ARTICLES

252.We have three adjectives which are used so commonly that we have put them in a class by themselves. These three little words area,anandthe, and we call them articles. The wordarticleliterally means a little joint or limb, and these three little words are so closely connected with the nouns with which they are used that they seem to be a part or joint or limb of the noun itself, and so we have called them articles.

Aandanare called theindefinitearticles because they point out an object in a very indefinite manner.Theis called thedefinitearticle for it points out in a more definite way.

We useabefore words beginning with a consonant sound, asa man,a tree,a book; and we useanbefore words beginning with a vowel sound, asan apple,an editor,an orange,an heir. Inheirthehis silent,and we sayanbecause the word begins with a vowel sound.Ais used before words beginning withubecause longuis equivalent in sound to a consonant, for the blending of the sounds of which longuis composed produces the initial sound ofy, which is a consonant sound. For example, we say,a university,a useful work, etc., and notan university. Before words beginning with shortu, usean, as,an upstart, etc.

In deciding whether to useaoran, watch the initialsoundof the word, not the initialletter. If it is a vowel sound usean, if a consonant sound, usea.

Underscore the correct article in the following sentences:

253.When a singular noun is modified by several adjectives, only one of the articlesanoramust be used if the noun denotes butoneobject; but if the noun denotes more than one object the article must be repeated before each noun. For example, I say,A red, white and blue flag. You know I mean but one flag, containing the three colors, red, white and blue. But if I say,A red, a white and a blue flag, you know I mean three flags, one red, one white, and one blue.

Note the use of the article in the following sentences:

The first sentences in each of the above series refers to only one object. The second sentences all refer to two objects.

254.There are some rules concerning the articlethethat it is well to know because we do not always say what we wish to say, if we do not observe these rules or customs of speech. For example, I say,The editor andpublisherof this book is unknown. I have used the articlethebut once, and I mean that the editor and publisher is one person. But I may say,The editor and the publisher of this book are well known.In this sentence I have used the articlethetwice,theeditor andthepublisher, and I mean that the editor and the publisher are two different persons.

So when two or more nouns following each other denote the same person or thing, the article is not repeated, but when the nouns denote different persons or things, the article must be repeated before each noun. Be sure to use the proper form of the verb.

Note the following sentences and underscore the proper verb to complete the meaning:

Sometimes we have two things so closely associated in use that they may be considered as forming a single idea, so that we may use the article before the first one only. For example:

255.You remember we found in the study of pronouns that we have interrogative pronouns which we use in asking questions when we do not know the name of the object concerning which we are asking. We also have adjectives which we use in asking questions when we do not know the number or quality of the object concerning which we are asking. For example:

Whichandwhatare the interrogative adjectives in these sentences.

Interrogative adjectives are adjectives used in asking questions.

256.We have one more class of adjectives called indefinites.

An indefinite adjective is one that does not denote any particular person or thing.

All such adjectives aseach,every,either,neither,some,any,many,much,few,all,both,no,none,severalandcertainare indefinite adjectives. We use them when we are not speaking of any particular person or thing, but are speaking in a broad, general sense and in an indefinite manner.

257.The interrogative adjectives are sometimes used in this indefinite way. They are sometimes used to modify nouns when a direct question is not asked, and they are then used, not as interrogative adjectives, but as indefinite adjectives. For example:

In these sentenceswhichandwhatare not used to ask questions, but are used to describe an unknown object.

All the words in italics are adjectives. Decide to which class each adjective belongs.

Note in this exercise the compound words used as adjectives, as:earth-born,self-made,new-lit,blood-rusted. Look up the meaning of these adjectives and see if you can use other adjectives in their places and keep the same meaning. Note the use offellest.

