Cardinal adjectives are a type of numeral adjective that express quantity. They provide exact data, informing the receiver how many nouns are being talked about. For example: four, two, one hundred.
In general, adjectives express characteristics related to subjective descriptions of the noun they modify. Cardinal adjectives, on the other hand, are scalar numbers.
Characteristics of Cardinal Adjectives
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Cardinal adjectives have a unique characteristic that distinguishes them from any other class of adjectives. In the English language, agreement in terms of gender and number is made between the verb and the noun. However, when it comes to cardinal adjectives, the question is modified, and it is the adjectives that force the noun (and the verb) to change in terms of number. If the adjective modifies the question of quantity, it will determine the number of the sentence. Therefore, cardinal adjectives always come before the noun. For example: ten people showed up.
Numeral Adjectives
Numeral adjectives provide information about the quantity or distribution of the noun. They express a numerical quantity in their name. Examples of numeral adjectives include cardinal (when they express quantity), ordinal (when they express order), multiples (when they express multiplicity), and partitives (when they express partition).
Examples of Sentences with Cardinal Adjectives
- We came and found a computer that was not yours.
- We gave you three opportunities, and you missed them.
- I only want two pizza slices. I had breakfast an hour ago.
- I heard that with the money from the inheritance, a car was bought.
- Four seats, please.
- We only accept these five credit cards.
- I had never seen a thing like that in my life.
- This service is a disaster. This morning they should have arrived with twelve boxes.
- Don’t buy animals; adopt one.
- The largest stadium in our city has the capacity for twenty-two thousand people.
- We will celebrate that they turn eighty years old.
- Did you really go to the movies and watch two movies in a row?
- Due to the airport strike, they had to reschedule thirty-two flights.
- Every Thursday, I invite my friends to dinner at my home with seven nephews.
- I have two weddings this month, but I don’t have a dress.
- Four heads are better than one.
- I have three brothers, and each of them has two sons.
- For my birthday, I want a drum set.
- In the class, there are forty students, and only thirteen passed the exam.
- This year-end, we will take a trip all over Europe.
Why is s “a” a Cardinal Adjective?
In the examples above, “a” is a cardinal adjective known as an indefinite article. It is used to refer to a non-specific or unspecified noun, indicating one of something without specifying which particular item it is. For example, in the phrase “a cat,” the word “a” indicates one cat, but it doesn’t specify which cat in particular.