Confusion on Adjectives & Adverbs

[Fazzu]

Hello teachers,

I have several questions.Please clear them.

-How can I easily tell that a word in a sentence is an adjective or an adverb?

-What is the difference between:

i) rather & rather than
(Note:I know that 'rather' means little or slightly)

ii) near by and nearby (with the examples below)
e.g 1] There is a petrol station near by.
e.g 2] You might like to fill up your tank at the nearby petrol station.

-Why do we say,'He is a very mature person' and not 'He is a very matured person'?Can we say,'He is a matured person'?Why?

Same goes here:

i) I was so tensed before my examination.(wrong)
I was so tense before my examination.(correct)

Why is it written as that?I thought the sentence which is wrong was the correct one.

-Is my understanding correct that if you write in the past tense than writing in the present or future tenses is formal?

Sorry for asking all questions in one thread.

Thanks in advance.
I would also appreciate if anyone besides teachers could help me.

[Teia]

Hello teachers,
I have several questions.Please clear them.
-How can I easily tell that a word in a sentence is an adjective or an adverb?
-What is the difference between:
i) rather & rather than
(Note:I know that 'rather' means little or slightly)
ii) near by and nearby (with the examples below)
e.g 1] There is a petrol station near by.
e.g 2] You might like to fill up your tank at the nearby petrol station.
-Why do we say,'He is a very mature person' and not 'He is a very matured person'?Can we say,'He is a matured person'?Why?
Same goes here:
i) I was so tensed before my examination.(wrong)
I was so tense before my examination.(correct)
Why is it written as that?I thought the sentence which is wrong was the correct one.
-Is my understanding correct that if you write in the past tense than writing in the present or future tenses is formal?
Sorry for asking all questions in one thread.
Thanks in advance.
I would also appreciate if anyone besides teachers could help me.

Hi

Let`s take your questions one at a time :

RATHER : as an adverb of degree. It means "less than 'very' but more than 'a little'. It can be used to modify adjectives, adverbs, noun phrases, comparative adjectives, too and verbs, and is used mainly with words and ideas that have negative meanings:

The Cambridge Online Dictionary gives the following examples:

rather (SMALL AMOUNT)
adverb [not gradable]
quite; to a slight degree

It's rather cold/difficult.
Let me give you a different book - I think you'll find it rather easier.
The train was rather too crowded for a comfortable journey.
The dress was rather more expensive than I was expecting it would be, so I didn't buy it.
She answered the telephone rather sleepily.
I've rather foolishly lost their address.
I rather think you should consider the trouble this decision will cause.
I rather doubt I'll be able to come to your party.
She's rather an egoistic, don't you think?
It's a rather boring film.
Used with words and ideas that convey a positive meaning, rather means "unusually" or "unexpectedly":

The Cambridge Online Dictionary gives the following examples:

rather (VERY)
adverb, predeterminer [not gradable]
very; to a large degree

I was rather pleased to be invited to the wedding.
Actually, I did rather well in my exams.
He's a rather nice man.
He's rather a nice man.
The Cambridge Online Dictionary also lists the following meanings for rather:

rather (MORE EXACTLY)
adverb more accurately; more exactly

She'll go to London on Thursday, or rather, she will if she has to.
He's my sister's friend really, rather than mine.
The dress is rather pink than purple.
Rather can also be used to express an opposite opinion.

The ending of the war is not a cause for celebration, but rather for regret that it ever happened.
No, I'm not tired. Rather the opposite in fact.
rather (PREFERENCE)
adverb
rather than in preference to; instead of

I think I'd like to stay at home this evening rather than going out.
Why don't you wear the black shoes rather than the brown ones?
He likes starting early rather than staying late.
Rather one person than another person means that the second person certainly does not want to do what the first person is doing.

"I've got to have two teeth out next week.""Rather you than me."
rather (YES)
interjection
ESPECIALLY BRITISH INFORMAL
certainly; yes

"Do you want to come out for dinner with us this evening?" "Rather!"


