attributive
Before the noun
Attributive describes a word that modifies a noun by appearing directly before it, rather than after a linking verb.
In a tall building, tall is attributive; in the building is tall, it's predicative.
Some adjectives work only attributively: you can say the main reason but not the reason is main.
The term also applies to nouns modifying other nouns: chicken in chicken soup.
Word altering another
- adjectiveNoun-describing word type
- determinerNoun-introducing word class
- premodifierWord modifying what follows
- adjectivalOf describing words
participle · genitive · qualifier · epithet · appositive · compound noun · nominal · syntactic
Distinguishing quality or trait
- qualityStandard or attribute
- traitDistinguishing personal quality
- propertySomething owned or inherent
- featureDistinguishing quality or element
defining · distinctive · identifying · essential · inherent · intrinsic · qualifying · modifying
modifier
Word altering another
- adjectiveNoun-describing word type
- determinerNoun-introducing word class
- premodifierWord modifying what follows
adjectival · participle · genitive · qualifier · epithet · appositive · compound noun · nominal · syntactic · phrase
characteristic
Distinguishing quality or trait
feature · defining · distinctive · identifying · essential · inherent · intrinsic · qualifying · modifying · specifying
genitive
Case expressing ownership
her · its · their · my · your · our · whose · possessive case · apostrophe · noun phrase
- grammardeclension, pronouns, adjectives, conjugation, nouns
- grammar termsnoun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun
- grammar partsnoun, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun
- modifiersadjectives, modifier, modifiers, adjective, adverb
- noun grammarnoun, noun phrase, case, declension, noun clause
- false attributionWrongly assigned origin
- attribution theoryHow we explain behavior
- without attribution