Collins Cobuild English Grammar (47 page)

2.144
  Many of these submodifying adverbs not only intensify the meaning of the adjective but also allow you to express your opinion about what you are saying. For example, if you say that something is
surprisingly large
, you are expressing surprise at how large it is as well as intensifying the meaning of
large
.

He has
amazingly long
eyelashes.
…a
delightfully refreshing
taste.
…a
shockingly brutal
scene.
…a
horribly uncomfortable
chair.
…
incredibly boring
documents.

However, you use a few of these submodifying adverbs with no other purpose than to intensify the meaning of the adjective.

They’re
awfully brave
.
The other girls were
dreadfully dull
companions.

Here is a list of words only used to intensify adjectives:

awfully

dreadfully

especially

extremely

greatly

highly

really

so

terribly

very

Note that
awfully
,
dreadfully
, and
terribly
are used in informal language and
highly
is used in very formal language.

Note also that
so
is normally only used after a linking verb.

I am
so sorry
.

reducing qualitative adjectives

2.145
  Some submodifying adverbs are used to reduce the effect of qualitative adjectives.

The story was
mildly amusing
.
It’s a
fairly common
feeling.
…
moderately rich
people.
…his
rather large
stomach.
My last question is
somewhat personal
.

Here is a list of words used to reduce the effect of an adjective:

faintly

fairly

mildly

moderately

pretty

quite

rather

reasonably

slightly

somewhat

Note also that
quite
is normally only used with adjectives that are used after a linking verb.

She was
quite tall
.

talking about extent

2.146
  Some modiifying adverbs are used to talk about the extent of the quality that you are describing.

Here is a list of words used to talk about the extent of a quality:

almost

exclusively

fully

largely

mainly

mostly

nearly

partly

predominantly

primarily

roughly

~

absolutely

altogether

completely

entirely

perfectly

purely

quite

simply

totally

utterly

USAGE NOTE

2.147
  The first group in the list above are used almost always just to talk about the extent of a quality. They are most commonly used with classifying adjectives.

It was an
almost
automatic reflex.
…a shop with an
exclusively
female clientele.
…the
largely
rural south east.
The wolf is now
nearly
extinct.
The reasons for this were
partly
economic and practical, and
partly
political and social.

Almost
and
nearly
are also used with qualitative adjectives.

The club was
almost empty
.
It was
nearly
dark.

Note that
roughly
can be used when you want to say that something is nearly or approximately like something else.

West Germany, Japan and Sweden are at
roughly similar
levels of economic development.

Note also that
half
is sometimes used in this way. For example, you can describe someone as
half American
if just one of their parents was American.

2.148
  The second group in the list above are used not only to talk about the extent of a quality but also to emphasize the adjective. They are used with classifying adjectives as well as qualitative adjectives.

You’re
absolutely right
.
This policy has been
completely unsuccessful
.
Everyone appeared to be
completely unaware
of the fact.
The discussion was
purely theoretical
.
It really is
quite astonishing
.
…a
totally new
situation.
We lived
totally separate
lives.
…
utterly trivial
matters.

Note that
absolutely
is frequently used with qualitative adjectives that express enthusiasm or lack of enthusiasm. When you use
absolutely
in this way you are emphasizing how strongly you feel about what you are saying.

…an
absolutely absurd
idea.
I think it’s
absolutely wonderful
.
The enquiry is
absolutely crucial
.

Here is a list of qualitative adjectives often emphasized by
absolutely
:

absurd

awful

brilliant

certain

crucial

enormous

essential

excellent

furious

hilarious

huge

impossible

massive

perfect

ridiculous

splendid

terrible

vital

wonderful

Note also that
completely
and
utterly
can also be used in this way.

It is
completely
impossible to imagine such a world.
He began to feel
utterly
miserable.

saying that there is enough of something

2.149
  You can use submodifying adverbs such as
adequately
,
sufficiently
, and
acceptably
when you want to say that someone or something has enough of the quality you are describing.

The roof is
adequately insulated
.
We found a bank of snow
sufficiently deep
to dig a cave.

USAGE NOTE

2.150
  You can also show that you think something is sufficient by using
enough
.
Enough
always comes after the adjective, and never before it.

I was not a
good enough
rider.
It seemed that Henry had not been
careful enough
.

Enough
can be followed by the preposition
for
to indicate a person involved, or by a
to-
infinitive to indicate a related action.

A girl from the factory wasn’t
good enough for him
.
If you find that the white wine is not
cold enough for you
, ask for some ice to be put in it.
The children are
old enough to travel to school on their own
.
None of the fruit was
ripe enough to eat
.

Note that when
enough
is used after an adjective, you can use
just
in front of the adjective to show that someone or something has enough of the quality described by the adjective, but no more than that.