Slavery,the earth-bornCyclops,fellestofthe giantbrood,Sons ofbrutishForce and Darkness, who have drenchedtheearth with blood,Famishedin hisself-madedesert,blindedby ourpurerday,Gropes in yetunblastedregions for hismiserableprey;—Shall we guide hisgoryfingers where ourhelplesschildren play?They have rights who dare maintain them; we are traitors to our sires,Smotheringin theirholyashes Freedom'snew-litaltar-fires;Shall we make their creed our jailer? Shall we, in our haste to slay,From the tombs ofthe oldprophets stealthe funerallamps awayTo light upthemartyr-fagots roundtheprophets of to-day?Newoccasions teachnewduties; Time makesancientgood,uncouth;They must upward still, and onward, who would keepabreastof Truth;Lo, before us gleam her camp-fires! We ourselves must Pilgrims be,Launch our Mayflower, and steer boldly throughthe desperate wintersea,Nor attempttheFuture's portal withthePast'sblood-rustedkey.—Lowell.

Slavery,the earth-bornCyclops,fellestofthe giantbrood,

Sons ofbrutishForce and Darkness, who have drenchedtheearth with blood,

Famishedin hisself-madedesert,blindedby ourpurerday,

Gropes in yetunblastedregions for hismiserableprey;—

Shall we guide hisgoryfingers where ourhelplesschildren play?

They have rights who dare maintain them; we are traitors to our sires,

Smotheringin theirholyashes Freedom'snew-litaltar-fires;

Shall we make their creed our jailer? Shall we, in our haste to slay,

From the tombs ofthe oldprophets stealthe funerallamps away

To light upthemartyr-fagots roundtheprophets of to-day?

Newoccasions teachnewduties; Time makesancientgood,uncouth;They must upward still, and onward, who would keepabreastof Truth;Lo, before us gleam her camp-fires! We ourselves must Pilgrims be,Launch our Mayflower, and steer boldly throughthe desperate wintersea,Nor attempttheFuture's portal withthePast'sblood-rustedkey.

Newoccasions teachnewduties; Time makesancientgood,uncouth;

They must upward still, and onward, who would keepabreastof Truth;

Lo, before us gleam her camp-fires! We ourselves must Pilgrims be,

Launch our Mayflower, and steer boldly throughthe desperate wintersea,

Nor attempttheFuture's portal withthePast'sblood-rustedkey.

The following is from Oscar Wilde's story ofThe Young King. Oscar Wilde was a master of English, and if you have the opportunity, read all of this beautiful story and watch his use of adjectives. Mark the adjectives in this excerpt and use them in sentences of your own.

And as the young King slept he dreamed a dream, and this was his dream. He thought that he was standing in a long, low attic, amidst the whirr and clatter of many looms. The meager daylight peered in through the grated windows and showed him the gaunt figures of the weavers, bending over their cases. Pale, sickly-looking children were crouched on the huge crossbeams. As the shuttles dashed through the warp they lifted up the heavy battens, and when the shuttles stopped they let the battens fall and pressed the threads together. Their faces were pinched with famine, and their thin hands shook and trembled. Some haggard women were seated at a table, sewing. A horrible odor filled the place. The air was foul and heavy, and the walls dripped and streamed with damp.The young King went over to one of the weavers and stood by him and watched him.And the weaver looked at him angrily and said, "Why art thou watching me? Art thou a spy set on us by our master?""Who is thy master?" asked the young King."Our master!" cried the weaver, bitterly. "He is a man like myself. Indeed, there is but this difference between us—that he wears fine clothes while I go in rags, and that while I am weak from hunger he suffers not a little from overfeeding.""The land is free," said the young King, "and thou art no man's slave.""In war," answered the weaver, "the strong make slaves of the weak, and in peace the rich make slaves of the poor. We must work to live, and they give us such mean wages that we die. We toil for them all day long, and they heap up gold in their coffers, and our children fade away before their time, and the faces of those we love become hard and evil. We tread out the grapes, another drinks the wine. We sow the corn, and our own board is empty. We have chains, though no eye beholds them; and are slaves, though men call us free.""Is it so with all?" he asked."It is so with all," answered the weaver, "with the young as well as with the old, with the women as well as with the men, with the little children as well as with those who are stricken in years. The merchants grind us down, and we must needs do their bidding. The priest rides by and tells his beads, and no man has care of us. Through our sunless lanes creeps Poverty with her hungry eyes, and Sin with his sodden face follows close behind her. Misery wakes us in the morning, and Shame sits with us at night. But what are these things to thee? Thou art not one of us. Thy face is too happy." And he turned away scowling, and threw the shuttle across the loom, and the young King saw that it was threaded with a thread of gold.And a great terror seized upon him, and he said to the weaver, "What robe is this that thou art weaving?""It is the robe for the coronation of the young King," he answered; "What is that to thee?"And the young King gave a loud cry and woke and lo! he was in his own chamber, and through the window he saw the great honey-colored moon hanging in the dusky air.

