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Avoiding Ambiguity
Coordinate and Phrasal Adjectives
By Aiden Nienajadlo
Adjective: a word that describes a noun or pronoun.
Adjective (noun): a word belonging to one of the major
form classes in any of numerous languages and typically
serving as a modifier of a noun to denote a quality of the
thing named, to indicate its quantity or extent, or to
specify a thing as distinct from something else. (MerriamWebster’s Online Dictionary)
Coordinate (adjective) 1. a.: equal in rank, quality, or
significance. 1. b.: being of equal rank in a sentence
(Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary).
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“A coordinate adjective is one that appears in a sequence
with one or more related adjectives to modify the same
noun… [I]f one adjective modifies the noun and another
adjective modifies the idea expressed by the combination
of the first adjective and the noun, the adjectives are not
considered coordinate and should not be separated by a
comma. For example, a lethargic soccer player describes
a soccer player who is lethargic. Likewise, phrases such
as red brick house and wrinkled canvas jacket are
unpunctuated because the adjectives are not coordinate:
they have no logical connection in sense” (Chicago
Manual of Style, 15th ed., 5.91).
I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words
and brief sentences. That is the way to write English—it is
the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don’t let fluff
and flowers and verbosity creep in. When you catch an
adjective, kill it. No, I don’t mean utterly, but kill most of
them—then the rest will be valuable.
—Mark Twain, 1880
“[Y]ou don’t put commas between adjectives that modify
each other or before ones that are part [of] a noun phrase:
‘We stayed at a luxurious seaside motel’” (Yagoda 21).
From the footnote at the bottom of the page:
“*The very complicated rules for determining the order of
such adjectives are, praise God, beyond the scope of this
book.”
I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words
and brief sentences. That is the way to write English—it is
the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don’t let fluff
and flowers and verbosity creep in. When you catch an
adjective, kill it. No, I don’t mean utterly, but kill most of
them—then the rest will be valuable.
—Mark Twain, 1880
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“[Y]ou don’t put commas between adjectives that modify
each other or before ones that are part [of] a noun phrase:
‘We stayed at a luxurious seaside motel’” (Yagoda 21).
From the footnote at the bottom of the page:
“*The very complicated rules for determining the order of
such adjectives are, praise God, beyond the scope of this
book.”
“When a noun is preceded by two or more adjectives that
could, without affecting the meaning, be joined by and,
the adjectives are normally separated by commas. But if
the noun and the adjective immediately preceding it are
conceived as a unit,… no comma should be used” (CMS,
15th ed., 6.39).
Test 1: The And Test.
If and can be inserted between the two adjectives and the
sentence still makes sense, the adjectives are coordinate
and a comma is needed.

 Ex.
Comma = And
Sally has an enthusiastic, unrealistic personality.
Sally has an enthusiastic and unrealistic
personality.
Sally’s personality is enthusiastic and unrealistic.
 The adjectives are describing two distinct characteristics
of Sally’s personality. Both adjectives modify the noun
“personality.”
However, the And test is not foolproof.
*Ex.
Shelly had proved a faithful, sincere friend.
Shelly had proved a faithful friend.
Shelly had proved a sincere friend.
Shelly had proved a faithful and sincere friend.
Both adjectives are modifying the noun “friend.”
*Example taken from CMS, 15th ed., 6.39.
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But what if we’re talking about “sincere friends” as a
single defining unit.
For instance,
Shelly has two kinds of sincere friends: faithful and
unfaithful.
While June has proved to be an unfaithful sincere
friend, Joyce has proved a faithful one.
“Unfaithful and faithful” are modifying the unit “sincere
friend.”
 *Context Matters!!!
Test 2: The Interchangeability Test.
If the order in which the two adjectives appear in the
sentence can be reversed, the adjectives are coordinate.

Sally is a loving, caring friend.

