order of adjectives before a noun

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ESL forum > Grammar and Linguistics > order of adjectives before a noun

order of adjectives before a noun

tachitorres

order of adjectives before a noun

Is it correct to say "fair wavy hair " and "dark shoulder-length hair"? I �ve always been taught that when the adjectives go before the noun they follow a certain order and that colour always comes after size and shape.However, both sentences seem correct to me. Can anyone help me? Thanks in advance

22 Oct 2010

coyote.chus

The order is the following:
Opinion
Size, shape
Age
Colour
Origin
Material
So, in your examples, it should be:

Wavy fair hair
Shoulder-length dark hair

22 Oct 2010

uaeeye2

Adjectives Order is:

Opinion

Size

Age

Shape

Color

Origion

Material

22 Oct 2010

tachitorres

Thanks a lot!

22 Oct 2010

redcamarocruiser

The rule is not absolute. It is a rule of thumb.

In this case it depends on what characteristic the speaker is emphasizing.

She has fair, wavy hair sounds good. She has dark, shoulder-length hair also sounds good.

It means that when recalling her image in order to make a description, the speaker first thought about hair color, then her second defining chrteria was wavy or length.

If she thought of wavy first, then she would say "she has wavy, fair hair".

If she thought of the length first then "she has shoulder-length, dark hair."

I usually think of the person �s hair color first, then add other modifying adjectives.

22 Oct 2010