Skip to main content

Questions tagged [compound-adjectives]

A compound adjective is when two or more adjectives are combined to modify a noun. In many instances, such compounds are hyphenated.

Filter by
Sorted by
Tagged with
2 votes
3 answers
9k views

Should there be a hyphen in expressions such as "currently-available X"?

My natural instinct is to hyphenate expressions such as "currently-available", "currently-implemented", etc., when they modify a noun. Example: "the currently-available version of X". It seems to me ...
mhucka's user avatar
  • 153
7 votes
3 answers
326 views

Is there a word or phrase to define several words linked by hyphens, such as in "a sit-back-and-wait-for-it attitude"

some more examples: "And she gave me that aren't-I-just-gorgeous smile." "The I-did-it-my-way approach." "A from-this-day-forward-I-have-no-son scene."
Centaurus's user avatar
  • 50.2k
6 votes
1 answer
1k views

Irregular plurals in noun adjuncts

Several psycholinguists1,2 have observed that English speakers do not use regular plurals in compounds, even when the noun refers to more than one instance (dog-catcher, *dogs-catcher), but do use ...
Trey's user avatar
  • 236
16 votes
3 answers
17k views

How should a multiple-word noun be punctuated within a compound adjective? [duplicate]

I would like to use a noun made of multiple words (like particle board, Mount Everest, or windscreen wiper) in a compound adjective with a hyphen. But I don't know how to hyphenate such a composition....
kdbanman's user avatar
  • 363
3 votes
2 answers
24k views

Hyphenating measurements [duplicate]

A construction that I have been seeing a lot lately that seems surprising to me is "The 8-foot-long bridge ...," with two hyphens. It seems surprising to me (or maybe I'm just noticing it) that ...
Vidro3's user avatar
  • 467
3 votes
3 answers
809 views

"Hardware-counter-based tools" or "hardware-counter based tools"? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicates: Chainsaw-equipped or chainsaw equipped? How to connect a word and a phrase with a hyphen? "One-Day Only Promotion" or "One-Day-Only Promotion" Which is ...
Julian's user avatar
  • 387
17 votes
1 answer
45k views

Use of a hyphen with the word "based"

I'm checking a technical paper submission and came across the phrase We propose spherical Gaussian based approximations to calculate this analytically. and wondering if this needs a hyphen ...
psd's user avatar
  • 337
15 votes
1 answer
7k views

Fractions as phrasal (compound) adjectives

Is there a difference between a written-out fraction that serves as a noun: He gave me one half of his sandwich. and a written-out fraction serving as an adjective: I gave her a one-half share ...
Kelly Hess's user avatar
  • 5,002
3 votes
1 answer
2k views

How to hyphenate a phrasal adjective: PCI-compliant

I have a phrase I use often in my work, but I'm not sure if I'm hyphenating it correctly. As it stands, I've been writing it like this: The PCI-compliant payment gateway... I think PCI-compliant is a ...
user281484's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
518 views

Hyphenation of Compound Adjective

Is this correct: Representation of a 4 to 9-node-quadrilateral element? and this: which is the case of a multi-degree of freedom problem?
user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
605 views

Hyphenation of a compound modifier formed of an adjective and a noun

Earlier questions on the hyphenation of compound modifiers have been well answered, so now I would sharpen the question. We seem to agree that this has good hyphenation: The question is well ...
thb's user avatar
  • 1,005
15 votes
3 answers
4k views

Is it correct to say 'a four doored car'?

If I describe a motor car as a 'four door car' I am making 'door' an adjective. It forms a compound adjective with the word 'four' and it adjectivally describes an attribute of the car, and is ...
Nigel J's user avatar
  • 24.9k
2 votes
1 answer
354 views

hyphenation of compound adjectives [closed]

Proofreading a friend's work, I came across the following phrase: [teachers and students] work collaboratively to change long held, potentially incorrect and deeply believed views Now, while I'm ...
Jules's user avatar
  • 317
1 vote
1 answer
1k views

"Is far from..." - How do I connote the simile, without the literal connotation?

In using a contrasting simile, I think I have fallen into a trap. I want to say: The academy is far from a placid house of learning. In the sense of: The academy is not at all a serene place ...
Mike's user avatar
  • 419
0 votes
1 answer
204 views

Strings like 'open-minded': how are they classified?

