Adjectives modify nouns and pronouns, usually by describing, identifying, or limiting those words. Some people refer to the identifying or quantifying adjectives as determiners (46b).

The red Corvette ran off the road. [describes]

That Corvette needs to be repaired. [identifies]

We saw several Corvettes race by. [quantifies]

In addition to their basic forms, most descriptive adjectives have other forms that allow you to make comparisons: small, smaller, smallest; foolish, more foolish, most foolish, less foolish, least foolish (25b). Many words that function in some sentences as pronouns (22d) can function as identifying adjectives when they are followed by a noun.

That is a dangerous intersection. [pronoun]

That intersection is dangerous. [identifying adjective]

Adjectives usually precede the words they modify, though they may follow linking verbs: The car was defective.

Other kinds of identifying or quantifying adjectives are articles (a, an, the) and numbers (three, sixty-fifth).

Proper adjectives are adjectives formed from or related to proper nouns (British, Emersonian). Proper adjectives are capitalized (41b).