THE ADJECTIVE. Ex. 169. A. Read and translate the sentences

Ex. 169. A. Read and translate the sentences. Pay attention to the descriptions given in them.

1. Harry looked nothing like the rest of the family. Uncle Vernon was large and neckless, with an enormous black moustache; Aunt Petunia was horse-faced and bony; Dudley was blond, pink and porky. Harry, on the other hand, was small and skinny, with brilliant green eyes and jet-black hair that was always untidy. He wore round glasses, and on his forehead was a thin scar. 2. Mrs. Reynolds was a tall, striking woman in her late forties, with blond hair and a typical pink English complexion. She had a friendly smile and an assertive yet sympathetic way about her. 3. Tonight Samantha wore well-tailored blue jeans, a white cotton shirt, a black gabardine blazer, and highly polished black Oxfords with white socks. 4.1 shivered. It was a damp November night and quite cold, typical English winter weather. 5. It was a radiant day, the sky was a high blue and clear, and the sun was brilliant. 6. It was a blustery day. There was a high wind that blew the new green leaves off the trees. It was a chilly morning but the sky was a cerulean blue filled with puffy white clouds that raced across the great arc of the sky.

(from "Harry Potter" by J.K. Rowling)

B. Describe:

a) the appearance of any person you like.

b) the weather on the day you are reading this.

Ex. 170. A. Read the following and say how the same qualities in men and women are often described by adjectives, say whose descriptions are generous, and whose are loaded with negative connotations.

He is ambitious; she is pushy.

He is tough-minded; she is ruthless.

He is foresighted; she is calculating.

He is firm; she is stubborn.

He is self-respecting; she is egoistical.

He is persistent; she is nagging.

B. Write a letter of recommendation to your colleague or a friend. Make use of some of the words given below

Efficient, diligent, helpful, creative, open-hearted, well-read, cultured, naive, thoughtful, slow, forgetful, choosy, demanding, bossy, cooperative, nosy, provocative, sophisticated, practical, businesslike, professional, well organized, decisive, flexible, resilient, reliable, broad-minded

 

Ex. 171. State whether the following adjectives are qualitative or relative. Make up sentences of your own with them

1. stone, stony

2. silver, silvery

3. wax, waxen

4. snow, snowy

5. sun, sunny

6. silk, silken

7. gold, golden, gilded

8. wool, woolly, woollen

9. wood, wooden 10. brass, brazen

Ex. 172. Choose the right word to fill in the blanks

1. a) The... Age is the earliest known period of human history, b) The ground here had always been.... c) There came... silence, (stone, stony) 2. a) He was born with a... spoon in his mouth, b) There is a...birch under my window, c) Meryl was wearing a long... dress, d) From the hall there came the...chime of the old clock, (silver, silvery) 3. a) We need some... candles, b) Old Nancy had a... complexion, (wax, waxen) 4. a) Let's built a... man. b) We went to see him one... day in London, (snow, snowy) 5. a) I worked... - up to... - down, b) You have a wonderful... tan. c) It was a... day. d) Bob has a... disposition, (sun, sunny) 6. a) I think I'll bye this... scarf, b) This girl has... lashes, c) Her hair was very long and.... (silk, silky, silken) 7. a) There are... daisies in the grass, b) He won a... medal, c) Sue wore a tiny... cross, d) These are... rules, e) The princess was a beautiful girl with... hair, f) They stopped before the...altar (gold, golden, gilded) 8. a) He was dressed in a good... suit, b) My Granny knitted a pair of long... socks for me. c) Betty had a...cap on. (wool, woolly, woollen) 9. a) They have a... house, b) He had a... head, (wood, wooden) 10. a) There was a... jug on the table, b) She is tired of her husband's... love affairs, (brass, brazen)

 

Ex. 173. Give degrees of comparison of the following words if possible,

I. angry, brave, bad, convenient, dry, dead, final, good, heavy, narrow, perfect, Persian, right (left), square, important, white, yellow, unique, little

II. absent-minded, easy-going, fine-looking, good-natured, high-flown, high-heeled, kind-hearted, much-spoken, narrow-minded, old-fashioned, strong-willed, well-bred

Ex. 174. Put the adjectives in the correct order.

