Learning adjective suffixes is an effective way to expand your English vocabulary and improve your word formation skills. By adding endings like -ful, -less, -ous, and -ive to nouns and verbs, you can create meaningful adjectives to describe people, things, and feelings. This lesson also introduces other common suffixes such as -y, -al, -ing, and -able to give you a complete understanding of how adjectives are formed in real English usage.
Adjective Suffixes Worksheets
Common Adjective Suffixes (With Meaning & Examples)
| Suffix | IPA (US) | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ful | /fʊl/ | full of something | careful |
| -less | /ləs/ | without something | careless |
| -ous | /əs/ | full of / having quality | dangerous |
| -ive | /ɪv/ | having a tendency | creative |
| -y | /i/ | having quality of | sunny |
| -al | /əl/ | relating to | natural |
| -ing | /ɪŋ/ | causing a feeling | interesting |
| -able | /əbl/ | capable of | comfortable |
| -ic | /ɪk/ | relating to | energetic |
| -ish | /ɪʃ/ | like / somewhat | childish |
Related: Parts of Speech Guide
Adjective Suffixes Exercises
📝 Exercise 1: Add the correct adjective suffix
Complete each word by adding the correct suffix (-ful, -less, -ous, or -ive) to form an adjective.
- care → __________
- danger → __________
- create → __________
- hope → __________
- use → __________
- power → __________
- attract → __________
- fame → __________
- joy → __________
- help → __________
🧩 Exercise 2: Choose the correct adjective form
Select the correct adjective to complete each sentence.
- She is a very (beauty / beautiful) person.
- The movie was so (bore / boring) that I fell asleep.
- This room is really (comfort / comfortable).
- The baby looks (sleep / sleepy).
- It was a very (success / successful) event.
- That was a (shame / shameful) thing to do.
- I prefer (nature / natural) light.
- His speech was (inspire / inspiring).
- It’s (danger / dangerous) to drive too fast.
- Her dress is (color / colorful).
🧠 Exercise 3: Form adjectives from the words in brackets
- It was a __________ day. (sun)
- He gave me a __________ smile. (friend)
- The story was really __________. (interest)
- She is a __________ person. (help)
- That’s a very __________ situation. (danger)
- He’s an __________ boy; he never stops running. (energy)
- I find this book quite __________. (educate)
- The sky looks __________ today. (cloud)
- She’s wearing a __________ dress. (fashion)
- The mountain view was __________. (wonder)
✏️ Exercise 4: Match the noun/verb to its adjective
| A. Word | B. Adjective |
|---|---|
| 1. care | a. hopeful |
| 2. danger | b. creative |
| 3. help | c. dangerous |
| 4. hope | d. careless |
| 5. power | e. helpful |
| 6. fame | f. powerful |
| 7. attract | g. famous |
| 8. use | h. attractive |
| 9. beauty | i. useful |
| 10. energy | j. energetic |
🧾 Exercise 5: Identify the suffix
Underline the suffix in each adjective and identify its meaning.
- wonderful
- careless
- dangerous
- hopeful
- helpful
- attractive
- childish
- energetic
- creative
- natural
🔹 Answer Key
Exercise 1
- careful
- dangerous
- creative
- hopeful
- useful
- powerful
- attractive
- famous
- joyful
- helpful
Exercise 2
- beautiful
- boring
- comfortable
- sleepy
- successful
- shameful
- natural
- inspiring
- dangerous
- colorful
Exercise 3
- sunny
- friendly
- interesting
- helpful
- dangerous
- energetic
- educational
- cloudy
- fashionable
- wonderful
Exercise 4
1–d 2–c 3–e 4–a 5–f 6–g 7–h 8–i 9–j 10–b
Exercise 5
- wonderful – full of wonder
- careless – without care
- dangerous – full of danger
- hopeful – full of hope
- helpful – giving help
- attractive – causing attraction
- childish – like a child
- energetic – having energy
- creative – showing creativity
- natural – relating to nature