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Originally Posted by tdol What attributive adjectives are there in English? I was asked this in class the other day and the only one I could think of off-hand was ' elder' What others are there? I'd like to be able to rattle off a few if asked again.  |
Because of the way you asked the question, can I assume that you mean adjectives that are
only attributive?
If so, there are very few, in my opinion. Still, if you will accept some that attributive in at least one, but not all senses, there are some.
Almost all nouns that are used as adjectives are attributive only. Now, I know that a noun is a nioun, but some have transitioned into more than one part of speech. "Jazz" is an example. It is a legitimate adjective and it can't be used as a predicate adjective. Other noun-adjectives such as football in football helmet, etc. could be used as well.
The adjective "sheer" in the sense of "pure" is only attributive. Some senses of "plain" are attributive. Numbers, as adjectives, are almost always attributive if not always. Present participles/gerunds used as adjectives would be confused with progressive verbs if used in the predicate.
Are these of any help?
Attributive Adjectives 
Linear Mode