How are strings like 'open-minded' regarded? If you say they're participles, I ask of which verb ('to open-mind' or 'to mind'? With which meaning then? Is there a meaning of 'to mind' like 'to provide ...
Ben A.'s user avatar
  • 298
0 votes
3 answers
45 views

A service-oriented architecture–developed application vs An application developed with a service-oriented architecture

I know the following kind of transformation can be done to turn passive voice into active voice when there is an actor preceded by the preposition by: An application developed by Microsoft should be ...
goahead97's user avatar
  • 101
11 votes
3 answers
13k views

article heading should be "Experiment setup" or "Experimental setup"?

My advisor insists on using a heading "Experimental Setup" in his science journal articles. I always cringed a little, thinking it should be "Experiment setup" instead. Now I am writing an article and ...
GradStudent's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
7k views

What is the correct usage of hyphens with ranges (as in "a 5 to 10 minute rest")?

I'm having issues with figuring out which is correct: "The teacher told the students to take a 5 to 10 minute rest." "The teacher told the students to take a 5-to-10 minute rest." "The teacher told ...
semicentaur111's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
1k views

Is "currently-installed" a proper compound adjective? [duplicate]

I'm in the process of working on technical documentation and the phrase "currently-installed" came up. The context of the orginal sentesnece is as follows: "You are not licensed to use the ...
anonymous's user avatar
  • 464
2 votes
2 answers
917 views

Adjectives used with intransitive verbs in lieu of adverbs

I certainly wouldn't argue that "I feel good" should be replaced with "I feel well," but I have forgotten what we used to call the adjective in this type of construction. Adjective predicate? ...
Michael Owen Sartin's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
1k views

Is it better to list adjectives, with an "and"? [duplicate]

When we use more than one adjective, e.g. The big, red, bouncy balloon. The list of three adjectives {big, red, and bouncy} is a list, so by rights it should be separated by commas, with an "and" ...
Robert Frost's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
678 views

What grammatical role is "blood" playing in the phrase "blood red"?

"Blood red" can be both a noun and an adjective: Blood red is my favourite colour. [noun] The wall was blood red. [adjective] The "blood" is optional in the sense it can be ...
Silverfish's user avatar
  • 1,501
1 vote
3 answers
16k views

Joining two words to make a single word

I am international engineering student studying in US. I have a question regarding words that are created as a result of joining two words. Usually this happens when two technologies or methodologies ...
John's user avatar
  • 13
1 vote
1 answer
18k views

Offroad, off road, or off-road?

My instincts tell me that the following phrase should be "2014 and newer off-road equipment." When I Google it, I see all of the these: offroad, off road, and off-road. Is there a correct one? Or ...
Debbi Crum's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
1k views

with/without "-ed" for the compound adjectives formed by "adj.+noun"? [duplicate]

Among tons of "adj.+noun" compound adjectives, some of them end with "-ed", e.g. open-minded, double-sided, big-headed, some without, e.g. present-day, rear-view, deep-sea. I've also seen the usage of ...
JJcat's user avatar
  • 347
0 votes
1 answer
1k views

Hyphenating Multiple Compound Adjectives With Common First Word

I have a feeling this question has already been asked, but couldn't find it by searching. I found people asking about hyphenation of multiple compound adjectives with a common second word, but I'm ...
Nathan Arthur's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
2k views

Hyphenation of the suffix "like"

I am having trouble understanding the following: "the achievable rate of the optimal AF scheme performs close to the cut-set like bound obtained in this paper" I think that the word "like" (above) ...
Robert Astle's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
104 views

'The snap election results' or 'The snap-election results'? [closed]

Which of the two is grammatically correct? The snap election results are in. The snap-election results are in. The sentence should refer to the results of an election that was announced suddenly and ...
danger mouse's user avatar
0 votes
3 answers
176 views

"Typical liberal bulls-t" or "typically liberal bulls-t"?

My liberal friend wrote that he's gonna do some research soon. I asked, "Into what?" "[Redacted.] Typically liberal bullshit," he replied self-depricatingly. Then he corrects himself: "*typical" But ...
the_scheining's user avatar