Adjectiveadjectives

Adjectiveadjectives is a coinage used to describe a class of compound adjectives formed by combining two adjectives to modify a noun, creating a single descriptive unit. The two components typically share a close semantic relationship and are joined in writing with a hyphen, although some examples have become closed or open compounds over time.

Formation and variation: Adjectiveadjectives are often created by linking adjectives directly, as in bittersweet, high-pitched, or deep-seated. Hyphenation helps signal that the phrase should be read as one modifier rather than as two separate descriptors. Some instances are highly transparent in meaning, while others are idiomatic or metaphorical, with meanings that go beyond the sum of the parts.

Usage and semantics: These compounds generally appear before the noun they modify: a bittersweet moment, a high-pitched sound. They can also function predicatively in sentences: The mood was bittersweet. Semantic behavior ranges from fully compositional to metaphorical, and many can be graded to varying degrees (more bittersweet, less high-pitched). Some adjectiveadjectives are fixed in common usage and have become semantically single units even if their components remain adjectives.

Cross-linguistic notes: English is particularly prone to forming such compounds, especially with adjectives that describe qualitative properties or intensities. Other languages may use similar constructions, sometimes with different morphological strategies or orthographic conventions.

See also: compound adjective, gradability, hedging in adjectives.