Practice
Proper adjectives: forms and examples
In a Canadian newspaper, Canadian describes the noun newspaper. The word comes from the name Canada, so it begins with a capital letter. That is the usual pattern for a proper adjective.
Recognize a proper adjective and use its capital letter before the noun it describes.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
proper adjective /ˈprɑːpər ˈædʒɪktɪv/
The short answer
Use a proper adjective when an adjective comes from a specific name. In standard English, it usually begins with a capital letter and comes before the noun it describes.
We watched a Japanese film after class.
Why it works: Japanese comes from the name Japan. It describes film and keeps a capital J.
5 more examples
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The Brazilian musician played at the festival.
Brazilian comes from Brazil and describes musician.
Not this:The
talented musicianplayed at the festival. What changes: Talented is a common adjective. It does not come from a specific name, so it is not capitalized. -
She is taking Spanish lessons this year.
Spanish names the language and describes lessons.
Not this:She is taking
evening lessonsthis year. What changes: Evening describes when the lessons happen, not a named language or place. -
They visited a Victorian house near the river.
Victorian comes from the name of Queen Victoria and can describe a style or period.
Not this:They visited an
old housenear the river. What changes: Old is a common adjective that describes age. -
Our class discussed a Shakespearean play.
Shakespearean connects the play with Shakespeare or his style.
Not this:Our class discussed a
long play. What changes: Long describes length and is not formed from a name. -
The restaurant serves Turkish coffee in small cups.
Turkish comes from Turkey and describes the type of coffee.
Not this:The restaurant serves
strong coffeein small cups. What changes: Strong describes taste or strength, so it is a common adjective.
Read the full guide
Check whether the describing word comes from a name. If it does, it may be a proper adjective. Then check its capital letter and the noun that follows it.
Start with a specific name
Look for an adjective that is connected to a person, place, group, language, or period with a specific name. That connection is what makes it a proper adjective.
A Canadian researcher answered the question.
Canadian comes from Canada. It tells us what kind of researcher is being discussed.
Which word comes from a specific name: careful or Mexican?
Mexican is the proper adjective because it comes from Mexico.
Keep the capital letter
Proper adjectives normally keep a capital letter because they are connected to proper nouns. Keep the capital letter even when the adjective is not the first word in the sentence.
We bought an Italian cookbook last week.
Italian has a capital I because it comes from Italy. Cookbook is a common noun, so it begins with a lower-case letter.
Choose the correct form: italian restaurant or Italian restaurant?
Write Italian restaurant because Italian is a proper adjective.
Put the adjective before its noun
A proper adjective often comes directly before the noun it describes. It can appear with other adjectives, but the reader should still be able to see which noun it modifies.
The museum displayed a rare Egyptian map.
Egyptian describes map. Rare is another adjective, but it does not come from a specific name.
Complete the phrase: a ___ novel by an author from Brazil.
Use Brazilian novel. Brazilian describes the noun novel and comes from Brazil.
Recognize language and period adjectives
Names of languages and adjectives for historical periods are common proper adjectives. They still describe a noun, even when the connection to the original name feels familiar.
The library has several French dictionaries.
French describes dictionaries and names the language connected with them.
Which phrase needs a capital letter: medieval art or Victorian art?
Victorian art needs a capital V because Victorian comes from Queen Victoria's name.
Separate proper and common adjectives
A sentence can contain both types of adjective. Use a capital letter only for the adjective formed from a name. Common adjectives such as new, difficult, and colorful stay lower case unless another capitalization rule applies.
We read a short American article in class.
American comes from America and has a capital A. Short is a common adjective and stays lower case.
Choose the correctly capitalized phrase: modern japanese art or modern Japanese art?
Write modern Japanese art. Japanese is a proper adjective, while modern is a common adjective.
Before you go
Remember this
A proper adjective comes from a specific name and describes a noun. It usually begins with a capital letter: Brazilian music, Spanish class, Victorian furniture. First identify the name behind the adjective. Then make sure the adjective clearly describes the noun.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Proper adjectives: forms and examples"
What is a proper adjective?
A proper adjective is an adjective that comes from a proper noun, or specific name. It describes a noun while keeping a connection to that name. Canadian, Spanish, and Victorian are proper adjectives because they come from Canada, Spain, and Queen Victoria. In standard English, they normally begin with capital letters.
The Brazilian musician played at the festival.
Do proper adjectives always need capital letters?
In standard English, proper adjectives normally begin with capital letters because they come from names. Write an Italian cookbook, a Mexican restaurant, and a Shakespearean play. The capital letter stays even in the middle of a sentence. Check a reliable dictionary if you are unsure whether a familiar adjective comes from a name.
The talented musician played at the festival.
What is the difference between a proper and common adjective?
A proper adjective comes from a specific name, while a common adjective gives a general description. In a colorful Brazilian painting, Brazilian is proper because it comes from Brazil. Colorful is common because it describes appearance rather than a named person, place, group, or period. Only Brazilian needs a capital letter.
She is taking Spanish lessons this year.
Can a language name be a proper adjective?
Yes. A language name can describe a noun and work as a proper adjective. In a French grammar book, French describes the type of grammar book. In Spanish class, Spanish describes the class. These language words are capitalized in English because they are connected with proper names.
She is taking evening lessons this year.
Where does a proper adjective go in a sentence?
A proper adjective usually comes before the noun it describes, like other adjectives. You can write a Greek island, an American company, or Victorian furniture. It can appear with a common adjective too. In a small Greek island, small describes size and Greek identifies the place connection.
They visited a Victorian house near the river.