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Frequent learner mistakes involving English adjectives.
Place adjectives in the correct position within the sentence.
Common mistakes include placing adjectives after nouns unnecessarily and confusing attributive and predicative positions.
She bought a beautiful dress.
Она купила красивое платье.
"Beautiful" normally appears before the noun in an attributive position.
The dress is beautiful.
Платье красивое.
"Beautiful" follows the linking verb in a predicative position.
The house looks expensive.
Дом выглядит дорогим.
"Expensive" follows the linking verb "looks" rather than the noun.
They live in a large house.
Они живут в большом доме.
"Large" appears before the noun "house".
The house is large.
Дом большой.
"Large" is predicative after "is".
I bought a red car.
Я купил красную машину.
"Red" comes before the noun in the normal attributive position.
The car is red.
Машина красная.
"Red" follows the linking verb.
She seems happy today.
Сегодня она кажется счастливой.
"Happy" follows the linking verb "seems".
Use comparative and superlative forms correctly.
Common mistakes include using more with -er adjectives, omitting than, confusing comparative and superlative forms and forgetting the before superlatives.
This book is more interesting than the other one.
Эта книга интереснее другой.
"Interesting" forms the comparative with "more".
My car is faster than yours.
Моя машина быстрее твоей.
"Fast" takes the comparative ending "-er"; do not use "more faster".
She is taller than her brother.
Она выше своего брата.
The comparative "taller" is followed by "than".
This is the tallest building in the city.
Это самое высокое здание в городе.
The superlative normally takes "the".
This problem is more difficult than the previous one.
Эта проблема сложнее предыдущей.
"Difficult" normally forms the comparative with "more".
She is the most experienced person on the team.
Она самый опытный человек в команде.
"Most experienced" is a superlative and normally takes "the".
Today is better than yesterday.
Сегодня лучше, чем вчера.
"Good" has the irregular comparative form "better".
This is the best restaurant in town.
Это лучший ресторан в городе.
"Good" has the irregular superlative form "best".
Choose participial adjectives according to meaning.
Learners often confuse adjectives describing feelings with those describing the cause of feelings.
The movie was boring.
Фильм был скучным.
"Boring" describes the thing that causes boredom.
I was bored during the movie.
Мне было скучно во время фильма.
"Bored" describes the person experiencing the feeling.
The news was surprising.
Новость была удивительной.
"Surprising" describes the source of the reaction.
We were surprised by the news.
Мы были удивлены новостью.
"Surprised" describes the people experiencing the reaction.
The instructions were confusing.
Инструкции были запутанными.
"Confusing" describes what causes confusion.
I was confused by the instructions.
Я был сбит с толку инструкциями.
"Confused" describes the person experiencing confusion.
The long journey was tiring.
Долгое путешествие было утомительным.
"Tiring" describes the experience that causes tiredness.
We were tired after the journey.
Мы устали после путешествия.
"Tired" describes the people experiencing tiredness.
Follow the conventional order when using multiple adjectives.
Errors commonly occur when size, age, color, origin and material are arranged unnaturally.
She bought a beautiful old house.
Она купила красивый старый дом.
"Beautiful" expresses opinion and comes before the factual adjective "old".
He lives in a large modern apartment.
Он живет в большой современной квартире.
"Large" comes before the age-related adjective "modern".
She wore a beautiful red dress.
Она надела красивое красное платье.
"Beautiful" comes before the color adjective "red".
They bought an expensive Italian leather bag.
Они купили дорогую итальянскую кожаную сумку.
Opinion, origin and material occur in the conventional order.
He drives a small blue Japanese car.
Он водит маленькую синюю японскую машину.
"Small" comes before "blue", which comes before the origin adjective "Japanese".
We sat at a beautiful round wooden table.
Мы сидели за красивым круглым деревянным столом.
Opinion, shape and material appear in a natural sequence.
She bought a lovely small black handbag.
Она купила красивую маленькую черную сумочку.
Opinion, size and color occur in the conventional order.
They live in a charming old stone house.
Они живут в очаровательном старом каменном доме.
Opinion, age and material occur in a natural order.