More information about rather:

http://www.edufind.com/english/grammar/ADVERBS7.cfm

http://www.bartleby.com/64/C001/054.html

http://www.edufind.com/english/grammar/IF10.cfm

Regards

I`ll be back soon

[DavyBCN]

Hello teachers,
I have several questions.Please clear them.
-How can I easily tell that a word in a sentence is an adjective or an adverb?
-What is the difference between:
i) rather & rather than
(Note:I know that 'rather' means little or slightly)
ii) near by and nearby (with the examples below)
e.g 1] There is a petrol station near by.
e.g 2] You might like to fill up your tank at the nearby petrol station.
-Why do we say,'He is a very mature person' and not 'He is a very matured person'?Can we say,'He is a matured person'?Why?
Same goes here:
i) I was so tensed before my examination.(wrong)
I was so tense before my examination.(correct)
Why is it written as that?I thought the sentence which is wrong was the correct one.
-Is my understanding correct that if you write in the past tense than writing in the present or future tenses is formal?
Sorry for asking all questions in one thread.
Thanks in advance.
I would also appreciate if anyone besides teachers could help me.

To help out Teia -

Rather than is another way of saying instead of, and so has a very different meaning to rather (which Teia explained very well).

Rather than/Instead of going to work we went to the beach.
Rather than/instead of borrowing money from my parents I got a job.

There really isn't any difference betwee near by and nearby in that they both mean close to. But near is an adverb and nearby an adjective.

We can say someone is a matured person, although it is not very common. It means that someone has become mature, and people generally use these two words.

Tense in your example is an adjective, so does not change with the "tense". There is an expression tensed up which is also used as an adjective and does not change its form either and means more or less the same thing. This is all easy to confuse because, of course, there is also tense as a verb! An important usage difference is that tense as an adjective can mean physical or mental tension. Tense as a verb usually means to physically make your muscles stiff and tight.

Hope this doesn't create more confusion. We teachers can do that sometimes.

[Teia]

To help out Teia -
Rather than is another way of saying instead of, and so has a very different meaning to rather (which Teia explained very well).
Rather than/Instead of going to work we went to the beach.
Rather than/instead of borrowing money from my parents I got a job.
There really isn't any difference betwee near by and nearby in that they both mean close to. But near is an adverb and nearby an adjective.
We can say someone is a matured person, although it is not very common. It means that someone has become mature, and people generally use these two words.
Tense in your example is an adjective, so does not change with the "tense". There is an expression tensed up which is also used as an adjective and does not change its form either and means more or less the same thing. This is all easy to confuse because, of course, there is also tense as a verb! An important usage difference is that tense as an adjective can mean physical or mental tension. Tense as a verb usually means to physically make your muscles stiff and tight.
Hope this doesn't create more confusion. We teachers can do that sometimes.

Thank you very much Davy

Great job! You`ve been really helpful as always.


Keep in touch

Teia

[Fazzu]

I am really glad that both of you have been helping me a lot.Thanks DavyBCN and Teia for spending some time for my questions.

I want to know if I have understood well.

She's rather an egoistic, don't you think?

Which means she is more an egoistic than something else?

Actually, I did rather well in my exams.

Which means that I have told them that I didn't do well but actually I did rather well in it?

He's a rather nice man.
He's rather a nice man.

What is actually the difference between both?

No, I'm not tired. Rather the opposite in fact.

I don't understand these sentences above.

And now to 'rather than'.I am quite clear about this.Thanks DavyBCN for adding up some more of your examples.But still I am not very clear on...

-Why do we say,'He is a very mature person' and not 'He is a very matured person'?Can we say,'He is a matured person'?Why?

Before going to the other example on 'tense' I would like to get this cleared first.

Thanks a bunch.

[DavyBCN]

I want to know if I have understood well.


Quote:

She's rather an egoistic, don't you think?


Which means she is more an egoistic than something else?

No - it is not used as a comparison. It just means that you think being egotistical is a big part of her character - she is very egotistical

Quote:

Actually, I did rather well in my exams.


Which means that I have told them that I didn't do well but actually I did rather well in it?