The young King went over to one of the weavers and stood by him and watched him.

And the weaver looked at him angrily and said, "Why art thou watching me? Art thou a spy set on us by our master?"

"Who is thy master?" asked the young King.

"Our master!" cried the weaver, bitterly. "He is a man like myself. Indeed, there is but this difference between us—that he wears fine clothes while I go in rags, and that while I am weak from hunger he suffers not a little from overfeeding."

"The land is free," said the young King, "and thou art no man's slave."

"In war," answered the weaver, "the strong make slaves of the weak, and in peace the rich make slaves of the poor. We must work to live, and they give us such mean wages that we die. We toil for them all day long, and they heap up gold in their coffers, and our children fade away before their time, and the faces of those we love become hard and evil. We tread out the grapes, another drinks the wine. We sow the corn, and our own board is empty. We have chains, though no eye beholds them; and are slaves, though men call us free."

"Is it so with all?" he asked.

"It is so with all," answered the weaver, "with the young as well as with the old, with the women as well as with the men, with the little children as well as with those who are stricken in years. The merchants grind us down, and we must needs do their bidding. The priest rides by and tells his beads, and no man has care of us. Through our sunless lanes creeps Poverty with her hungry eyes, and Sin with his sodden face follows close behind her. Misery wakes us in the morning, and Shame sits with us at night. But what are these things to thee? Thou art not one of us. Thy face is too happy." And he turned away scowling, and threw the shuttle across the loom, and the young King saw that it was threaded with a thread of gold.

And a great terror seized upon him, and he said to the weaver, "What robe is this that thou art weaving?"

"It is the robe for the coronation of the young King," he answered; "What is that to thee?"

And the young King gave a loud cry and woke and lo! he was in his own chamber, and through the window he saw the great honey-colored moon hanging in the dusky air.

You remember in the formation of plurals, we learned that words ending inychangeytoiwhenesis added; as,lady, ladies;baby, babies;dry, dries, etc.

There are several rules concerning words ending iny, knowledge of which will aid us greatly in spelling.

1.Words ending iniechange theietoybeforeingto prevent a confusing number of vowels.For example,die, dying;lie, lying;tie, tying.

2.Words of more than one syllable ending inypreceded by a consonant, changeyintoibefore all suffixes except those beginning withi. For example:

This exception is made for suffixes beginning withi, the most common of which ising, to avoid having a confusing number ofi's.

3.Most words ending inypreceded by a vowel retain theybefore a suffix.For example:

The following words are exception to this rule:

Make as many words as you can out of the words given in this week's spelling lesson by adding one or more of the following suffixes:er,est,ed,es,ing,ly,ness,ful,ment,al.

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

Dear Comrade:

In this week's lesson we are finishing the study of adjectives, which adds another part of speech to those which we have studied. We can see in the study of each additional part of speech how each part has its place in the expression of our ideas. We could not express ourselves fully if we lacked any of these parts of speech. Each one is not an arbitrary addition to our language but has come to us out of the need for it. We see that there are no arbitrary rules but in language, as in all things else, growing needs have developed more efficient tools. With these have grown up certain rules of action so we can have a common usage and system in our use of these tools. It has taken years of effort to accomplish this. The changes have been slow and gradual, and this language which we are studying is the finished product.

