Adjectives and adverbs
Adjectives and adverbs
Adjectives describe the property and the state of things and people. Adverbs, on the other hand, describe the manner of actions. This chapter shows how adjectives and adverbs are used, what forms they take, and how they can form a variety of comparative sentences.
Adjective types
Adjectives modify nouns. In fact, verbs and nouns can also modify nouns: Verbs in the plain form can be placed before a noun; nouns can be followed by the particle の no and placed before a noun. For example:
• これは日本で売っている本です。
• Kore wa Nihon de utte iru hon desu.
• This is a book sold in Japan.
• これは日本の本です。
• Kore wa Nihon no hon desu.
• This is a Japanese book.
Adjectives that end in い i when placed before a noun are called i adjectives.
Adjectives that end in な na when placed before a noun are called na adjectives.
For example, 高い takai and 高価な kōka na in the examples above both mean expensive, but the former is an i adjective and the latter is a na adjective. Some adjectives were created from words borrowed from other languages. Such adjectives all belong to na adjectives. For example:
• シンプルなドレス sinpuru na doresu a simple dress
• エレガントなドレス ereganto na doresu an elegant dress
• デリケートな肌 derikēto na hada delicate skin
There is a third category of adjectives that some linguists call no-type adjectives. In this book, however, such an adjective is treated as a noun followed by の no, as in 病気の人 byōki no hito (sick person)
Adjective types
Adjectives modify nouns. In fact, verbs and nouns can also modify nouns: Verbs in the plain form can be placed before a noun; nouns can be followed by the particle の no and placed before a noun. For example:
• これは日本で売っている本です。
• Kore wa Nihon de utte iru hon desu.
• This is a book sold in Japan.
• これは日本の本です。
• Kore wa Nihon no hon desu.
• This is a Japanese book.
Adjectives that end in い i when placed before a noun are called i adjectives.
Adjectives that end in な na when placed before a noun are called na adjectives.
For example, 高い takai and 高価な kōka na in the examples above both mean expensive, but the former is an i adjective and the latter is a na adjective. Some adjectives were created from words borrowed from other languages. Such adjectives all belong to na adjectives. For example:
• シンプルなドレス sinpuru na doresu a simple dress
• エレガントなドレス ereganto na doresu an elegant dress
• デリケートな肌 derikēto na hada delicate skin
There is a third category of adjectives that some linguists call no-type adjectives. In this book, however, such an adjective is treated as a noun followed by の no, as in 病気の人 byōki no hito (sick person)