Coordinative adjectives and Cumulative adjectives
You'd say, "Wow, that is a huge old trunk," rather than "Wow, that is a old huge trunk." The adjectives are cumulative, each making the description of the item more clear but working together to do so.
I read this piece of grammatical rule online. I feel confused .Why can't I say old huge trunk? The phrase " old and huge trunk" seems right . If "old and huge " can be joined by a connective and their positions could be reversed ,why they are not coordinative adjectives but cumulative adjectives?
Thanks.
Top answer
It's not a matter of stacked modification vs coordination, but of the conventional order of adjectives as modifiers of nouns. Generally, a modifier of size precedes one of age, cf. "a big old house", not "an old big house".
- It's not a matter of stacked modification vs coordination, but of the conventional order of adjectives as modifiers of nouns.
- Generally, a modifier of size precedes one of age, cf.
- "a big old house", not "an old big house".
- But when modifiers form a coordination joined by "and", reversing the order becomes slightly more acceptable, so we can have "an old and big house".
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
It's not a matter of stacked modification vs coordination, but of the conventional order of adjectives as modifiers of nouns.
Generally, a modifier of size precedes one of age, cf. "a big old house", not "an old big house".
But when modifiers form a coordination joined by "and", reversing the order becomes slightly more acceptable, so we can have "an old and big house".
0
Related Questions