Grammar- Adjectives, Nouns and Verbs Conversion

Task 1

Which adjectives and verbs can be used as nouns, without adding an affix.

◯ best ✔ ✘	◯ catch ✔ ✘	◯ complain ✔ ✘	◯ do ✔ ✘	◯ find ✔ ✘
◯ hopeful ✔ ✘	◯ international ✔ ✘	◯ investigate ✔ ✘	◯ walk ✔ ✘	◯ white ✔ ✘

Task 2

Fill in the blanks with nouns where possible.

A/an ✘ international is a football match, or rugby match etc. between teams from two different countries; a player who plays in one of these matches.
A/an ✘ walk is a journey that you make on foot usually for pleasure.
If you describe someone or something that has been discovered as a/an ✘ find, you mean that they are valuable, interesting, good or useful.
If you refer to someone as a ✘ hopeful, you mean that they have an ambition that they very much want to achieve and that there is a possibility that they will achieve it.
A/an ✘ catch is a hidden problem or difficulty in a plan or an offer that seems surprisingly good; a ✘ catch on a window, door or container is a device that fastens it; a ✘ catch is the total number of fish caught when people go fishing.
✘ Dos do's and don’ts are things which you must and must not do in a particular situation; a ✘ do is a party, dinner party or other social event (informal).
A/an ✘ complaint is a statement in which you express your dissatisfaction with a particular situation.
The ✘ white of an egg, especially a hen’s egg is the transparent liquid that surrounds the yolk.
Someone’s ✘ best is the greatest effort or highest achievement or standard that they are capable of.
A/an ✘ investigation is the act of trying to find out what happened or what the truth is.

Source: Collins Cobuild English Language Dictionary. 1987. London: HarperColl
ins Publishers. http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/hand+in+hand

Task 3 Compound Adjectives

Fill in the blanks with the most appropriate word. You may need to fill in a blank with part of the compound adjective.

If you describe a place as being ✘ out-of-the-way, you mean that it is difficult to reach and therefore not often visited; remote.
If you describe someone or something as ✘ awe-inspiring, you are emphasizing that you think that they are remarkable and amazing although sometimes rather frightening.
If you refer to someone as being ✘ British-born, you mean that they were ✘ born in part of the United Kingdom.
A/an ✘ star-studded show, event or cast is one that includes a large number of famous performers.
If you ✘ pack people into a place, there are so many of them that the place is full. If a show or programme has a lot of comedians, the bill can be described as a/an ✘ laughter-packed event .
If an actor, play or film is described as a/an ✘ award-winning actor, play or film, you mean that he/it has won many ✘ awards.
If women appear or ✘ feature in a band, (show, exhibition or magazine on radio or television), we can refer to it as a/an ✘ female-featuring band.
A ✘ bass drum, guitar or musical instrument is one that produces a very deep sound and you can refer to performances with this sound of music as ✘ bass-heavy .
You can describe someone as ✘ Rambert-trained if they have been ✘ trained at a famous ballet studio in London.

Task 4 Adjectives of Character

Fill in the blanks with the most appropriate adjective. You may need to use the same word more than once.

If you describe someone as ✘ meticulous, you mean that they do things very carefully and with great attention to detail.
✘ Emotional means concerned with feelings such as happiness, love, anger or hatred.
If you say someone is ✘ aloof, you are critical of them because they do not like to socialize and are not very friendly.
✘ Devious people are dishonest and secretive, often in a complicated way.
A ✘ charismatic person attracts, influences and inspires people by their personal qualities.
Someone who is ✘ self-effacing is modest and does not like talking about themselves or drawing attention to themselves.
A/an ✘ pragmatic way of dealing with something is based on practical considerations, rather than theoretical ones. A/an ✘ pragmatic person deals with things in a practical way.
If you say that someone is ✘ dogmatic, you are critical of them because they are convinced that they are right, and refuse to consider that other opinions might also be justified.
If you describe someone as ✘ cultured, you mean that they have good manners, are well educated and know a lot about the arts.
A/an ✘ hospitable person is friendly, generous and welcoming to guests or strangers.

Grammar - Adjectives, Nouns and Verbs Conversion