Language/Panjabi/Grammar/Adjectives

Panjabi Grammar - Adjectives

Hi Panjabi learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will dive into the world of Adjectives in Panjabi. Do you want to describe how something looks, how it feels, how it smells, or even its shape or size? Adjectives are the mighty tools that will help you do so. By the end of this lesson, you will be able to use adjectives correctly and confidently.

Don't miss the chance to check out these pages as you wrap up this lesson: Panjabi Grammar → Basic Sentence Structure → Subject-Object ..., Nouns and Pronouns, Pronouns & Future Tense.

What are Adjectives in Panjabi?

Adjectives in Panjabi, as in many other languages, are words that describe or modify a noun or a pronoun. An adjective describes a quality or characteristic of the noun. For example, the color, shape, size, taste, or texture of the object. In English, you usually place an adjective before a noun, but in Panjabi, it can come before or after.

Example:

Panjabi	Pronunciation	English
ਲਾਲ ਏਕ ਛੋਟਾ ਮਹਿਲਾ	Lāl ēka chhōṭā mahilā	A small red woman
ਉਡੀਕ ਪਟਾਖ਼ਾ ਲਮਬੀ ਹੈ	Uḍīka paṭākhā lambī hai	The rocket is long and thin
ਸਲੀਕੇ ਮੀਠੇ ਹਨ	Salīkē mīṭhē han	The oranges are sweet and juicy
ਚਮਕੀਲੇ ਟੀਬੀ ਘਰ ਦੀ ਰੌਨਕ ਬਢਾਉਂਦੇ ਹਨ	Chamkīlē ṭībī ghar dī raunak baḍhā'ūndē han	The shiny tubes enhance the look of the house

Types of Adjectives

There are a few types of adjectives that you should be familiar with to use them correctly. They are:

Descriptive Adjectives

These adjectives describe the quality or characteristic of the noun or pronoun. They give you information about the shape, size, color, texture, or appearance.

Example:

• ਪਾਣੀ ਚੋਂਗਾ ਹੈ। (Pānī chōngā hai.) The water is cold.
• ਤੁਸੀਂ ਅਮੀਰ ਹੋ। (Tusī amīr hō.) You are wealthy.

Quantitative Adjectives

These adjectives give you information about the quantity or number of the noun.

Example:

• ਇੱਕ ਕੱਪ ਚਾਹ ਲਓ। (Ik kap chāh lā'ō.) Get me one cup of tea.
• ਸਿੱਖਿਆ ਨਾਲ ਸ਼ਬਦਾਂ ਦੀ ਗਿਣਤੀ ਵਧਦੀ ਰਹੇ। (Sikkhiyā nāl shabdāṇ dī giṇtī vaḍhdī rahe.) The count of words is increasing with education.

Demonstrative Adjectives

These adjectives are used to point out or identify a noun or pronoun.

Example:

• ਇਹ ਗੱਲ ਸਹੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਹੈ। (Ih gall sahī nahī hē.) This statement is not correct.
• ਉਹ ਮੇਰੇ ਸ਼ਗਿਰਦ ਨੂੰ ਜਾਣਦਾ ਹੈ। (Uha mērē shagird nū jān'dā hai.) He knows my student.

Now, let's move on to the formation of the adjectives in Panjabi.

Formation of Adjectives

In Panjabi, there are different ways to form adjectives. Some common ways are:

Adding -ਵਾਲਾ or -ਵਾਲੀ

This Suffix is frequently used in Panjabi to form adjectives meaning "having the quality of". We add -ਵਾਲਾ or -ਵਾਲੀ based on the gender of the noun.

Example:

• ਭਰਾਅ ਤੋਂ ਤਾਜ਼ਗੀ ਵਾਲਾ ਮੇਲਾ (Bharā'a tōṃ tāzgī vālā melā) A fair that is fresh from yesterday. (tāzgī means freshness)
• ਅੰਗਰੇਜ਼ੀ ਪੁਸਤਕ ਪੜ੍ਹਨ ਵਾਲੇ ਸਿੱਖ (Angarēzī pushtak paṛhna vālē sikh) A Sikh who is studying English books.
• ਬੰਦੇ ਦੀ ਚੋਂਗ ਵਾਲੀ ਪਿਆਜ਼ (Bandē dī chōng vālī piāz) Onion that is high in strength.

