critical

adverb + adjective (emphasis)

An adjective phrase can consist of an adverb + adjective.  In the following examples: ‘obvious‘ and ‘unlikely‘ are the head of the adjective phrases. Needless to say, Ares’ negotiating position was hugely strengthened when it became painfully obvious to everyone  that the giant US asset manager was the only bidder that had bothered to turn up at the auction. traveller.com.au   Therefore, all 42 Sinn Fein candidates would likely have to be elected to the 160-seat chamber  to give it a shot at emerging as the largest party, an outcome which remains highly unlikely. express.co.uk   The adverbs ‘painfully’ and ‘highly’ are used here to emphasize. C1

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extreme adverb + adjective

Let’s look at a few student speaking test examples and one from an expert using extreme adverbs modifying gradable adjectives: There are a few cases in which the parents have been excellent guides to the students, and as you know guides are extremely important for a child‘s career. TLC male India C1   Native speaker: I haven’t read it but I‘ve seen the film, have you seen the film? Student: Yes, I have, but it’s totally different from the book. TLC male India B1   It’s absolutely necessary to find a solution,  and I know that in some cases, for example,  in some sports facilities built in Madrid, they are trying to remodel the space. TLC male Spain C1   These are all details that are incredibly easy to record contemporaneously but are also incredibly easy to forget later on.

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-AL adjective suffix

Compared to looking at the -able suffix endings which were very advanced vocabulary.  We mean beyond what most general English classes would need to learn.  The ‘-al’ suffixes are all around the B levels or intermediate.  Therefore this list is a good list of adjectives for students to learn that are around intermediate. We found

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adjective + BUT + adjective + noun (complex noun phrase)

Here are some examples of this form:
Being nice to someone is a SIMPLE BUT EFFECTIVE WAY of making friends.
Some herbs like MOIST BUT WELL-DRAINED SOIL.
I am making SLOW BUT STEADY PROGRESS with my language learning.
Although she is usually easy to get along with, she does have a RARE BUT SERIOUS SIDE to her personality too.
A SMALL BUT SIGNIFICANT NUMBER of students didn’t pass the test.

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