Adjective exercises

much vs many
Decide whether you have to use much or many:
1.

We saw _____ animals at the zoo.

2.

How _____ oranges did you put in the box?

3.

There isnt _____ sugar in my coffee.

4.

I dont have ______ friends.

5.

The old man hasnt got _____ hair on his head.

6.

Ive packed _____ bottles of water.

7.

I didnt get _____ sleep last night.

8.

How _____ fruit do you eat in an average day?

Answers:
1. many
2. many
3. much
4. many
5. much
6. many
7. much
8. much

a little vs a few

Decide whether you have to use a little or a few:

Can you please buy _______ apples.

2.

We need _______ water.

3.

I have _______ money left.

4.

I take _______ sugar with my coffee.

5.

We had _______ pints of beer there.

6.

You have _______ time left.

7.

There are _______ chairs in the room.

8.

He only spent _______ dollars there.

Answers:
1. a few
2. a little
3. a little
4. a little
5. a few
6. a little
7. a few
8. a few

some vs any
Decide whether you have to use some or any:
1.

Is there _______ milk left?

2.

There is _______ juice in the bottle.

3.

Do you have _______ coffee?

4.

I dont have _______ money left.

5.

She has _______ money.

6.

Do you know _______ of these singers?

7.

I dont know _______ of them.

8.

I know _______ of them.

Answers:
1. any
2. some
3. any
4. any
5. some
6. any
7. any
8. some

some vs many
Decide whether you have to use some or many:
1.

The child put _______ sand into the bucket.

2.

I can lend you _______ money if you need it.

3.

There arent _______ pears left. Only two.

4.

We had _______ cake with the tea.

5.

Dont eat so _______ sweets or youll get fat.

6.

I had _______ beer last night at the bar.

7.

I dont have _______ friends.

8.

He brought _______ food with him.

Answers:
1. some
2. some
3. many
4. some
5. many
6. some
7. many
8. some

little vs less
Decide whether you have to use little or less:
1.

I have _______ interest in classical music.

2.

I have _______ faith in him.

3.

We need _______ furniture in this dance hall than in the big one.

4.

You have to drink _______ coffee.

5.

He has _______ money than I thought.

6.

Tonight I drank _______ wine than last night.

7.

She dedicates _______ time to her homework than to her hobbies.

8.

This will take _______ time to finish than the last time we tried.

Answers:
1. little
2. little
3. less
4. less
5. less
6. less
7. less
8. less

a little vs a lot
Decide whether you have to use a little or a lot:
1.

That may cost you _______ of money.

2.

I added _______ sugar to the mix.

3.

Youll have to spend _______ of cash on this car. (a lot)

4.

I can do it with _______ help from my friends.

5.

_______ change can really make a difference.

6.

I dont have _______ of free time today.

7.

He left _______ of laundry for me to do.

8.

She gave him _______ attention.

Answers:
1. a lot
2. a little
3. a lot
4. a little
5. a little
6. a lot
7. a lot
8. a little

few vs little
Decide whether you have to use few or little:
1.

Theres _______ point in calling.

2.

_______ people understood what he said.

3.

There is _______ use in trying to do this.

4.

Theres _______ space here as it is.

5.

Theres _______ I can do about this.

6.

Dan is a great student. He has _______ problems with history.

7.

There was _______ traffic on the road.

8.

I think Coventry will win the match but _______ people agree with me.

Answers:
1. little

2. few
3. little
4. little
5. little
6. few
7. little
8. few

fewer vs less
Decide whether you have to use fewer or less:
1.

There were _______ days below freezing last winter.

2.

I drank _______ water than she did.

3.

I have _______ than an hour to do this work.

4.

People these days are buying _______ newspapers.

5.

I have _______ time to do this work.

6.

_______ than thirty children each year develop the disease.

7.

I wear _______ makeup on weekdays.

8.

He worked _______ hours than I did.

Answers:
1. fewer
2. less
3. less

4. fewer
5. less
6. fewer
7. less
8. fewer

farther vs further
Decide whether you have to use farther or further:
1.

How much _______ do you plan to drive tonight?

2.

I just cant go any _______.

3.

Do you have any _______ plans for adding on to the building?

4.

Thats a lot _______ than I want to carry this heavy suitcase!

5.

The _______ that I travel down this road, the _______ behind schedule I get.

6.

How much _______ do you intend to take this legal matter?

7.

Its not that much _______ to the gas station.

8.

How much _______ do I have to run, coach?

Answers:
1. farther
2. further
3. further
4. farther
5. farther, further

6. further
7. farther
8. farther

later vs latter
Decide whether you have to use later or latter:
1.

My neighbours have a son and a daughter : the former is a teacher, the _______ is a nurse.

2.

I will address that at a _______ time.

3.

Of the first two Harry Potter books, I prefer the _______.

4.

John arrived at the party _______ than Mary did.

5.

I prefer the _______ offer to the former one.

6.

I will be back _______.

7.

I was given the choice between a hamburger or a hotdog, I chose the _______ of the two;
the hotdog.

8.

When it comes to soy burgers or a juicy cow burger, I prefer the _______.

Answers:
1. latter
2. later
3. latter
4. later
5. latter
6. later
7. latter

8. latter

last vs latter
Decide whether you have to use last or latter:
1.

Jack, Jill and Bob went up the hill; the _______ watched the other two fall down.

2.

The former half of the film is more interesting than the _______ half.

3.

Out of chapters 1, 2, and 3, the _______ one is the most difficult to learn.

4.

Dan is now friends with Ruth, Maya and Ben. The _______ is his cousin.

5.

Jane speaks Italian and English : the former language fairly well and the _______ fluently.

