Prepositive

Prepositive is a term used in linguistics to describe the position of a modifier that precedes the noun it modifies. In a noun phrase, the prepositive element is placed before the head noun, whereas a postpositive element follows the noun. The most common prepositive modifiers are determiners (such as the, a, this) and attributive adjectives.

In languages with predominantly prepositive modifiers, such as English, adjectives and determiners typically precede the noun: a small child, the old house. By contrast, languages with postnominal adjectives place the modifier after the noun—for example, in French many descriptive adjectives follow the noun, as in une voiture rapide (a fast car). Some languages allow both orders, and the choice can affect nuance, emphasis, or conventional phrasing. In Spanish, for instance, gran hombre (great man) is a prepositive use that conveys a subjective or figurative sense, whereas hombre grande (big man) describes physical size.

Prepositive placement is an aspect of broader word order and determiner–adjective sequencing within noun phrases. It interacts with morphosyntactic agreement, definiteness, and idiomatic expressions. While most Germanic and English structures favor prepositive modifiers, many Romance and Slavic languages exhibit a strong tendency toward postpositive adjectives in neutral descriptors, with prepositive instances marking emphasis or evaluative meaning.

See also: postpositive, noun phrase, adjective order, determiner placement.