Proper Adjectives

Select the word in the sentence that is a proper adjective: 'My family loves to eat at that authentic Mexican restaurant.'

• family

• authentic

• Mexican

• restaurant

Answer explanation

A proper adjective is formed from a proper noun and is always capitalized. 'Mexican' is derived from the proper noun 'Mexico' and describes the restaurant.

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1A

True or False: In the sentence 'I am learning to speak french,' the word 'french' is capitalized correctly.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Proper adjectives, including those derived from countries and languages like 'French' from 'France', must always be capitalized.

Tags

CCSS.L.1.2A

CCSS.L.2.2A

CCSS.L.3.2A

CCSS.L.4.2A

CCSS.L.K.2A

Complete the sentence with the correct proper adjective: We are studying the works of William Shakespeare, so we are reading a _____ play.

• Shakespearen

• Shakespearean

• Shakespearish

• Shakespeare

Answer explanation

The proper adjective formed from the proper noun 'Shakespeare' is 'Shakespearean'. It is used to describe something related to or in the style of Shakespeare.

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1A

CCSS.L.1.1B

CCSS.L.K.1B

Which of the following sentences contains a proper adjective?

• That is a very tall building.

• She bought a beautiful new sweater.

• My brother is a fast runner.

• He has a collection of Canadian coins.

Answer explanation

'Canadian' is a proper adjective because it is derived from the proper noun 'Canada' and modifies the noun 'coins'. The other sentences use common adjectives.

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1A

CCSS.L.1.1B

CCSS.L.K.1B

Complete the sentence: My friend is from the Netherlands, which means she is ____.

• Netherlandian

• Nether

• Dutch

• Netherlandish

Answer explanation

The proper adjective for someone from the Netherlands is 'Dutch'. This is an example of an irregular formation that does not follow a common suffix pattern.

In which sentence is the capitalized word used as a proper adjective and not a proper noun?

• My favorite city to visit is Paris.

• We learned about the Roman Empire in history class.

• Did you see the new Marvel movie?

• Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system.

Answer explanation

In this sentence, 'Roman' is a proper adjective derived from 'Rome' that modifies the noun 'Empire'. In the other options, the capitalized words are proper nouns themselves.

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1A

CCSS.L.1.1B

CCSS.L.K.1B

True or False: The word 'herculean,' which comes from the name 'Hercules,' should always be capitalized when describing a difficult task.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Some words derived from proper nouns, like 'herculean' or 'quixotic,' have become so common that they are no longer capitalized. They are treated as common adjectives.

Complete the sentence: For the international food fair, our class made a popular _____ dish.

• spain

• Spainish

• Spanish

• spaniard

Answer explanation

The correct proper adjective derived from the country 'Spain' is 'Spanish'. This form is used to describe something originating from Spain.

Tags

CCSS.L.1.1F

CCSS.L.2.1E

Which sentence correctly distinguishes between a proper noun used as a modifier and a true proper adjective?

• The Kennedy family is famous, and so is the Kennedy legacy.

• The Florida coast gets a lot of sun, and so do the Florida beaches.

• She loves Victorian-era fashion but not Victoria Station.

• He is an America citizen who loves American history.

Answer explanation

'Victorian' is a derived proper adjective, whereas 'Victoria' in 'Victoria Station' is a proper noun being used to modify another noun. This sentence shows the difference.

Tags

CCSS.L.3.1A

CCSS.L.1.1B

CCSS.L.K.1B

Complete the sentence: The new restaurant in town serves amazing _____ cuisine.

• Japanese-inspired

• japanese-inspired

• Japanese-Inspired

• japanese-Inspired

Answer explanation

When a proper adjective is part of a hyphenated compound modifier, the proper adjective ('Japanese') is capitalized, but the common word following it ('inspired') is not.

Tags

CCSS.L.11-12.2A