Oxford Online English - Using Adjectives and Adverbs

Introduction

• Lesson on using adjectives and adverbs in English.
• Lesson consists of five levels, each more challenging than the last.
• Visit Oxford Online English for more resources.

Level 1: Basics of Adjectives and Adverbs

• Adjectives:
  • Often come before nouns (e.g., 'old town').
  • Can come after nouns with linking verbs (e.g., 'It was cloudy').
  • Describe nouns.
• Adverbs:
  • Often end in -ly (e.g., 'probably', 'lightly'), but not always (e.g., 'well', 'ever').
  • Describe verbs, adjectives, or situations.
  • Recognize them in sentences to use them effectively.

Level 2: Placement of Adjectives and Adverbs

• Adjective Order:
  • Adjectives link to nouns, placed before or after with a linking verb.
  • Opinion adjectives go before fact adjectives.
• Adverb Order:
  • Adverbs describing verbs usually go after the verb or verb phrase.
  • Words like 'enough' can be both an adjective or an adverb, context-dependent.

Level 3: Form and Function

• Not all adverbs end in -ly; some words can be both adjectives and adverbs (e.g., 'hard', 'hardly').
• Understand context to distinguish between adjective and adverb usage.
• Examples:
  • ‘Sick’ is an adjective; ‘sickly’ is also an adjective but with a different meaning.
  • ‘Late’ as an adverb means not early; ‘lately’ means recently.

Level 4: Identifying Mistakes

• Common Errors:
  • Cannot use 'very' with strong adjectives like 'amazing'; use 'really' or 'absolutely'.
  • Adjectives in specific order when multiple are used.
  • Adverbs like 'sometimes' usually go between two-part verbs.
  • Some nationality words can be nouns (e.g., 'Greeks'), others need a noun (e.g., 'Spanish people').
  • Compound adjectives with numbers don't take an 's' (e.g., 'two-year-old').

Level 5: Advanced Challenges

• Some sentence structures are acceptable in colloquial speech (e.g., 'I'm doing good').
• Errors to Identify:
  • 'Deep' vs. 'deeply' - use 'deep' for location context.
  • 'Lone' used before nouns; 'alone' used after nouns.
  • 'Rather' isn't used with ungradable adjectives like 'wrong'.
  • Avoid double negatives with words like 'hardly'.

Conclusion

• Understanding and correctly using adjectives and adverbs can be complex.
• Focus on understanding contexts and meanings rather than just forms.
• Recommended to study specific topics in depth rather than all at once.