Adjectives: order before nouns

 In English, when we use multiple adjectives to modify the same noun, there is a specific order that we generally follow. This order is known as the "adjective order."

Here is the typical order of adjectives in English:

1. Determiner (e.g. a, an, the)
2. Observation/opinion (e.g. beautiful, ugly)
3. Size (e.g. big, small)
4. Shape (e.g. round, square)
5. Age (e.g. young, old)
6. Color (e.g. red, blue)
7. Origin/nationality (e.g. American, French)
8. Material (e.g. wooden, plastic)
9. Purpose/qualifier (e.g. swimming, cooking)

Note that this order is not set in stone and can be flexible, but in general, this is the order that sounds most natural to native English speakers.

Here are some examples of how these adjectives might be used in a sentence:

• She wore a beautiful, long, red dress to the party. (observation, size, color)
• He drove an old, green, British car. (age, color, origin)
• The round, wooden table was perfect for the family dinner. (shape, material)

It's also worth noting that when we use multiple adjectives in a sentence, we usually separate them with commas.

So, in summary, the order of adjectives in English generally follows the pattern of determiner, observation/opinion, size, shape, age, color, origin/nationality, material, and purpose/qualifier. However, this order is not set in stone and can be flexible depending on the context.

Here are some exercises to practice the order of adjectives in English:

1. Rewrite the following sentences, putting the adjectives in the correct order:

a. She has a bike red new. b. The book is interesting big thick. c. He lives in a house small white old. d. The dog is cute little fluffy.

2. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate adjectives, putting them in the correct order:

a. The _____, _____, _____ flowers caught her eye. (red, beautiful, small) b. He found a _____, _____, _____, _____ car at the dealership. (fast, Italian, black, expensive) c. She received a _____, _____, _____, _____, _____ present for her birthday. (small, wrapped, rectangular, green, shiny)

3. Identify the order of the adjectives in the following sentences:

a. The tall, dark, handsome stranger walked into the room. b. She put on her pretty, new, white dress. c. The old, wooden, round table was perfect for the dinner party.

Answers:

1. a. She has a new red bike., b. The big, thick, interesting book., c. He lives in an old small white house., d. The little fluffy cute dog.
2. a. small, beautiful, red, b. expensive, fast, Italian, black, c. shiny, small, rectangular, green, wrapped.
3. a. opinion, color, observation, b. size, origin, color, purpose, c. age, material, shape.