Grammar. Intensifying adverbs and adjectives

Most adjectives are gradable and we can make them stronger using adverbs such as very, extremely and incredibly.
It’s very cold.
I was extremely tired.

Adverb + adjective

Some adjectives by their nature are ungradable and cannot be used with adverbs such as very, extremely and incredibly. These adjectives, however, can be made stronger with adverbs such as absolutely, completely, totally and utterly.
It was absolutely brilliant.
I’m completely exhausted.
The train was totally packed.
It was utterly pointless.

Note that we can usually use really with both gradable and ungradable adjectives.
It was really good. It was really amazing.

Note that with some adjectives, we can use adverbs that are used with both gradable and ungradable adjectives. Try to notice which adjectives work in this way.
He’s very happy. I’m totally happy.

Note that some gradable adjectives have one or more ungradable equivalent, for example:
cold ➔ freezing
hot ➔ boiling
tasty ➔ delicious
tired ➔ exhausted
angry ➔ furious
old ➔ ancient
funny ➔ hilarious
hungry ➔ starving
crowded ➔ packed
loud ➔ deafening
interesting ➔ fascinating
surprised ➔ flabbergasted
rich ➔ rolling-in-it
poor ➔ penniless
important ➔ crucial / vital / essential
big ➔ enormous / huge / massive
small ➔ tiny / minute
good ➔ amazing / awesome / fantastic / brilliant
bad ➔ awful / terrible

It is useful to notice and learn these adjectives.
He was really angry. In fact, he was absolutely furious.

There are a number of common and useful intensifying adverb + adjective collocations and patterns (e.g. bitterly disappointed, blissfully happy, brutally honest, fiercely competitive, highly suspicious, sorely missed). It is important to notice and remember these.
She’s always been fiercely competitive.
To be brutally honest, this is not good enough.
You’ll be sorely missed when you leave.

Adjective + noun

We can also use the adjective form of these adverbs to intensify nouns.
It was an absolute mess.
I was in complete shock.
It’s total chaos.
It was an utter disaster.

Combining intensifiers

We sometimes combine the intensifiers absolute(ly), complete(ly), total(ly) and utter(ly) using and to give extra emphasis. Utter(ly) is commonly used as the second intensifier.
It was totally and utterly unfair.
It’s a complete and utter disgrace.
We don’t usually combine the intensifiers very, really, extremely, incredibly but you can repeat the same one without and. We can also use other intensifying adverbs and adjectives in this way.
She’s very, very lucky.
It was really, really interesting.
It was a total, total shock.

In informal English, you may hear super used as an intensifier with some adjectives.
The museum is super interesting.
The place is super cool.

7. Correct the mistakes in the sentences. One sentence is already correct.

1 There are some absolutely fancy shops around there, despite the crumbling buildings.
2 There was just a really buzz about the place and we had an absolute whale of a time.
3 It was just a simply amazing thing to experience – an absolute dream come true.
4 The area is incredibly quiet and the streets are very, very deserted at night.
5 It was really and really run-down, with some buildings just completely derelict.

8. Think of three examples for these categories and write a comment using intensifying adverbs and adjectives. Then share your ideas in groups.

Ex: The streets in the Gràcia district in Barcelona are always absolutely filthy the day after the ‘Fiesta Mayor’.

Exercise 2. Rewrite the sentences to make them more emphatic. Use an ungradable adjective and an appropriate intensifier.

1 I’m very hungry. — I’m absolutely starving.
2 The train was very crowded.
3 The restaurant was really bad.
4 The museum was really good.
5 It’s very important that you are not late.
6 My hotel room is OK, but it’s very small.
7 The building work next door is very loud. I can’t concentrate.

Exercise 3. Complete the sentences with your own ideas.

1 very, very expensive. — A lot of basic food is becoming very, very expensive.
2 a complete and utter shock.
3 absolutely delicious.
4 totally pointless.
5 a total mess.
6 totally and utterly brilliant.
7 super interesting.