1. Cycling is a(n)_________activity, (useful, outdoor, popular) 2. Now I'm reading a________novel, (depressing, long, boring) 3. He had a________alarm clock, (digital, new, useful) 4. Have you heard of this________invention? (Japanese, fantastic, new) 5. This family rents a________house, (furnished, large, old) 6. I've just bought a(n)________table, (beautiful, coffee, glass, oval) 7. Robert's is the_________car. (red, Italian, big) 8. Our students are using _________ dictionaries.(English, reliable, new, complete) 9. There was a _________ carpet on the floor, (soft, wonderful, woollen, Persian) 10. Andy gave Rosie a_________box. (jewellery, velvet, small, square) 11. Stratford is a_________town, (nice, small, quiet)

12. There are a lot of________pans in the shops, (frying, Tefal, non-stick, brand-new, French-made)

 

Ex. 175. Translate into English.

1. Я живу в новом девятиэтажном кирпичном до­ме. 2. Секретарь вручил ему толстый коричневый бу­мажный конверт. 3. Мы обедали за большим новым круглым деревянным столом. 4. Она надела свой луч­ший синий шерстяной костюм. 5. В этой фирме рабо­тает много молодых способных японских программи­стов. 6. Лиза купила новую модную красную шелко­вую блузку. 7. Старые узкие темные туманные улицы Лондона пугали ее. 8. На ковбое была большая яркая соломенная мексиканская шляпа. 9. Это был первый по-настоящему важный международный конгресс. 10. Как мне нравится эта венецианская зеленая стек­лянная ваза! 11. Перед нами лежала песчаная равни­на. 12. Спасибо, это золотой совет (мнение). 13. У сей­фа свинцовая дверь. 14. Небо было свинцовое, оно не обещало ничего хорошего. 15. У чучела были стеклян­ные глаза. 16. Врачу не понравился его стеклянный взгляд. 17. Мне надоели твои наглые манеры.

Ex. 176. Choose the right words to fill in the blanks,

1. a) When Scott reached the... Pole, he saw the Norwegian flag already there, b) Antarctica is in the... Hemisphere, (south, southern) 2. a) This novel is based on a... story. b) I think Linda is a... person, (true, truthful) 3. a) It was a great, yes, it was a... change for the country, b) They played their part in the... process, (historic, historical) 4. a) He rents a flat in... London, b) These cliffs and grounds are in the... Hemisphere, (north, northern) 5. a) This fish is so bony! I find it...! b) These beautiful fungi are.... They are poisonous, (uneatable, inedible) 6. a) — John is as... as a girl. — Yes, he is very touchy. b) —On the other hand, he is a... boy. —Yes, I would say he is intelligent, (sensible, sensitive) 7. a) The country is having great... difficulties, b) This car is very.... It needs little petrol, (economic, economical) 8. a) This chronicle gives a... presentation of events, b) The discovery of penicillin was a... event, (historic, historical) 9. a) The handwriting was..., but I recognized it as Mark's, b) It may be a good novel, but I find it.... (unreadable, illegible) 10. a) In our new flat we have an... cooker, b) Accumulator gave off a sudden... discharge, (electric, electrical)

 

Ex. 177. Make compound adjectives form according to the model

Mo del:-A programme which lasts half an hour is a half-hour programme.