Actually is an alternative to in fact. We often use it to emphasise something - in this example maybe somebody didn't believe that you had done well in your exams and you want to repeat it with emphasis.


Quote:

He's a rather nice man.
He's rather a nice man.


What is actually the difference between both?

No difference at all.


Quote:

No, I'm not tired. Rather the opposite in fact.


I don't understand these sentences above.

This is how you could reply if someone said that you looked tired, but in fact/actually you were not tired at all. It is a very emphatic statement, because it includes rather and in fact.

But still I am not very clear on...

Quote:
-Why do we say,'He is a very mature person' and not 'He is a very matured person'?Can we say,'He is a matured person'?Why?

If you say a very mature person you are describing how he is now, without any reference to the past. If you say he is a matured/very matured person you are suggesting that he was not mature in the past but has changed.


Hope this all helps

[Fazzu]

No, I'm not tired. Rather the opposite in fact.

This is how you could reply if someone said that you looked tired, but in fact/actually you were not tired at all. It is a very emphatic statement, because it includes rather and in fact.

But it didn't at all include 'rather' and 'in fact'.Or are you trying to say that it has been included indirectly or something like that?

If you say a very mature person you are describing how he is now, without any reference to the past. If you say he is a matured/very matured person you are suggesting that he was not mature in the past but has changed.

So,as we want to say that he was once not matured and now matured we can say,'He is a very matured person'?

Other than the above ones,I totally understood the rest of them.

From the past post:

Tense in your example is an adjective, so does not change with the "tense". There is an expression tensed up which is also used as an adjective and does not change its form either and means more or less the same thing. This is all easy to confuse because, of course, there is also tense as a verb! An important usage difference is that tense as an adjective can mean physical or mental tension. Tense as a verb usually means to physically make your muscles stiff and tight.

Yes,I thought 'tense' was a verb here.I didn't know that 'tense' also acts as an adjective.First of all, I want to know how to recognise an adjective and an adverb in a sentence.

Then,

Tense in your example is an adjective, so does not change with the "tense".There is an expression tensed up which is also used as an adjective and does not change its form either and means more or less the same thing.

I don't understand the sentence in red.

Also,

There really isn't any difference between near by and nearby in that they both mean close to. But near is an adverb and nearby an adjective.

I have made some sentences using 'near by' and 'nearby'.Tell me if I am correct or wrong.

1) The chruch is near by my house.
2) My aunt wants me to go to the nearby mini-mart.

1) I have to be in the nearby shop.
2) The book is near by your side.

Thanks again Davy.I am really greatful to you.

[Fazzu]

I really need some help here.Any teachers please....or even anyone who could answer my questions and correct my mistakes.

[DavyBCN]

But it didn't at all include 'rather' and 'in fact'.Or are you trying to say that it has been included indirectly or something like that? I was using one of Teis' examples, where rather and in fact tend to mean the same thing.
So,as we want to say that he was once not matured and now matured we can say,'He is a very matured person'? Yes.
Other than the above ones,I totally understood the rest of them.
From the past post:
Yes,I thought 'tense' was a verb here.I didn't know that 'tense' also acts as an adjective.First of all, I want to know how to recognise an adjective and an adverb in a sentence. An adjective qualifies a noun, and an adverb qualifies a verb. Then,
I don't understand the sentence in red.
Also,
I have made some sentences using 'near by' and 'nearby'.Tell me if I am correct or wrong.
1) The chruch is near by my house.
2) My aunt wants me to go to the nearby mini-mart.
1) I have to be in the nearby shop.
2) The book is near by your side.
Thanks again Davy.I am really greatful to you.

The four sentences are ok, but generally it is more usual to say the mini-mart nearby/the shop nearby.

[DavyBCN]

The sentence in red means that an adjective does not change regardles of whether you are using in a sentence using the present, future or past tense.

I am happy today
I was happy yesterday
I will be happy tomorrow - I hope!

All of our contributions are now becoming extremely long and confusing. Perhaps you could start new threads on each point if you need more help?