exploring in the dark forest.8. In the afternoon, the tired hikers pitched camp

in a clearing.9. On one occasion, they almost turned back.10. They kept going and were rewarded for their

great effort.

Too Many Adjectives!

Adjectives can help make writing clearer and more specific, but adjectives should be used sparingly. Too many adjectives will spoil the sentence.

Example:We went into the big, old, dark, cold, scary, empty, rotten house.

The adjectives in this sentence do not create a picture. They tell the reader what to think about the room, not what to see.

“Just Right” Adjectives!

Revision Example:We stepped into the house. We saw wrinkled wallpaper, shattered windows, and a gaping hole where the staircase used to be.”

The second sentence shows that the house was old and falling apart; it does not tell the reader what to think or how to feel.

Remember:As a general rule, use adjectives that show, not ones that tell.

Word Wall

Write down one of the following topics in your composition book:fairy-tale characterssummerwinterschoolbirthdaysholidaysanimalsgamesfriendsfamily

Word Wall

The category selected by the most students will be the topic of our word wall.

Take two minutes. Brainstorm as many vivid adjectives you can think of to describe our topic.

Writing Activity I

Replace the weak adjectives in the following sentences with stronger, more vivid ones.

Example:WeakWe saw the pretty lake.

StrongWe saw the shimmering lake.

Writing Activity I

Replace the weak adjectives in the following sentences with stronger, more vivid ones.

1. Snow White bit the bad apple.2. Jack hacked down the ugly beanstalk.3. The goat sniffed the uneatable grass.4. The princess gazed at the beautiful sunset.

Writing Activity II

Some writers use adjectives in a special way. They put two or three of them together, and these adjectives all begin with the same sound. These are called alliterative adjectives.

Here's and example from Edgar Allan Poe: “During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day . . .”

Notice all of the D sounds.

Writing Activity II

ExamplesThe curious, curved caterpillar crept across the cracked branch.

The determined, dotted Dalmatian dragged the dizzy fireman to safety.

The groaning, grumpy giant grabbed the sack of golden eggs.

The tired, toothless troll tugged at the ropes of his tattered tent.

Writing Activity II

In your composition book, compose two sentences that contain alliterative adjectives. Each sentence must contain at least three adjectives.

If you have trouble beginning, select on of the topics below:Snow WhiteApplesTwilightJustin BieberJack (Jack and the Beanstalk)PrincessDragonMonkey

Writing Activity IIIAdjectives cannot act alone. They have to work with other words, especially with nouns and verbs, like a team.

Here's an example where these parts of speech do not work together:

My room is a real mess. There's stuff everywhere. Things are all over the place. It doesn't even look like my room.

This description is too general; it does not paint a picture with words.

Writing Activity IIIHere's what happens when general adjectives, nouns, and verbs are replaced with more concrete and specific ones:

My room looks like a tornado hit it. Strewn on the floor are heaps and bundles of clothes. Crumpled and crinkled papers and torn and tattered candy wrappers litter the desk. Faded, dingy curtains hang like flags at half-mast; behind them a mud-splattered window filters the sun in blotches. The doors of the closet hang a deranged angles; inside, shoes and sweaters lay in piles beneath bent and twisted hangers.

Writing Activity IIIThe previous description was better because it lets the reader see that the room is a “mess,” but it doesn't tell the reader directly.

Writing Activity IIIStep 1: Select one of the following topics:a peta rooma favorite placean animala character from a story

Writing Activity IIIStep 2: Brainstorm a list of at least five details about your topic.

Example:Dragonsweltering breathwings larger than tanksteeth as sharp as swordscrimson, blood-colored eyescavernous nostrils

Writing Activity IIIStep 3: Compose a topic sentence for your paragraph.

Example:The dragon was a frightening beast.

Your example:The __________ was __________.

Writing Activity IIIStep 4: Compose the rest of the paragraph. Include the details you brainstormed. Make your adjectives as vivid as possible!

Example: The dragon was a dreadful beast. With sweltering breath that left human skin cracked and flaking, the dragon snarled viciously. Inside the scaly creatures mouth lay a torrent of jagged teeth, honed for ripping through armor. Cavernous nostrils exhaled sauna-like air, and the beast's beady, crimson eyes glared. Suddenly, with a quick flap of wings the size of tanks, the dragon exploded into the air.

Writing Activity IVTowards the end of his poem, “Pied Beauty,” Gerard Manley Hopkins puts together a string of adjectives in pairs of opposites: “swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim . . .”

Your job: Create a poem that describes something using pairs of opposite adjectives.

Writing Activity IVStep 1: Select one of the following topics. Write this in your composition book:Christmassummerwinterbirthdayfoodfriendship

Writing Activity IVStep 2: List opposite adjectives that could describe your topic.

Example: SummerSummer is hot and cool, dazzling and dim, lazy and lively.

Writing Activity IVStep 3: Give examples of each adjective you expressed.

Example:Summer is hot days and cool nights, dazzling sun and dim moon, lazy afternoons and lively evenings.