1. a freeze (on bank accounts) for two months a ________ freeze 2. celebrations for three days _________celebrations 3. a ring road with five drives a_________ ring road 4. a drive which takes five hours a_________drive 5. a lorry which can carry 15 tons a_________lorry 6. a flight which lasts 3.5 hours a_________flight 7. the first film which lasted for three minutes a_________film 8. an engine with a capacity of 3.5 litres a_________engine 9. a child which is five years old a _________ child 10. a man whose height is six feet a_________man 11. a walk which covers eight miles a_________walk 12. a tank with a capacity of 16 gallons a_________tank 13. a **** hotel a_________hotel 14. a castle built in the fourteenth century a _________ castle 15. a student who is in his second year a ________student 16. a flat on the third floor a_________flat 17. a computer which is of the second generation a_________computer 18. a decision made at the last minute a_________decision 19. an excellent meal a_________-class meal 20. a very poor production a_________-rate production

 

Ex 178. Complete the sentences using the comparative or the superlative form of the adjectives given in brackets.

1. — Boris is certainly (clever) than his brother. — Yes, and he is (attractive) than his brother Peter. In fact, he is (smart) boy I've ever taught. 2. Nothing could be (extravagant) than buying such an expensive car. You will have to be (careful) with your money in future. 3. Life is getting (hard) and (complicated) with every passing day. 4. It is (effective) method of all, but it is naturally costly. 5. Stephen is (intelligent) than any other boy in his group. 6. It has been (cold) day in Moscow for thirty years. 7. It's (little) I can do for you, I'm afraid. 8. That was (bad) than he had expected. 9. That was indeed (bad) experience in his career. 10. They naively think that things can only get (good). 11. This is (unbelievable) news I have ever heard. 12. He ate (few) French fries than you did at the picnic. 13. Angela is (little) organized than Mike. 14. If you ask me, Moscow is (beautiful) than any other city in the world. 15. They had (little) and (little) to talk about. 16. It is axiomatic that (great) the student's individual effort, (much) thorough will be his learning. 17. The (much) original a discovery, the (much) obvious it seems afterwards.

 

Ex 179. Complete the following comparisons.

1 Barbara is nearly... old... her stepmother. 2. There are more... two thousand books in my mother's library. 3. Bob talks just... his father. 4. Would you be... kind... to close the door for me? 5. Do... I tell you; don't do... I do. 6. I am not... naive... to believe all he promises me. 7. After your heart attack you should walk... slowly... possible. 8. The Volga is not now... wide... it was. 9.1 have... many working hours a week... any other employee. 10. A shower uses less water... a bath. 11. On Sundays we don't have to get up... early... usual. 12. This house is two times... big... the old one. 13. They use twice... much electricity.. compressor machines.

14. In my opinion, it's worth more... twice that figure. 15. He can lift a box thrice... heavy.

 

Ex. 180. Read and translate the following colourful and unusual comparisons. Make up sentences with them.

1. as different as chalk and cheese 2. as scarce as hen's teeth 3. as dark as inside of a wolf 4. as happy as a pumpkin in a sunny patch 5. as ugly as home-made soap 6. as black as two o'clock in the morning 7. as happy as a dog with two tails 8. as nervous as a brick wall 9. as brave as the first man who ate an oyster 10. as cold as an ex-wife's heart 11. as big as the little end of nothing 12. as noisy as two skeletons dancing on a tin roof

Ex. 181. Give degrees of comparison of the following adjectives if possible.

absohite

able

authentic

helpful

empty

effective

left

mild

middle

medical

vacant

round

pregnant

Roman

wooden

immortal

real

late

near

old

far

few

tough

entire

 

Ex 182. Complete the given phrases.

1. The sooner,.... 2. The longer the day (is),.... 3. The more we learn,.... 4. The more expensive the wedding,.... 5. The later one goes to bed,.... 6. The better the idea,.... 7. The sunnier the weather,.... 8. The more knowledge you get.....9. The broader your outlook,.... 10. The richer your vocabulary,.... 11. The less chocolate you eat,.... 12. The farther from home,.... 13. The more kids you have,.... 14. The smarter a person is,.... 15. The longer we study English,...

 

Ex 183. Use the right degree of comparison of the adjectives in brackets.