Choose modifiers that match the type of adjective.
Common mistakes include using very with extreme adjectives and combining unsuitable intensifiers with non-gradable adjectives.
The room is very large.
Комната очень большая.
"Very" naturally modifies the gradable adjective "large".
She was absolutely exhausted.
Она была совершенно измучена.
"Absolutely" is natural with the extreme adjective "exhausted".
The water is absolutely freezing.
Вода совершенно ледяная.
"Absolutely" is a natural intensifier for the extreme adjective "freezing".
The task is very difficult.
Задание очень сложное.
"Very" naturally modifies the gradable adjective "difficult".
The situation is completely impossible.
Ситуация совершенно невозможна.
"Completely" is appropriate with the absolute adjective "impossible".
I am very tired after work.
Я очень устал после работы.
"Very" naturally modifies the gradable adjective "tired".
The view was absolutely breathtaking.
Вид был совершенно потрясающим.
"Absolutely" naturally reinforces the extreme adjective "breathtaking".
The results are highly significant.
Результаты имеют большое значение.
"Highly" is a conventional intensifier for "significant" in formal English.
Form compound adjectives correctly and use hyphens where appropriate.
Learners often use plural nouns after numbers or omit necessary hyphens.
She is a ten-year-old girl.
Она десятилетняя девочка.
"Ten-year-old" is a compound adjective, so "year" remains singular.
We took a five-minute break.
Мы сделали пятиминутный перерыв.
"Five-minute" uses singular "minute" inside the compound adjective.
He bought a high-quality camera.
Он купил качественную камеру.
"High-quality" is hyphenated because the two words function as one adjective.
She works for a well-known company.
Она работает в известной компании.
"Well-known" is hyphenated before the noun.
They live in a two-bedroom apartment.
Они живут в квартире с двумя спальнями.
"Two-bedroom" uses singular "bedroom" inside the compound adjective.
He gave a ten-minute presentation.
Он провел десятиминутную презентацию.
"Ten-minute" uses singular "minute".
We stayed at a family-friendly hotel.
Мы остановились в отеле, подходящем для семей.
"Family-friendly" is hyphenated before the noun.
She bought a three-year-old car.
Она купила трехлетнюю машину.
"Three-year-old" uses singular "year".
Use the preposition required by each adjective.
Many errors result from direct translation or confusion between similar prepositions.
She is interested in art.
Она интересуется искусством.
Use "interested in", not "interested on".
He is afraid of dogs.
Он боится собак.
Use "afraid of", not "afraid from".
She is proud of her achievements.
Она гордится своими достижениями.
Use "proud of", not "proud about".
He is good at mathematics.
Он хорошо разбирается в математике.
Use "good at" when describing ability.
They are responsible for the project.
Они отвечают за проект.
Use "responsible for", not "responsible of".
She is married to a doctor.
Она замужем за врачом.
Use "married to", not "married with".
I am satisfied with the service.
Я доволен обслуживанием.
Use "satisfied with" when referring to the thing that satisfies someone.
She is similar to her sister.
Она похожа на свою сестру.
Use "similar to", not "similar with".
Use the grammatical complement required by each adjective.
Typical problems include incorrect infinitives, clauses or complement structures after adjectives.
She is happy to help.
Она рада помочь.
"Happy" can be followed by a to-infinitive.
I am glad that you came.
Я рад, что ты пришел.
"Glad" can introduce a that-clause.
She is interested in learning Spanish.
Она заинтересована в изучении испанского.
"Interested" is followed by "in" and a gerund.
It is difficult for me to understand.
Мне трудно понять.
"For me to understand" identifies the person performing the action.
It was kind of her to help.
С ее стороны было любезно помочь.
"Kind of her to help" evaluates the person's action.
He is unsure where to go.
Он не уверен, куда идти.
"Unsure" can introduce a wh-clause.
She is proud of what she achieved.
Она гордится тем, чего достигла.
"Proud" takes "of" before a clause or noun phrase.
It is important to arrive on time.
Важно прийти вовремя.
"Important" commonly occurs in the extraposition pattern "It is important to ...".
