Adjective of Number Examples

Adjectives are one of the eight parts of speech in the English language. Adjectives are words that modify, or describe, nouns or pronouns. Adjectives tell us which one, what kind, or how many.

red, happy, late, great, foolish, loose, small

Adjectives can be divided into two broad categories: quantity and quality.

An adjective of number is an adjective that tells exactly how many or how much of something there is. It differs from an adjective of quantity that that references a quantity of something that cannot be counted (i.e. some milk, all lemonade). Adjectives of number refer to things that can be counted-even if it is an indefinite amount in the sentence.

Definite Adjectives of Number

These are numbers and amounts, both cardinal numbers and ordinal numbers: one, thousand, gallon, first, fifth, etc. These refer to definite amounts of things.

Indefinite Adjectives of Number

These are adjectives that refer to an indefinite amount of something that can be counted: some, all, many, any, few, no, several, etc. These same words can be used as adjectives of quantity when they refer to something that cannot be counted (i.e. milk, time, water). But, they are adjectives of number when they refer to items that can be counted (i.e. some crackers, many chocolates, no people).

Distributive Adjectives of Number

These are adjectives that refer to individual people, places, or things that are part of a total group or part of a whole. Examples include each, every, either, neither.

Remember that many of these words can also function as other parts of speech (i.e. nouns and pronouns), so you must be careful to make sure that the word is functioning as an adjective.

Examples of Adjectives of Number in Sentences

Every boy in the class can count to 100.

There is one piece of pizza left.

All girls should report to the gym for PE.

The first teacher to arrive was Mr. Paul.

Third place goes to Marie!

It was a gallon jug that we needed to hold the water.

Could you bring me forty paperclips?

I wonder if many people know about this short cut?