1. He laughs (good), who laughs last. 2. He who laughs last, laughs (long). 3. Of two evils, choose the (little). 4. My aunt is the (old) of the four sisters. 5. Cats are (clean) than monkeys, but monkeys are (intelligent) than cats. 6. He is the (well-known) of that crew. 7. Put your (good) foot forward. 8. He had rarely listened to a (an) (absurd) proposal. 9. The kids had never eaten a sausage that was (big, red, hot). 10. Thank you, you are (kind) today than you were yesterday. 11. Socrates was (wise) Greek of all. 12. Get there first with (much) — that is the fundamental principle of tactics. 13. Which lie seems (good)? 14. Christopher is (friendly) than Ted.15. Donald is (well-off) than either of his brothers. 16. Ben is (wealthy) of the three brothers. 17. Edwin was (nice) of the two sons.

 

Ex. 184. Translate into English

1. Из двух проектов второй более перспективный. 2. Из пятерых претендентов они выбрали самого знающе­го. 3. Какой из этих двух аппаратов более надежный? 4. Это был самый печальный опыт в моей жизни. 5. Для нее нет ничего более важного, чем ее карьера. 6. Чем скорее он перестанет проматывать деньги, тем лучше. 7. Для меня существуют два самых замечатель­ных дня в году — мой день рождения и Новый год. 8. Чем меньше ты говоришь и, фактически, чем мень­ше ты знаешь, тем это безопаснее для меня и для моих друзей. И в конечном счете для тебя тоже. 9. Вода — самый сильный напиток. Она приводит в движение (to drive) мельницы. 10. Чем образованнее человек, тем более он склонен страдать от головных болей. 11. Самые лучшие повара— мужчины. 12. «Извини­те» — самое трудное слово. 13. Чем больше я читаю о налоговой реформе, тем меньше я ее понимаю.

 

Ex. 185. Read the sentences and translate them into Russian, paying special attention to the adjectives

1. Good— better— best. Never rest. Till "good" is "better" and "better" is "best". 2. A bad excuse is better than none. 3. A silent tongue and a true heart are the most admirable things on earth. 4. It is better to be the best of a low family than the worst of a noble one. 5. The symphony was a half-baked, splashy, cacophonous mess. 6. The film will be released in the first half of the following year at the earliest. 7. Broken hearts stain pillows with bitter tears. 8. Much to Mary's further surprise, her mother was nowhere to be seen. 9. He is going to buy the latest golfing accessories. 10. Whom we love best, to them we can say least. 11. Learning makes a good man better and a bad man worse. 12. Now let's have lunch and you can tell me about all your latest lady friends and the exciting parties you've been to. 13. Many famous artists died in the bitterest poverty. 14. The positive hotel experience is a smooth arrival, delightful service, a pleasant night's stay and a professional check-out.

 

Ex. 186. Compare

I. two different fruits 2. a cat and a dog 3. two flowers 4. rock music and classical music 5. two academic subjects 6. comedy and tragedy 7. reading and writing 8. being single and being married 9. two of your friends 10. your life now with what it was like ten years ago II. your physical appearance now with the way you looked as a child 12. two movie stars 13. two holidays 14. two of your teachers 15. children with parents.

 

Ex. 187. Fill in the gaps with the correct form of the adjective Mind the use of articles where necessary

A. Late

1. These are... books and current magazines. 2. Are you getting off at... stop? 3. He turned up... than he had promised. 4. Let's discuss... news a little bit..., shall we? 5. We have two managers at the office: Igor and Svetlana.... is thirty,...is twenty-eight. 6. Will you repeat... sentence, please. 7. This illustrated magazine shows photographs of... fashions. 8. Last week my students passed... exam. 9. I am..., but not.... 10. We need... telephone directory.

B. Near

1. There's no one... to me than you. 2. Excuse me, where is... metro station? 3.... time think before you speak. 4. Are you getting off at...stop, sir? 5. Who lives... to the school, children? 6....week you'll have to write... essay according to our plan. 7. Who is going to be... to do the talking?

