What are compound adjectives?

Compound adjectives are adjectives that are made up of two or more words usually with hyphens (-)
between them.

Examples:

 An English-speaking country.

 A time-saving gadget.

 A thirty-floor building.

How are compound adjectives formed?

Compound adjectives can be formed as follows:

 Adverb-past participle / noun + ed

a well-known writer
a brightly-lit room
deeply-rooted traditions
a well-mannered girl

 Adjective-present participle (verb + ing)

a good-looking boy
a free-standing tower

 Noun-past participle
a tongue-tied boy
a sun-dried fruit

 Adjective-past participle / noun + ed

a short-sighted man
a long-haired lady

 Noun- adjective
a world-famous singer

 Adjective- noun
a last minute solution
deep-sea diving

 Noun-noun
a part-time job
Exercise 1. Choose the correct answer – Faschioned, Mannered, New, Rooted, Sighted.

1. well-

2. brand-

3. deeply-

4. short-

5. old-

Exercise 2. Choose the right compound adjective from the exercise above.

1. When Brian got his promotion, he bought a ………………………………….… car.

2. Look at Leila. She's wearing an …………………………..……….. skirt. She found it in her

grandmother's drawer.

3. Nancy is such a ……………………………………… girl. She can't even read what's on the blackboard.

4. Some people think that we should preserve the …………………………………. traditions of

countries.

5. Cathy is a ……………………………………………….. girl. She's very polite.