Adjectives – gradable and non-gradable

Do you know how to use adjectives in phrases like a little tired, very tired, and completely exhausted? Enhance your knowledge with a lesson given below and the grammar explanation to guide you better.

Look at these examples to see how gradable and non-gradable adjectives are used:

• I'm very tired.

• I'm completely exhausted.

• This problem is quite hard.

• This problem is absolutely unsolvable.

Grammar explanation - Adjectives: gradable & non-gradable

Here are the grammar explanations:

1. Gradable adjectives

Most adjectives are gradable, meaning they can show different degrees of a quality. For instance, you can feel a bit tired, very tired, or extremely tired. We use modifiers to make adjectives stronger or weaker:

She was pretty upset when she heard the news.

The book we read was really interesting!

Summers can be extremely hot in the desert.

Here’s a list of common gradable adjectives and some modifiers that work with them:

Modifiers: a little/a bit → pretty/quite → really/very → extremely Adjectives: happy, big, boring, cheap, cold, expensive, frightening, fun, hot, interesting, loud, pretty, small, tasty, tired, etc.

2. Non-gradable: absolute adjectives

Some adjectives are non-gradable. For example, something can't be a bit married or very married. You can’t be a bit perfect or very perfect. These adjectives describe all-or-nothing qualities. To make them stronger, we use modifiers like absolutely, totally, or completely:

• The cake you made is absolutely perfect!

• Their house was completely destroyed in the flood.

• My homework is totally finished. Now I can relax.

Here’s a list of common absolute adjectives and modifiers:

Modifiers: absolutely/totally/completely Adjectives: finished, destroyed, dead, free, perfect, impossible, ruined, unacceptable, etc.

3. Non-gradable: extreme adjectives

Adjectives like fantastic, terrible, and boiling are non-gradable because they already imply an extreme level of something. To make extreme adjectives stronger, we use absolutely or really:

• Did you watch the concert? It was absolutely fantastic!

• After hiking all day, we were absolutely exhausted.

• My flight was really terrible. First, it was delayed, then we had turbulence the entire way.

Here’s a list of common extreme adjectives and modifiers:

Modifiers: absolutely/really Adjectives: amazing, awful, boiling, delicious, enormous, excellent, exhausted, fascinating, freezing, gorgeous, terrible, terrifying, tiny, etc.

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