This slow development in the use of language, even in our own lives, makes us realize how many thousands of years it must have taken our primitive ancestors to reach a point where they could use the phonetic alphabet. We have found that at first they used simple aids to memory, as knotted strings and tally sticks. Then they began to draw pictures of things about them and so were able to communicate with one another by means of these pictures. When a man was going away from his cave and wanted to leave word for those who might come, telling them where he had gone and how soon he would return, he drew a picture of a man over the entrance with the arm extended in the direction in which he had gone. Then he drew another picture of a man in a sleeping position and also one of a man with both hands extended in the gesture which indicated many. These two pictures showed that he would be away over many nights. In some such rude manner as this, they were able to communicate with one another.

But man soon began tothink, and he needed to express ideas concerning things of which he could not draw pictures. He could draw a picture of the sun, but how could he indicate light? How could he indicate the different professions in which men engaged, such as the farmer and priest, etc.?

He was forced to invent symbols or signs to express these ideas, so his writing was no longer a picture of some object, but he added to it symbols of abstract ideas. A circle which stood for the sun written with the crescent which stood for the moon, indicated light. The bee became a symbol of industry. An ostrich feather was a symbol of justice, because these feathers were supposed to be of equal length. A picture of a woman stood simply for a woman, but a picture of two women stood for strife, and three women stood for intrigue. These old ancestors of ours became wise quite early concerning some things. The symbol for a priest in the early Egyptian picture writing was a jackal. Perhaps not because he "devoured widows' houses," but becausethe jackal was a very watchful animal. The symbol for mother was a vulture because that bird was believed to nourish its young with its own blood.

It naturally required a good memory and a clear grasp of association to be able to read this sort of writing. It required many centuries for this slow development of written speech.

The development of language has been a marvelous growth and a wonderful heritage has come to us. Let us never be satisfied until we have a mastery of our language and find a way to express the ideas that surge within us. A mastery of these lessons will help us.

Yours for Education,

THE PEOPLE'S COLLEGE.

258.From our study of the adjective, we know that it is a word used with a noun to qualify or limit its meaning. But a great many times we find these adjectives used without the noun which they modify. As, for example, I may say,This is mine, and the adjectivethisis used alone without the noun which it modifies, and you are able to tell only by what I have been saying or by some action of mine to what I am referring when I saythis.

When adjectives are used in this manner, they are used like pronouns—in place of a noun. So sometimes we find an adjective used with a noun, and sometimes used as a pronoun, in place of a noun; and since we name our parts of speech by the work which they do in the sentence, an adjective used in this way is not an adjective, but a pronoun or word used in place of a noun.

So these words are pronouns when they stand alone to represent things—when they are used in place of a noun. They are adjectives when they are usedwitha noun to limit or qualify the noun. For example, I may say,This tree is an elm, but that tree is an oak.Thisandthatin this sentence are adjectives used to modify the nountree. But I may say,This is an oak and that is an elm, and in this sentencethisandthatare used without a noun, they are used as pronouns.

259.Our being able to name every part of speech is not nearly so important as our being able to understand the functions of the different parts of speech and being able to use them correctly. But still it is well for us to be able to take a sentence and point out its different parts and tell what each part is and the function which it serves in the sentence. So sometimes in doing this we may find it difficult to tell whether certain words are adjectives or pronouns. We can distinguish between adjectives and pronouns by this rule:

When you cannot supply the noun which the adjective modifies, from thesamesentence, then the word which takes the place of the noun is a pronoun, but if you can supply the omitted noun from the same sentence, then the word is used as an adjective. Thus, we do not say that the noun is understood unless it has already been used in the same sentence and is omitted to avoid repetition. We make each sentence a law unto itself and classify each word in the sentence according to what it does in its own sentence.

So if a noun does not occur in the same sentence with the word about which we are in doubt as to whether it is a pronoun or adjective, it is a pronoun or word used in place of a noun. For example, in the sentence,This book is good but that is better;bookis understood after the wordthatand left out to avoid tiresome repetition of the wordbook. Thereforethatis an adjective in this sentence. But if I say,This is good, but that is better; there is no noun understood, for there is no noun in the sentence which we can supply withthisandthat. Therefore in this sentencethisandthatare pronouns, used in place of the noun. And sincethisandthat, when used as adjectives, are called demonstrative adjectives; therefore whenthisandthat,theseandthose, and similar words, are used as pronouns they are called demonstrative pronouns.