Sally is a caring, loving friend.
Adjectival Sequencing
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Only one of these sentences is correct.
Only one of these sentences is correct.
Sally held a big red balloon.
Sally held a big red balloon.
Sally held a big, red balloon.
Sally held a big, red balloon.
Sally held a red, big balloon.
Sally held a red, big balloon.
The Royal Order of Adjectives
1) Observation or Opinion
Ex.
Sincere, loving, unfaithful
Adjectival sequencing: using several adjectives in a
sequence to describe (or modify) the one thing.
2) Size
Tiny, small, huge
3) Shape
Round, square, rectangular
Multiple adjectives in a sequence conform to what
grammarians call “The Royal Order of Adjectives.”
4) Age
Young, new, ancient
5) Color
Purple, blue, green
6) Origin
Japanese, Mexican, American
7) Material
Oak, copper, silk
8) Qualifier
(Typically a noun used as an
adjective)
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The (determiner)
Beautiful (observation or opinion)
The beautiful small cylindrical new purple Egyptian silk
evening dress is on sale at Macys.
Small (size)
Cylindrical (shape)
New (age)
Purple (color)
Egyptian (origin)
Silk (material)
Evening (qualifier)
Dress (noun)
Exceptions of Adjectival Sequencing
The sequencing can vary for emphasis.
Word order and meaning—context.
Ex. The Japanese green apple is much more tart
than the American green apple.
The adjective “green” in this case fits under the category
of qualifier rather than color and therefore is placed
closest to the noun it is modifying.
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Two adjectival categories most commonly
confused.
Observation or opinion
and
A lethargic soccer player
Qualifier
A lethargic soccer player
Determiner
A lethargic soccer player
Observation or opinion
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A lethargic soccer player
Qualifier
A lethargic soccer player
A lethargic soccer player
Noun
Observation or opinion = subjective
Qualifier = objective
“Lethargic” is not only describing what type of “player” it
is, but what type of “soccer player” it is.
“Lethargic” = subjective
“Soccer player” as a single unit.
“Soccer” = objective
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Qualifier (noun): in grammar, a word or phrase that limits
the meaning of another word or phrase, or makes it less
general, such as an adjective or adverb (Cambridge
Advanced Learner’s Dictionary & Thesaurus, Cambridge
University Press).
Example 1: She had a profound, religious experience.
The “experience” was both “profound” and “religious.”
Two separate characteristics.
Both adjectives fall under the category of observation or
opinion and modify the noun “experience.”
She had a profound, religious experience.
She had a profound religious experience.
She had a profoundly religious experience.
Example 2: She had a profound religious experience.
The “religious experience” was “profound.”
The adjective “religious” is not simply a characteristic but
the defining characteristic of the noun “experience.”
“Religious” is qualifying the noun “experience” by
limiting its interpretation.
If the second adjective (religious) was removed, the
sentence would lose its intended meaning.
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Example 3: She had a profoundly religious experience.
The “experience” was “profoundly religious.”
In legislative writing, how can we qualify an adjective that
falls under the category of observation or opinion?
Doesn’t mean that the “experience” itself was “profound.”
The adverb “profoundly” modifies only the adjective
“religious.”
By defining the term.
“Hostile behavior” means actions intended to frighten,
intimidate, insult, bully, or harm others.
Without the definition, “hostile behavior” is subjectively
determined.
By defining the term, we infuse it with a definite set of
traits, thereby limiting its meaning and allowing it to be
applied objectively.
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Test 3: Second Adjective Elimination.
If you can remove the second adjective and the sentence
remains true, the adjectives are coordinate.
Example 1 = Hostile behavior that is deliberate. (True)
Example 2 = Behavior that is deliberate. (True)
and
Behavior that is hostile. (True)
Example 1: Any individual who engages in deliberate
hostile behavior on school grounds may be fined not more
than $100.00.
Example 2: Any individual who engages in deliberate,
hostile behavior on school grounds may be fined not more
than $100.00.
Example 1: Any individual who engages in deliberate
hostile behavior on school grounds may be fined not more
than $100.00.
Any individual who engages in deliberate behavior on
school grounds may be fined not more than $100.00.
Behavior that is deliberate.
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Example 1: Any individual who engages in deliberate
hostile behavior on school grounds may be fined not more
than $100.00.
Example 1: Any individual who engages in deliberate
hostile behavior on school grounds may be fined not more
than $100.00.
Any individual who engages in deliberate behavior on
school grounds may be fined not more than $100.00.
Any individual who engages in deliberate behavior on
school grounds may be fined not more than $100.00.
Behavior that is deliberate.
Behavior that is deliberate. (Untrue)
Example 2: Any individual who engages in deliberate,
hostile behavior on school grounds may be fined not more
than $100.00.
Example 2: Any individual who engages in deliberate,
hostile behavior on school grounds may be fined not more
than $100.00.
Any individual who engages in deliberate behavior on
school grounds may be fined not more than $100.00.
Any individual who engages in deliberate behavior on
school grounds may be fined not more than $100.00.
Behavior that is deliberate.
Behavior that is deliberate.
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Avoiding Ambiguous Interpretation
Example 2: Any individual who engages in deliberate,
hostile behavior on school grounds may be fined not more
than $100.00.
Any individual who engages in deliberate behavior on
school grounds may be fined not more than $100.00.
“Any individual who engages in deliberate, hostile, or
violent behavior…”
Comma = And
But in some contexts it can also mean Or
When you use a comma for and, you could be opening the
door to misinterpretation.
Behavior that is deliberate. (True)
Coordinate versus Cumulative Tests
The Royal Order of Adjectives
1) Determiners
Test 1: The And Test
Test 2: The Interchangeability Test
Test 3: The Second Adjective Elimination Test
2) Observation or opinion
3) Size
4) Shape
5) Age
6) Color
7) Origin
8) Material
9) Qualifier
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Phrasal Adjectives
Context matters!!!
Also known as a compound modifier
A phrase that functions as a unit to modify a noun.
Usually takes a hyphen before a noun and loses the
hyphen when coming after the noun.
Not hyphenated in proper names.
Ex. 1: This housing is for graduate students.
Ex. 2: The graduate-student housing at this college is
inexpensive.
Ex. 3: The inexpensive graduate-student housing is a real
positive for school enrollment.
Ex. 1: This housing is for graduate students.
“Graduate” as a qualifying adjective modifying
“students.”
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Ex. 2: The graduate-student housing at this college is
inexpensive.
Ex. 3: The inexpensive graduate-student housing is a real
positive for school enrollment.
“Graduate-student” as a qualifying phrasal adjective
modifying “housing.”
The observational or opinion-based adjective
“inexpensive” modifies “graduate-student housing.”
Still follows the Royal Order of Adjectives.
Phrasal adjectives are especially important when used with
other adjectives.
“Graduate-student” functions as a unit.
Contrast
“the whiskey buying grandma”
with
“the whiskey-buying grandma.”
Did you see the whiskey buying grandma?
(The whiskey is doing the buying.)
Did you see the whiskey-buying grandma?
(The grandma is buying the whiskey.)
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Avoiding Ambiguity
What’s the difference between the following sentences:
Ex. 1. The small-state senator is pushing for
comprehensive high-quality health care.
Ex. 2. The small state senator is pushing for
comprehensive high-quality health care.
Ex. 1. The small-state senator is pushing for
comprehensive high-quality health care.
In the first example, it is the state that is small.
Things to take away:
Identify what the adjectives modify.
Ex. 2. The small state senator is pushing for
comprehensive high-quality health care.
Determine in what categories the adjectives fit.
Although there is a specific order for adjectives, context
matters!
In the second example, it is the senator.
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FIN
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