C. Old

1. My roommate is as... as I. 2. Of the four children Tony is.... 3. My... brother is a loving family man.4. — Who is... here? — Mr. Stone is, though he is the youngest man here. 5. Have you... brother or sister?

D. Far

1. She is one of those who will go.... 2. How... is your native place from here? 3. Billy lived at... end of the village. 4. She never went... than school. 5. Do you think they will get any... in this tricky matter? 6. A... calculation shows that these figures are incorrect. 7.1 live.. from the city centre than you do, S. They are waiting for... news from home.

 

Ex. 188. Translate into English.

1. Вы— моя последняя надежда. 2. Этого я от вас меньше всего ожидала. 3. Она выглядит старше сво­их лет. 4. Женщине столько лет, на сколько она выг­лядит. 5. Чем ближе экзамены, тем больше я не­рвничаю. 6. — На сколько лет ваш муж старше вас? — Мы ровесники. 7. В следующий вторник мы обсудим следующий пункт программы. 8. Каковы последние достижения в этой области? 9. Последую­щие детали будут обсуждены на последнем заседа­нии клуба. 10. На этой выставке представлено пос­леднее (новейшее) оборудование со всего мира. 11. Все уважают Давида. Он здесь главный. 12. Нет, дальше мы не пойдем, темнеет. 13. Если ей помочь, то она далеко пойдет. 14. У меня две близкие под­руги: Настя и Ирина. Первая очень сдержана, вто­рая очень эмоциональна. 15. Сядь, пожалуйста, по­дальше от телевизора. 16. Они принялись за работу без дальнейших комментариев. 17. Это последняя капля. Я этого не могу больше выносить. 18. Я живу дальше всех от школы.

 

Ex. 189. Talk on the suggested topics.

1. Your proudest achievement. 2. Your most important decision. 3. Your biggest inspiration.

4. Your most memorable dream. 5. Your biggest business risk. 6. The best year of your life.

7. The thing that interests you most in people. 8. Your greatest regret or disappointment.

9. The worst job you've ever had. 10. The greatest help you ever received. 11. The strangest coincidence in your life.12. The three most important principles you follow. 13. The biggest crisis in your life. 14. Your strongest belief.

 

Ex. 190. Read and translate the sentences. Say how degrees of comparison are intensified.

1. Are the profits that poor? 2. The weather is no better today than it was yesterday. 3. It's ever so interesting to meet new people. 4. It's most important you stay here. 5. This is a most rewarding job. 6. His is the finest car available on the market. 7. Thank you ever so much, you've been most helpful. 8. Your offer is much (a lot) better than any other's. 9. They give you the best chance imaginable. 10. He is no worse than any other boy of his age. 11. She was by far the camp's best swimmer. 12. He never ever wears a hat. 13. Mr. Parker is by far and away the biggest share holder. 14. It was the most awful film ever. 15. Where ever have you been? 16. Listen, I am dead serious about it. 17. This idea is pretty interesting. 18. Ron was having far worse problems. 19. He gave her a most loving smile.

 

Ex. 191. Make up 8 sentences of your own according to the model.

Model: l. The sky was a Wedgwood blue.

2. The walls were painted an antiseptic white.

3. The Queen Mother was dressed in forget-me-not blue for the opening ceremony.

The Adjective	The Noun-Intensifier
1. white	ash, silver, snow, wax, lemon, magnolia, stone, chalk, powder, paper, china, antiseptic, milky
2. black	raven, storm, jet, soot
3. brown	earth, chocolate, rust, summer
4. green	jade, emerald, bottle, grass, copper, apple, sea, pea, olive, lime
5. grey	silver, iron, smoke, pearl, sea, seal
6. red	gold, flower, blood, brick, rose, beet, coral, wine, turkey, rust
7. blue	forget-me-not, baby, sapphire, Cezanne, pastel, Dresden, Wedgwood, ice, corn, midnight, china, sky, blue, turquoise, navy
8. yellow	daisy, butter, acid, candy, lemon, creme

Ex. 192. Read the text and retell it