260.Be careful not to confuse the possessive pronouns with adjectives. Possessive pronouns modify the nouns with which they are used, but they are not adjectives, they are possessive pronouns.My,his,her,its,our,yourandtheirare all possessive pronouns, not adjectives. Also be careful not to confuse nouns in the possessive form with adjectives.

261.Sometimes you will find words, which we are accustomed to look upon as adjectives, used alone in the sentence without a noun which they modify. For example, we say,The strong enslave the weak. Here we have used the adjectivesstrongandweakwithout any accompanying noun. In sentences like this, these adjectives, being used as nouns, are classed as nouns. Remember, in your analysis of a sentence, that you name every word according to the work which it does in that sentence, so while these adjectives are doing the work of nouns, we will consider them as nouns.

These words are not used in the same manner in which demonstrative adjectives are used as pronouns. There is no noun omitted which might be inserted, but these adjectives are used rather to name a class. As, for example; when we say,The strong,The weak, we mean all those who are strong and all those who are weak, considered as a class. You will find adjectives used in this way quite often in your reading, and you will find that you use this construction very often in your ordinary speech. As, for example:

Many examples will occur to you. Remember these adjectives are nouns when they do the work of nouns.

262.Since pronouns are used in place of nouns, they may have modifiers, also, just as nouns do. So you will often find adjectives used to modify pronouns. As, for example;He, tired, weak and ill, was unable to hold his position. Here,tired,weakandillare adjectives modifying the pronounhe.

263.We often find a participle used as an adjective with a pronoun. As, for example:

In these sentences, the participles,having finished,having completed, andhaving been defeated, are used as adjectives to modify the pronounsshe,theyandhe.

264.We have found that adjectives are a very important part of our speech for without them we could not describe the various objects about us and make known to others our ideas concerning their various qualities. But with the addition of these helpful words we can describe very fully the qualities of the things with which we come into contact. We soon find, however, that there are varying degrees of these qualities. Some objects possess them in slight degree, some more fully and some in the highest degree. So we must have some way of expressing these varying degrees in the use of our adjectives.

This brings us to the study of comparison of adjectives. Suppose I say:

I have used the adjectivesweetexpressing a quality possessed by oranges in three different forms,sweet,sweeterandsweetest. This is the change in the form of adjectives to show different degrees of quality. This change is called comparison, because we use it when we compare one thing with another in respect to some quality which they possess, but possess in different degrees.

The form of the adjective which expresses a simple quality, assweet, is called the positive degree. That which expresses a quality in a greater degree, assweeter, is called the comparative degree. That which expresses a quality in the greatest degree, assweetest, is called the superlative degree.

265.Comparison is the change of form of an adjective to denote different degrees of quality.

There are three degrees of comparison, positive, comparative and superlative.

The positive degree of an adjective denotes simple quality.

The comparative degree denotes a higher degree of a quality.

The superlative degree denotes the highest degree of a quality.

266.Most adjectives of one syllable and many adjectives of two syllables regularly adderto the positive to form the comparative degree, andestto the positive to form the superlative degree, as:

267.Adjectives ending inychangeytoiand adderandestto form the comparative and superlative degree, as:

268.Many adjectives cannot be compared by this change in the word itself, since the addition oferandestwould make awkward or ill-sounding words. Hence we must employ another method to form the comparison of this sort of words. To say,beautiful,beautifuller,beautifullest, is awkward and does not sound well. So we saybeautiful,more beautiful,most beautiful.

Many adjectives form the comparative and superlative degree by usingmoreandmostwith the simple form of the adjective, as:

269.Adjectives of two syllables, to whicherandestare added to form the comparison, are chiefly those ending inyorle, such as:

270.Some adjectives, few in number, but which we use very often, are irregular in their comparison. The most important of these are as follows: (It would be well to memorize these.)

