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  1. John is feeling well.

  2. John is feeling good.

"well" is an adverb and "good" is an adjective.

Is #2 grammatically correct at all or is it ok to construct Subject + Linking Verb + Adjective where adjective is describing the subject?

If #2 is grammatical, what is the difference between the two sentences?

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  • Don't edit a question that has been flagged as a duplicate. Either delete it, or leave it alone.
    – David M
    Mar 15, 2014 at 21:21

2 Answers 2

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Subject + Linking Verb + Adjective is absolutely ok. It even has a name: Predicate Adjective. Both sentences fit that structure, actually. well is used here in its adjectival sense. One of the meanings of the adjective form of well is good, but it more commonly means healthy.

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You seem to not know a fundamental fact: good is an adverb, as well as an adjective.

So both of your clauses are grammatically perfect. And technically, there's no difference between them. However, colloquialism interferes with everything in languages - which brings me to the point that "good", in this sense, should mean "happy, ready, ebullient", whereas "well" should mean "healthy".

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  • Dictionary says good is informally used as an adverb when well is meant. And in fact, you have it exactly opposite. well is an adjective (not only informally) in addition to being an adverb. And the usage is as an adjective.
    – Ben Voigt
    Mar 14, 2014 at 22:42
  • Hence colloquialism. And never did I bother mentioning well, because never did you ask about it.
    – user68911
    Mar 14, 2014 at 22:43
  • Moreover, the usage is NOT adjectival; rather, it is adverbial.
    – user68911
    Mar 14, 2014 at 22:46
  • If that's an adverb, where is the predicate? It's 100% a predicate adjective.
    – Ben Voigt
    Mar 14, 2014 at 22:47
  • We'll let some of the high-rep users be the judge of that. I suspect you'll be soundly trounced for denying the existence of predicate adjectives.
    – Ben Voigt
    Mar 14, 2014 at 22:52

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