NRTC English: Non-gradable adjectives

You see, even though you think you’re beautiful, there’s someone more beautiful than you are, just take it easy on yourself, and there’s someone out there who’s the most beautiful. But can we ever know that? Beauty, they say, is in the eye of the beholder.

Adjectives that take this degree of comparison are called gradable adjectives, like there are levels or grades to them.

Being beautiful has grades. And so is being clever (=cleverer, the cleverest), handsome (=more handsome, the most handsome), good (=better, the best), bad (worse, the worst), much/many (=more, the most), pretty (=prettier, the prettiest), etc.

So, you can start thinking of other adjectives that can take a degree of comparison, that can be compared, I mean that are gradable.

However, there are adjectives that cannot be compared; adjectives that have reached their peak. Because they are absolute (say dead), extreme (say freezing), and classifying (say nuclear), and because it’d be ridiculous to show their degree.

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Let’s say, the dog is dead. No other dog can be deader, or something. If something is unique or excellent, it is simply in its absolute quality.

It's better to understand what makes an adjective gradable or non-gradable. This is a matter of logic and common sense. Most native speakers have never heard of gradable and non-gradable adjectives. They just "feel" that it doesn't make sense to say "fairly excellent" or "very unique". You probably have the same thing in your language.

A non-gradable adjective cannot be used with grading adverbs, such as very, almost, entirely, slightly, and extremely. This is not a hard-and-fast rule.

• The dog is very completely dead.
• The television show was very superb.
• He’s investing in slightly nuclear energy.
• Your homework is fairly excellent.
• The billionaire lives in a very unique house.

• Don’t see that film! It’s very absolutely awful.
• Are you sure? Yes, I’m very quite certain.
• The country is in a very ridiculous situation. I laugh so much.

Remember that you cannot use all non-grading adverbs with all non-gradable adjectives. Some collocate (go together). Some don't.

Often, non-gradable adjectives are used alone. Besides, they already contain the idea of ‘very’ in their definitions.

The adverbs really (very much) and fairly and pretty (both meaning “to a significant degree, but less than very”) can often be used with gradable and non-gradable adjectives.