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Attributive vs Adjective - What's the difference?

attributive | adjective |

In grammar terms the difference between attributive and adjective

is that attributive is an attributive word or phrase (see above), contrasted with predicative while adjective is a word that modifies a noun or describes a noun’s referent.

As a verb adjective is

to make an adjective of; to form or convert into an adjective.

attributive

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • (grammar, of a word or phrase) Modifying a noun, while in the same phrase as that noun.
    • In "this big house", "big" is attributive , whereas in "this house is big", it is predicative.
  • Having the nature of an attribute.
  • *
    • Since both Attributes'' and ''Adjuncts'' recursively expand N-bar into N-bar, it seems clear that the two have essentially the same function, so that ''Attributes'' are simply pronominal Adjuncts (though we shall continue to follow tradition and refer to attributive premodifiers as ''Attributes'' rather than ''Adjuncts ).

    Antonyms

    * predicative

    Derived terms

    * attributively * attributive adjective * attributive noun * attributive verb

    Related terms

    * attribute

    Noun

    (wikipedia attributive) (en noun)
  • (grammar) An attributive word or phrase (see above), contrasted with predicative.
    • In "this big house," "big" is an attributive , while in "this house is big," it is a predicative.
    In "this tiger is a man-eater," "man" is an attributive noun.

    adjective

    English

    Adjective

    (-)
  • (obsolete) Incapable of independent function.
  • * 1899 , , Emerson and Other Essays , AMS Press (1969) (as [http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/13088 reproduced] in Project Gutenberg)
    • In fact, God is of not so much importance in Himself, but as the end towards which man tends. That irreverent person who said that Browning uses “God” as a pigment made an accurate criticism of his theology. In Browning, God is adjective to man.
  • (grammar) Adjectival; pertaining to or functioning as an adjective.
  • (legal) Applying to methods of enforcement and rules of procedure.
  • * Macaulay
    • The whole English law, substantive and adjective .
  • (chemistry, of a dye) Needing the use of a mordant to be made fast to that which is being dyed.

    • Synonyms

    * (incapable of independent function) dependent, derivative * (functioning as an adjective) adjectival * (applying to methods of enforcement and rules of procedure) procedural

    Antonyms

    * (applying to methods of enforcement and rules of procedure) substantive * (of a dye that needs the use of a mordant) substantive

    Derived terms

    * adjectival * adjective clause * adjective phrase * adjective patterns * proper adjective * common adjective

    Noun

    (en noun) (wikipedia adjective)
  • (grammar) A word that modifies a noun or describes a noun’s referent.
    • The words “big” and “heavy” are English adjectives .
  • (obsolete) A dependent; an accessory.
    • (Fuller)

    Hyponyms

    * See also

    Verb

    (adjectiv)
  • To make an adjective of; to form or convert into an adjective.
  • * Tooke
    • Language has as much occasion to adjective' the distinct signification of the verb, and to adjective also the mood, as it has to adjective time. It has ' adjectived all three.
  • * 1832 , William Hunter, An Anglo-Saxon grammar, and derivatives (page 46)
    • In English, instead of adjectiving' our own substantives, we have borrowed, in immense numbers, ' adjectived signs from other languages