271.The change in form of adjectives in the positive, comparative and superlative shows that one object has more of a quality than others with which it is compared. But we also wish at times to express the fact that one object has less of the quality than is possessed by others with which it is compared; so we have what we may call the descending comparison, by means of phrases formed by usinglessandleastinstead ofmoreandmost. Usinglesswith the positive degree means a degree less than the positive, while usingleastexpresses the lowest degree. For example:

272.You remember, when we studied the participle, that we found it was called a participle because it partook of the nature of two or more parts of speech. For example; in the sentence,The singing of the birds greeted us;singingis a participle derived from the verbsing, and is used as a noun, the subject of the verbgreeted.

But participles are used not only as nouns; they may also be used as adjectives. For example; we may say,The singing birds greeted us. Here the participlesingingdescribes the birds, telling what kind of birds greeted us, and is used as an adjective modifying the nounbirds.

You will recall that we found there were two forms of the participle, the present participle and the past participle. The present participle is formed by addingingto the root form of the verb; and the past participle in regular verbs is formed by addingdoredto the root form, and in irregular verbs by a change in the verb form itself. These two simple forms of participles are often used as adjectives.

273.The present participle is almost always active; that is, it refers to the actor. As, for example;Vessels, carrying soldiers, are constantly arriving. Here the present participlecarryingdescribes the nounvessels, and yet retains its function as a verb and has an object,soldiers. So it partakes of two parts of speech, the verb and the adjective.

274.The past participle, when used alone, is almost always passive, for it refers not to the actor, but to what is acted upon, thus:

In this sentencebeatenis the past participle of the irregular verbbeat, andconqueredis the past participle of the regular verbconquer, and both modify the nounarmy, but refer to it, not as the actor, but as the receiver of the action. Hence, the past participle is also thepassiveparticiple.

Note in the following sentences the use of the present and past participle as adjectives:

The adjectives and participles used as adjectives in the following sentences are printed initalics. Determine which adjectives are capable of comparison, and whether they are compared by addingerorest, or by the use ofmoreandmost.

Inacommunityregulatedby laws of demand and supply, butprotectedfromopenviolence,thepersons who becomerichare, generallyspeaking,industrious,resolute,proud,covetous,prompt,methodical,sensible,unimaginative,insensitiveandignorant.Thepersons who remainpooraretheentirelyfoolish,theentirelywise,the idle,the reckless,the humble,the thoughtful,the dull,the imaginative,the sensitive,the well-informed,the improvident,theirregularly and impulsivelywicked,the clumsyknave,the openthief, andtheentirelymerciful,justandgodlypersons.—Ruskin.

275.If you will refer now to Lesson 9 you will find that we studied in that lesson concerning participle phrases; that is, several words used as a participle. We found that these participle phrases may also be used as nouns; as, for example:

Having joinedis here a participle phrase used as a noun, subject of the verbcaused. Participle phrases may also be used as adjectives.

You remember that we had four participle phrases, as follows:

These participle phrases are used as adjectives to describe and modify nouns, thus:

The passive phrases also are used as adjectives, thus:

Here the participle phraseshaving been hiredandbeing attackedare used as adjectives to modify the nounswomanandman.

Use the participles and participle phrases of the verbsseeandobeyin sentences of your own.

276.In our use of adjectives, we find it convenient to use them in several different ways. The most common use is closely connected with the noun as a modifying word, seeming in a sense almost a part of the noun; as in the sentence,These brave men have bequeathed to us splendid victories. In this sentencetheseandbraveare easily discovered to be adjectives, being used in such close connection with the noun.

But sometimes we find the adjectives a little farther away from the noun which it describes, and then it becomes a little more difficult to find. You will recall, in our study of the copulative verbbe, that we found it was simply a connecting word, connecting that which followed the verb with its subject. So we often find an adjective used in the predicate with a copulative verb showing what is asserted of the subject. When an adjective is used in this way, it modifies the subject just as much as if it were directly connected by being placed immediately before the noun. For example:

Longanddifficultare used in the predicate after the copulative verbwas, but are used to modify the subjectlessonjust as much as though we said instead,It was a long and difficult lesson. So watch carefully for adjectives used with the copulative verbbein all its forms,am,is,are,was,were; and the phrases,has been,will be,must be, etc.