Select adjectives that match the intended meaning and context.
Confusing near-synonyms or false friends can make language sound unnatural or inaccurate.
I am interested in the topic.
Я интересуюсь этой темой.
"Interested" describes how someone feels about something.
The topic is interesting.
Тема интересная.
"Interesting" describes something that causes interest.
I am sensible enough to avoid that risk.
Я достаточно благоразумен, чтобы избежать этого риска.
"Sensible" means reasonable or showing good judgment.
The new information was sensitive.
Новая информация была конфиденциальной.
"Sensitive" can describe information that requires careful handling.
She is economic with her time.
Она бережно расходует свое время.
"Economic" can describe efficient use of resources.
The company is experiencing economic problems.
Компания испытывает экономические проблемы.
"Economic" relates to the economy or efficient use of resources.
The number of applicants is rising.
Количество заявителей растет.
"Number" is used with countable nouns.
The amount of information is increasing.
Количество информации увеличивается.
"Amount" is used with uncountable nouns.
Choose adjectives appropriate for the situation and level of formality.
Informal, formal and academic English often prefer different adjective choices.
The results were very good.
Результаты были очень хорошими.
"Very good" is natural in everyday speech.
The results were highly satisfactory.
Результаты были весьма удовлетворительными.
"Highly satisfactory" is more formal and suitable for professional writing.
The plan is a good idea.
План — хорошая идея.
"Good" is natural in ordinary conversation.
The proposal is appropriate for the intended purpose.
Предложение соответствует предполагаемой цели.
"Appropriate" is more formal and precise than conversational alternatives.
This is a big problem.
Это большая проблема.
"Big" is common in everyday speech.
This constitutes a significant problem.
Это представляет собой значительную проблему.
"Significant" is more formal and common in academic or professional writing.
The numbers are a lot higher than before.
Эти цифры намного выше, чем раньше.
This phrasing is natural in conversation.
The figures are substantially higher than previously reported.
Показатели существенно выше, чем сообщалось ранее.
"Substantially higher" is more formal and analytical.
Avoid translating adjective structures directly from another language.
Natural English often uses different adjective patterns, word order and collocations.
She is afraid of dogs.
Она боится собак.
Use the English pattern "afraid of" rather than translating the preposition directly from another language.
He is good at mathematics.
Он хорошо разбирается в математике.
English uses "good at" for ability.
She is interested in science.
Она интересуется наукой.
Learn "interested in" as a complete English pattern.
He is responsible for the project.
Он отвечает за проект.
English uses "responsible for" rather than a direct translation of another preposition.
She is similar to her sister.
Она похожа на свою сестру.
English uses the adjective-preposition combination "similar to".
I am looking for a reliable solution.
Я ищу надежное решение.
English often uses a different adjective or verb construction from a literal translation.
She is very happy.
Она очень счастлива.
English normally places the intensifier before the adjective.
He is interested in learning English.
Он заинтересован в изучении английского.
English uses "interested in" followed by a gerund rather than a direct word-for-word translation.
Review adjective usage systematically when revising your writing.
Checking comparison, position, collocations and adjective patterns helps eliminate many common mistakes.
She bought a beautiful old house.
Она купила красивый старый дом.
Check adjective order: opinion comes before age.
The movie was boring, so I was bored.
Фильм был скучным, поэтому мне было скучно.
Check the difference between the cause and the person experiencing the feeling.
She is interested in learning English.
Она заинтересована в изучении английского.
Check adjective-preposition collocation and gerund usage.
This is the most expensive option.
Это самый дорогой вариант.
Check the superlative form and the use of "the".
We stayed in a five-star hotel.
Мы остановились в пятизвездочном отеле.
Check the singular noun inside the number-based compound adjective and the hyphens.
She was absolutely exhausted after the flight.
Она была совершенно измучена после перелета.
Check that the intensifier matches the extreme adjective.
The information available was limited.
Доступная информация была ограниченной.
Check the postpositive adjective construction.
The results were significantly better than before.
Результаты были значительно лучше, чем раньше.
Check the comparative form and the intensifier "significantly".