Compound adjectives

A compound adjective is a combination of two words which function as a single adjective.

The two words are often joined with a hyphen.

Task 1. Join one word in group A with one in group B to make compound adjectives.

Group A

absent- • dark- • eye-

fair- • half- • hand- hard-

• home- run- short-• semi- • sun-

three- • well- • world-

Group B

Burnt • catching • detached
down • eyed • famous •
haired • hearted • made
minded • off • read
sighted skilled • skinned
star • tanned • up

Task 2. Use the compound adjectives to complete the following sentences.

1. We stayed in a ________ hotel on the seafront.
2. Everybody has heard of Mel Gibson; he's a ________ actor.
3. After six hours on the beach, he had a terribly ________ face.
4. I can't see very clearly. I'm a bit ________ .
5. It wasn't a particularly ________ tennis racket; it broke soon after I bought it.
6. She was wearing an ________ dress that made heads turn as she walked through the room.
7. All these items are ________ by skilled craftsmen in a local factory.
8. I feel a bit ________. Perhaps I should take more vitamins.
9. My wife comes from a ________ family; they've always had more money than my own family.
10. My grandfather's becoming very ________ . Last week he went to the library in his slippers.
11. To make a bit of money, my sister and I used to sell ________ cakes.
12. He made a ________ attempt to take an interest, but it was obvious he didn't want to be there.
13. My father is a very ________ man. His favourite authors are Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco.
14. I live in a rather plain ________ house on the outskirts of Nottingham.
15. There are lots of jobs for ________ workers in the factories in my area.