Order of Adjectives

When two or more adjectives come before a noun in English, they follow a fixed sequence — you cannot place them in any order you like. This adjective order rule is encoded in the OSASCOMP mnemonic: Opinion – Size – Age – Shape – Colour – Origin – Material – Purpose.

This lesson builds on Adjectives Basics and covers three applications of the OSASCOMP rule:

1. Two adjectives in the correct OSASCOMP order
2. Three or more adjectives — plus where to place numbers
3. Commas and "and" — when to separate adjectives and when not to

Note: If you sometimes confuse adjectives and adverbs (e.g., beautiful vs beautifully), review Adjective vs Adverb first — Section 1 of this lesson contains an important warning about this exact trap.

The OSASCOMP Table

This is your core reference. Memorise the category order — each position is fixed:

Memory tip: The further left on the table (Opinion), the more subjective the adjective. The further right (Material, Purpose), the more objective and "built-in" to the noun. English instinctively moves from personal judgement to physical fact.

Two Adjectives in Order — The OSASCOMP Rule

When you use two adjectives before a noun, find each adjective in the OSASCOMP table and put the lower-numbered category first:

Pattern: simply look up both categories in the table and place the earlier category (lower number) first.

⚠️ The -ly Trap: Keep Adjectives as Adjectives

A common error is adding -ly to the first adjective, turning it into an adverb. This is incorrect when you want two adjectives:

Exception — adjectives that end in -ly: Some adjectives naturally end in -ly and are still adjectives, not adverbs: lovely, friendly, lively, orderly, elderly, costly. These follow the same OSASCOMP order as any other adjective: a lovely little kitten (Opinion → Size) ✅.

👉 Practice Two-Adjective Order →

Three or More Adjectives — Numbers Come First

When three or more adjectives appear before a noun, the OSASCOMP order still applies. There is one additional rule: numbers and determiners always precede all adjectives.

The Full Formula

[Number/Determiner] + [Opinion] + [Size] + [Age] + [Shape] + [Colour] + [Origin] + [Material] + [Purpose] + Noun

Three-Adjective Examples

Key rule: Numbers (six, twelve, three) and determiners (a, the, my) come before all OSASCOMP adjectives — always. Six new wooden chairs, not new six wooden chairs.

More Examples with Numbers

• twelve large brown horses (Number → Size → Colour)
• ten tiny pink candles (Number → Size → Colour)
• four soft round cushions (Number → Quality → Shape)
• two heavy blue suitcases (Number → Size → Colour)
• three beautiful red roses (Number → Opinion → Colour)

Note on "traditional" and "modern": These words belong to the Age category because they describe a time-related quality. A delicious traditional Italian meal = Opinion (delicious) → Age (traditional) → Origin (Italian).

👉 Practice Three or More Adjectives →

⭐ When to Add Commas and "And"

This is the most error-prone area of adjective order. The rule depends on whether your adjectives belong to the same OSASCOMP category or different categories.

The Core Rule

The Swap Test — Your Key Diagnostic Tool

When you are unsure whether to add a comma, apply the swap test:

Can you swap the two adjectives AND naturally say "A and B"?

• If yes → they are the same category → use a comma (or "and")
• If no → they are different categories → no comma

Swap test examples:

Specific Patterns

Two colours → use "and":

When you have two colour adjectives (same OSASCOMP category), join them with "and":

Two same-category descriptive adjectives → use a comma:

• a tall, thin man (both size/build)
• a cold, damp cellar (both physical condition)
• a heavy, bulky sofa (both size)
• a smart, elegant suit (both opinion)
• a wide, varied selection (both quality)

Different-category adjectives → no comma at all:

• a gorgeous Italian leather handbag ✅ (Opinion → Origin → Material — no commas)
• a pretty old brass lamp ✅ (Opinion → Age → Material — no commas)
• a cute tiny black kitten ✅ (Opinion → Size → Colour — no commas)
• a beautiful new Swiss watch ✅ (Opinion → Age → Origin — no commas)

⚠️ The Comma Insertion Trap

A very common mistake is adding commas between adjectives from different OSASCOMP categories:

Rule of thumb: If your adjectives clearly belong to different OSASCOMP categories (Opinion vs Size vs Colour, etc.), never add commas between them.

Colour Modifiers: When Colours Have Multiple Words

When a colour has a modifier (soft pale blue, bright red and orange), the quality/intensity word comes first:

• soft pale blue curtains (quality → shade → colour)
• bright red and orange paints (quality → colour + colour)
• long green and gold curtains (size → colour + colour)

👉 Practice Commas, "And" & Mixed Order →

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Quick Summary

OSASCOMP Reference

+ Numbers/Determiners come before ALL adjectives

5-Step Adjective Ordering Process

Step 1 — List all adjectives and any numbers/determiners.

Step 2 — Place numbers and determiners first (e.g., six, my, these, a).

Step 3 — Classify each remaining adjective by its OSASCOMP category.

Step 4 — Sort adjectives left to right: Opinion → Size → Age → Shape → Colour → Origin → Material → Purpose.

Step 5 — Check for same-category pairs: apply the Swap Test.

• Swap works naturally + "and" sounds natural → same category → add comma or "and"
• Swap sounds unnatural → different categories → no comma

Swap Test at a Glance

"Can I swap them AND say 'A and B' naturally?"

• Yes → same category → comma or and
• No → different categories → nothing

Practice Tips

1. Learn OSASCOMP as a chant: Opinion – Size – Age – Shape – Colour – Origin – Material – Purpose. Say it aloud until it feels automatic. The physical act of reciting it helps fix the order in memory.
2. Use the swap test every time you are unsure about commas. If swapping sounds wrong, no comma is needed. This one test covers the majority of real-world comma decisions.
3. Pay attention to colour pairs in natural English. Native speakers say red and white, black and white, blue and gold — the "and" is always there between two colours. Start noticing this in texts you read.
4. When you learn new adjectives, classify them. As you encounter new descriptive words, immediately ask: is this an Opinion, Size, Age, Shape, Colour, Origin, Material, or Purpose word? Building this habit makes the ordering feel natural rather than mechanical.
5. Avoid the -ly trap by asking: "Am I describing the noun or modifying another adjective?" In a beautiful red bag, both beautiful and red describe the bag directly. Neither should have -ly.

Practice All Exercises

Ready to practise adjective order in English? These order of adjectives exercises online come with answers and detailed explanations for every question. Printable adjective order exercises PDF worksheets are also available for offline practice. Work through all 3 sets of OSASCOMP exercises — covering two-adjective combinations, multi-adjective chains with numbers, and comma/and rules — from A2 to B1. Each set is also available in worksheet mode for handwriting practice. A complete resource for mastering the position of adjectives in English:

Now try the exercises to practise what you've learned!