... words that are 'compound adjectives'?
I mean the adjectives that are hyphenated because the two words themselves aren't adjectives and couldn't modify the noun by itself...
Like... blood-curdling, hair-raising, spine-tingling, life-threatening, mind-boggling...
I refer to them as 'compound adjectives' for lack of a better term, but I'm sure there is one.
=-)
2007-09-23 19:14:59 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
Well, if you just have to be different..., you could call them "unbound morphemes"..... "A compound adjective is a modifier of a noun. It consists of two or more morphemes of which the left-hand component limits or changes the modification of the right-hand one."...
Or perhaps "exocentric compounds"... words whose meaning cannot be guessed from its separate parts. The compound white-collar is neither a kind of collar nor a white thing.
Or maybe, "bahuvrihi compound" (Sanskrit) would be more to your liking. A bahuvrihi compound is one whose nature is expressed by neither of the words: thus a white-collar person is neither white nor a collar.
Thanks for helping stimulate the very OLD brain cells....
2007-09-24 06:34:46 · answer #1 · answered by suisse shoggi 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The specific term for compound adjectives is the following: "compound adjectives." Sorry, if this sounds sarcastic, but it's early in the morning and I'm on my 1st cup of coffee.
2007-09-24 06:47:18 · answer #2 · answered by Elaine P...is for Poetry 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the term is 'compound adjective'
2007-09-24 02:30:43 · answer #3 · answered by lab90210 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They are, as you guessed, known as compound adjectives. Here's your link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv224.shtml
2007-09-24 04:09:00 · answer #4 · answered by Bethany 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
one-idea or one-thought adjectives
2007-09-24 02:51:02 · answer #5 · answered by Level 7 is Best 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