277.You may find adjectives also used following the noun. As, for example:The man, cool and resolute, awaited the attack.Coolandresoluteare adjectives modifying the nounman, but they follow the noun, instead of being placed before it.

278.There are a number of common errors which we make in comparison, which we should be careful to avoid.

1. A number of adjectives cannot be compared for they in themselves express the highest degree of quality, so they have no shades of meaning and will not admit of comparison. For example:full,empty,level,round,square. If a thing is full or empty or level or round or square, it cannot be more full, or more empty, or more level, or more round, or more square. So do not compare adjectives that already express the highest degree of a quality. Also such words assupreme,eternal, andinfallible, cannot be compared for they also express the highest degree of quality.

2. Do not usemorewith the comparative form made by usinger, ormostwith the superlative form, made by usingest. For example: do not say,They cannot be more happier than they are. Say,They cannot be happier; orThey cannot be more happy. Use either form but never both. Do not say,That is the most wisest plan. Say either,That is the wisest plan; orThat is the most wise plan, but never use both forms. Never usemostwith a superlative form.

3. Do not use the superlative form in comparingtwoobjects. The superlative form is used only when more than two are compared. For example; do not say,He is the smallest of the two. Say,He is the smaller of the two.Which is the largest end?is incorrect.Which is the larger end?is correct.Which is the oldest, John or Henry?is also incorrect. This should be,Which is the older, John or Henry?Use thecomparativeform always when comparingtwoobjects.

4. In stating a comparison, avoid comparing a thing with itself. For example;New York is larger than any city in the United States. In this sentence, when you sayanycity in the United States, you are including New York; so you are really comparing New York with itself, and you are saying that New York is larger than itself. You should have said,New York is larger than any other city in the United States; or,New York is the largest city in the United States. When you compare an object with all others of its kind be sure that the wordotherfollows the comparative wordthan.

5. When an adjective denotingoneormore than onemodifies a noun, the adjective and the noun must agree in number. For example;The house is 30 foot square.Thirtydenotes more than one, so a plural noun should be used, and this sentence should be,The house is 30 feet square.We are traveling at the rate of 40 mile an hour.This should be,We are traveling at the rate of 40 miles an hour.

6. Only two adjectives,thisandthatchange their form when modifying a plural noun.Theseandthoseare the plural forms ofthisandthat. So remember always to usethisandthatwith singular nouns andtheseandthosewith plural nouns. For example; do not say,These kind of people will never join us. You should say,This kind of people will never join us. Or,Those sort of flowers grows easily. You should say,That sort of flowers grows easily.

7. Place your adjectives where there can be no doubt as to what you intend them to modify. Put the adjectivewiththe noun which it modifies. For example; do not say,a fresh bunch of flowers,a new pair of shoes,a salt barrel of pork,an old box of clothes,a cold cup of water,a new load of hay. Put the adjective with the noun which it modifies, and say,a bunch of fresh flowers,a pair of new shoes,a barrel of salt pork,a box of old clothes,a cup of cold water,a load of new hay.

8. Adjectives are usually placed before the nouns they qualify, but sometimes, especially in poetry or in the use of participles, they follow the nouns. They should not, however, be placed too far away from the noun which they modify or be unnecessarily separated from the noun. Where there are two or more adjectives used to qualify the same noun, place nearest the noun the adjective most closely connected with the object described and place farthest from the noun the adjective least closely connected with the noun. If they are all of the same rank, place them where they will sound best, usually according to their length, naming the shortest adjective first.

Correct the following sentences by arranging the adjectives in the proper order:

9. Never usethemas an adjective.Themis a pronoun. One of the worst mistakes which we can make is to use such phrases asthem things,them men,them books. Say,those things,those men,those books.

10. Do not uselessfor the comparative form offew. The comparative form offewisfewer.Lessrefers only to quantity,fewerto number. For example:

Correct the adjectives in this exercise:

Mark all the adjectives in this poem. Note especially the participles used as adjectives.

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