Introduction to Adjectives and Numerals

Relevance of the Theme

Adjectives and numerals are fundamental pieces of our language. Their understanding and effective use make expression rich, varied, and precise. By mastering the application of these terms, we significantly expand our communication skills, whether to describe something or someone in greater depth, or to quantify and order elements. These elements provide nuances and details in our speech and writing that enrich the way we communicate.

Contextualization

In our Portuguese study, after dissecting morphologies and nominal phrases, we reach a crucial stage: the analysis of adjectives and numerals. By characterizing, limiting, or numbering nouns, these elements give our sentences and texts a more precise and detailed meaning. Understanding how adjectives perform this function of characterization and limitation, and how numerals add the notion of quantity and order, is a fundamental step to deepen our studies in the Portuguese language. By mastering these concepts, we will be better equipped to express our ideas carefully and precisely.

Theoretical Development

Components

• Adjectives:

  • Definition: Adjectives are words that refer directly to nouns, providing characteristics, qualities, or states to them. This reference can be made both directly, through gender and number agreement, and indirectly, through prepositional phrases.
  • Classifications: There are several types of adjectives, which can be classified based on different criteria, such as: proper adjectives, numerals, demonstratives, possessives, etc.
  • Functions: Adjectives, depending on their classification and context of use, can perform various functions in the sentence, such as: adnominal adjunct, subject predicative, among others.

• Numerals:

  • Definition: Numerals are words that express quantity or order. They can be cardinal, ordinal, multiplicative, or fractional.
  • Classifications: The classification of numerals is based on their meaning: cardinal, which indicates the exact quantity; ordinal, which indicates the order in a sequence; multiplicative, which indicates the multiplication of quantity; and fractional, which denotes parts of a whole.
  • Functions: Numerals can act as adnominal adjuncts, agreeing in gender and number with the noun they refer to. They can also function as nouns, when they represent the quantity or order itself, or as adverbs, when they modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.

Key Terms

• Adjective: Term that qualifies or characterizes a noun.

• Numeral: Term that indicates the quantity and position of something in a sequence.

• Agreement: Grammatical adequacy relationship between the terms of a sentence.

Examples and Cases

• Adjective:

  • Example: In the sentence "The sky is blue", "blue" is the adjective that characterizes the noun "sky".

• Numeral:

  • Example: In the sentence "I read three books this week", "three" is a cardinal numeral indicating quantity.
  • Example: In the sentence "She arrived in second place", "second" is an ordinal numeral indicating order.

• Agreement:

  • Example: In the sentence "The beautiful birds sang cheerfully", the adjective "beautiful" is in the plural to agree with the noun "birds".

Adjectives and numerals, when interacting with nouns, enhance the understanding of the context in which they are used. They provide the possibility to describe more precisely, quantify, and express order, bringing important nuances to the Portuguese language. Mastery of these grammatical elements is essential to communicate effectively in our language.