6.

There are two versions, A and B, but the _______ is more popular.

7.

Tom and Dick were both heroes but only the _______ is remembered today.

8.

I study math, English and history. I enjoy the _______ one most.

Answers:
1. last
2. latter
3. last
4. last
5. latter
6. latter
7. latter
8. last

More Adjective Exercises

1. Form adjectives from the following nouns:

water

B.

ice

C.

syrup

Answers:
A. Watery
B. Icy
C. Syrupy
2.Form adjectives from the following verbs:
A.

walk

B.

amaze

C.

decay

Answers:
A. walking
B. amazing
C. decaying
3.Which of the following sentences contains a proper denominal adjective?
A.

People in New York are usually busy.

B.

New York residents are often busy.

A.

We had fun listening to classic French music.

B.

Music by the French is fun to listen to.

A.

He speaks Russian.

B.

He speaks the Russian language.

Answers: B,A,B
4.Choose the superlative adjective in each group of sentences:
A.

I like dark coffee.

B.

This is the fastest car Ive ever driven.

C.

Id like darker curtains.

A.

This is good ice cream.

B.

Meet Sue, my younger sister.

C.

Of all the options available, this seems to be the best one.

A.

This is a better play than the last one.

B.

The box was blue, and oddly shaped.

C.

This is the most exciting thing Ive ever experienced!

Answers: B, C, C
5. Choose the absolute adjective in each group of sentences:
A.

We live in a blue house.

B.

The grass is greener on the other side.

C.

This is the shortest my hair has ever been.

A.

Thats a short dress.

B.

Why dont you choose a longer style?

C.

Just because its the shortest dress doesnt mean its the most stylish.

A.

Our house is bigger than our grandmothers is.

B.

They live in the biggest house Ive ever seen.

C.

Thats a big house!

Answers: A, A, C
6. Choose the adjective from each of the following groups of words:
A.

interest, interesting, party

B.

amount, colorful, medicine

C.

fur, hilarious, cup

Answers:
A. interesting
B. colorful
C. hilarious
7. Fill in the blanks with the best compound adjective for the situation.
A.

With ______________ temperatures, this is the coldest winter on record.

below zero

below-zero

freezing

B.

Jeremy gave Linda a _____________________ engagement ring.

gorgeous diamond

gorgeous-diamond

big

C.

Were celebrating with a __________________ bottle of champagne.

costly

ten-year-old

10 year old

Answers:
A. below-zero
B. gorgeous diamond
C. ten-year-old
8. Choose the sentence containing the denominal adjective:
A.

We practiced for the play.

B.

We spent two hours practicing the Shakespearean play.

C.

We practiced Shakespeares play for two hours.

Answer: B. We spent two hour practicing the Shakespearean play.

This list is longer than the last one.

B.

This is probably the longest one Ive ever seen.

C.

This is a long list.

A.

Stop acting so weird.

B.

Youre acting weirder than ever.

C.

Youre the weirdest person in this class.

A.

This is the chocolatiest cake Ive ever tasted.

B.

Have some chocolate cake.

C.

Do you think this cake tastes chocolatier than the last one?

Answers: A, B, C
10. For each of the following sentences, choose the correct order of adjectivesto fill in the blank.
A.

His grandfather lives in the ________________________ house down the street.

big old yellow

yellow old big

old big yellow

B.

The shop offers all kinds of _____________________ objects.

interesting old antique

old antique interesting

old interesting antique

C.

We went for a long walk on a __________________________ trail.

Beautiful new 5-mile

New, beautiful 5-mile

5-mile new, beautiful

Answers:
A. big old yellow
B. interesting old antique
C. beautiful new 5-mile
11. A, B, or C? Which phrase contains the denominal adjective?
A.

open door

B.

fun time

C.

Parmesan flavor

Answer: C
12. Some compound adjective contain hyphens. Which of the following sentences is correct?
A.

Hes a decent-judge of character.

B.

She submitted a 190-page document supporting her position.

C.

Were adopting a two year old parakeet.

Answer: B
13. Which sentence uses the correct order of adjectives?
A.

We took a ride on a red, new, Italian motorbike.

B.

We took a ride on an Italian, new, red motorbike.

C.

We took a ride on a new red Italian motorbike.

Answer: C
14. For each of the following sentences, choose the correct order of adjectivesto fill in the blank.
A.

I was thrilled to receive a __________________ book with my order.

big, beautiful, leather-bound

leather-bound, big, beautiful

beautiful big leather-bound

B.

His clown costume consists of a red nose, oversized shoes, and a ________________
jacket.

Size 4X polka-dotted silk smoking

polka-dotted silk smoking size 4X

polka dotted size 4x silk smoking

C.

Ive been shopping for the perfect _______________ chopsticks.

Japanese long sushi

long Japanese sushi

long sushi Japanese

Answers:

A.

beautiful big leather-bound

B.

size 4x polka-dotted silk smoking

C.

long Japanese sushi

15. From each group, choose the sentence containing the correct compound adjective.
A.

Jennifer is overworked. She has been putting in 12 hour days lately.

B.

Jennifer is overworked. She has been putting in 12-hour days lately.

C.

Jennifer is overworked. She has been putting in 12-hour-days lately.

A.

Jim prefers spicy, Caribbean-style food.

B.

Jim likes Caribbean foods with lots of spice.

C.

Jims favorite foods are spicy ones with Caribbean flavors.

A.

Hes grown two inches since last time we saw him.

B.

Hes grown by a whole two inches since we last saw him.

C.

Hes had a two-inch growth spurt since last time we saw him.

Answers: B, A, C