Compound Nouns

Exercises

Explanation

1. Position of compound adjectives in a sentence

Compound adjectives follow the same placement rules as regular adjectives. They usually:

• appear before a noun, or

• follow linking verbs such as be, seem, feel, appear, look.

Examples:

She works for a high-risk investment firm.
The proposal seems well-prepared.
His explanation sounded overly complicated.

2. Common structural patterns

Compound adjectives can be formed in several ways. One frequent pattern combines descriptive words to produce a single meaning.

Adjective / adverb + past participle

Examples:

a widely accepted theory
a poorly written article
a carefully planned strategy

In these cases, the adverb modifies how the action was performed, while the past participle describes the result.

3. Compound adjectives with numbers

A very productive and common structure uses numbers to describe length, quantity, age, or duration.

Structure: number + singular noun + hyphen

Even when the meaning is plural, the noun remains singular because the whole expression acts as one adjective.

Examples:

a 20-minute delay
a six-month contract
a four-hour workshop

a six-months contract (incorrect)

4. Difference between compound adjectives and descriptive phrases

It is important to distinguish compound adjectives from full descriptive phrases.

Compare:

We rented a two-bedroom apartment.
The apartment has two bedrooms.

The first example uses a compound adjective before the noun.The second is a standard sentence, not an adjective.

5. Compound adjectives describing physical features (-ed forms)

When a compound adjective describes what someone or something has, especially physical characteristics, the ending -ed is typically used.

Structure: number + body part + -ed

Examples:

a three-headed sculpture
a short-legged table
a broad-shouldered athlete

These forms describe permanent or visible features rather than actions.