Adding -ੀ or -ਈ

Adding the suffix -ੀ or -ਈ to a noun usually forms feminine adjectives.

Example:

• ਚਿੱਟੀ ਰੰਗ ਕੀਤੀ ਬੱਚੀ (Chiṭṭī raṅg kītī baccī) A girl who is fair in color.
• ਛੋਟੀ ਗੁੜਿਆ ਚੰਗੀ ਹੈ। (Chhōtī guṛi'ā changī hai.) A small doll is good.

Adding -ਦਾ or -ਦੀ

Adding the suffix -ਦਾ or -ਦੀ to the noun forms adjectives describing the origin of the noun or ownership.

Example:

• ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਭਾਸ਼ਾ ਦੀ ਕਿਤਾਬ (Panjābī bhāshā dī kitāb) Book of Panjabi language.
• ਮਾਲਕ ਦੀ ਫੈਸਲਾਵੀ ਸ਼ਕਲ (Mālk dī faisalāvī shakl) The facial expression of the owner.

Comparison and Degree of Adjectives

In Panjabi, We form the comparative and superlative degree of adjectives by adding suffixes or extra words such as ਵਧੀਆ (vadhī'ā) Excellent and ਸਭ ਤੋਂ ਵਧੀਆ (sabh tōṃ vadhī'ā) The most Excellent.

Comparison of Adjectives

To compare two nouns, we use the following suffixes or adjectives.

suffix/adjective	use	Example	English
-ਤਰ	comparison of adjectives	ਦੋਲੇ ਆਕਾਰ ਤੋਂ ਬੜਾ ਹੈ।	The ball is bigger in shape.
ਜਿਵੇਂ	comparison of similarity	ਬੀਰ ਨੱਥ ਜਿਵੇਂ ਖੁਸ਼ਬੂ ਵਾਲਾ ਹੈ।	Beer is like perfumed.
-ਤਰੀਂ	comparison of the third element.	ਰਸੋਈ ਪਟਰੇ ਭੰਨ ਤੋਂ ਠੰਢਿਆ ਹੈ	The kitchen pot is colder than water.
ਜ਼ਿਆਦਾ	comparison of excess quantity	ਟੀਵੀ ਅੱਗੇ ਜ਼ਿਆਦਾ ਤੇਜ ਨਹੀਂ ਚਲਦਾ	The TV does not run faster.

Degree of Adjectives

The following table shows the formation of the degree of adjectives:

suffix/adjective	degree	example	english
ਵਧੀਆ	comparative degree	ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂ ਵਡਿਆ ਹੈ।	Waheguru is better.
ਸਭ ਤੋਂ ਵਧੀਆ	superlative degree	ਗੁਰੂ ਜੀ ਸਭ ਤੋਂ ਵਧੀਆ ਹਨ।	Guruji is the best of all.

Practice Dialogue

ਸਿਮਰਨ: ਪਰਮੇਸ਼, ਉਹ ਬੱਚਾ ਕੀ ਕੈਪ ਪਹਿਨਦਾ ਹੈ? (Simran: Parmesh, Uha bacchā kī kaip pahin'dā hai?) (Parmesh: The child is wearing a red cap. (Bachā lal cap pahin'da hai))

ਅਮਰ: ਜੈਨ, ਉਹ ਦੁਕਾਨ ਕਿਹੜੀ ਹੈ ਜਿਸ ਵਿੱਚ ਅਂਮ, ਆਮ ਅੰਨ ਮਿਲਦੇ ਹਨ? (Amar: Jain, Uha dukān kihṛdī hai jis vic amm, ām ann mil'dē han?) (Jain: The name of the store is the grocery store. (Dukan da nām grocery store hai))

Conclusion

We hope this lesson on adjectives has been helpful in improving your command over Panjabi Grammar. To improve your Panjabi Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions! Don't forget to check our Wiki page on Grammar for further studies. 😊

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➡ If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below.
➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎

Excellent job on conquering this lesson! Consider delving into these related pages: Panjabi Grammar → Introduction to Panjabi Script → Gurmukhi ..., Panjabi Grammar → Verbs and Tenses → Present Tense, 0 to A1 Course & Prepositions.

Other Lessons

• Give your Opinion
• Questions
• Future Tense
• Gender
• Pronouns
• Negation
• Conditional Mood
• How to Use Be
• Plural
• Nouns

Sources

• Panjabi Grammar: A Brief Grammar of Panjabi As Spoken in the ...