Gradable

Gradable is a term used in linguistics to describe adjectives that denote properties capable of varying in degree along a scale. A gradable adjective allows speakers to express different intensities or amounts of a property, using degree modifiers such as more, less, very, or extremely, and to compare items on a scale (e.g., bigger, more interesting).

Gradable adjectives contrast with non-gradable (or absolute) adjectives, which denote properties that are typically viewed as binary or absolute and do not admit typical degree modification. Examples often cited include dead, perfect, unique, or identical; such adjectives generally resist ordinary gradation (though language can be flexible in context). Many everyday adjectives, such as big, small, tall, or bright, are gradable and readily appear with intensifiers and comparisons.

Syntactically, gradable adjectives participate in standard comparatives and superlatives (-er/-est or more/most) and can appear with degree modifiers like very, quite, or too. They can also be modified by hedges that adjust the strength of the property (e.g., somewhat tall, fairly bright). Some adjectives are partially gradable, depending on context or interpretation, and may resist certain degrees or comparisons in specific constructions.

In semantics, gradability relates to the scale or domain of the property and how a sentence’s truth conditions change with degree. Cross-linguistically, languages vary in how gradability is encoded lexically and syntactically, but the basic idea—properties that can be graded in intensity versus absolute properties—remains a common organizing principle in grammar and lexicon.