The Rich and The Unknown: Adjectives Without a Following Noun
By the end: I can distinguish an adjective referring to a group from one naming an abstract idea.
Try the activities, then check your answers.
Try the activities, then check your answers.
Choose a short recording.
Refer to a group
Some the+adjective expressions refer collectively to people with a characteristic. They normally take plural agreement in this use.
The wealthy are not all alike.
The injured were taken to a safe area.
Name an abstract idea
Other expressions refer to an abstract domain or concept and can take singular agreement. The unknown means what is not known.
The unknown can be unsettling.
The unexpected is sometimes welcome.
Use conventional expressions
Not every adjective can freely replace a noun. Name the people or thing explicitly when that is clearer or more respectful.
People who are unemployed need clear information.
The unemployed need clear information.
Guided practice
Say or write your answer first. Compare form and meaning with the model.
1. Choose agreement: The injured was/were helped.
Compare a model and explanation
were
The expression refers to people collectively.
2. Choose agreement: The unknown is/are difficult to predict.
Compare a model and explanation
is
The unknown names an abstract domain here.
3. Explain the wealthy.
Compare a model and explanation
Wealthy people collectively.
It does not mean one unnamed rich person.
4. Explain the unexpected in Expect the unexpected.
Compare a model and explanation
Events or things one does not anticipate.
The abstract expression does not name a social group.
5. Rewrite with an explicit respectful phrase: The unemployed need support.
Compare a model and explanation
People who are unemployed need support.
The substantive claim is unchanged in this fictional example.
6. Does the rich describe every member as having identical views?
Compare a model and explanation
No.
A group expression does not justify stereotypes.
7. Can every adjective become a natural noun phrase merely by adding the?
Compare a model and explanation
No.
These uses are conventional and context-dependent.
8. Write one group expression and one abstract expression.
Compare a model and explanation
The injured were helped. The unknown remained uncertain.
Choose agreement by the intended referent.
A short conversation
Listen first, then open the transcript when useful.
Open the conversation transcript
A: The notice says the injured were offered assistance.
B: So it refers to people, not an abstract idea?
A: Exactly. But the unknown is unsettling refers to what we don’t know.
B: The meaning tells us why the agreement is different.
Listening checks
Listen to each extract or open its transcript. These three questions have a separate score.
Mastery quiz
Choose the best answer for each situation. The score is out of eight.
Use it in your own words
Speaking 1
Give two conventional people-group expressions in neutral sentences.
Reveal a possible response
The injured were offered help. The wealthy are not a uniform group.
Success check: Use plural agreement without unsupported generalisations.
Speaking 2
Use the unknown and the unexpected as abstract expressions.
Reveal a possible response
The unknown can attract our interest. The unexpected is not always unwelcome.
Success check: Keep the abstract meaning clear.
Put it all together
Edit a fictional notice to distinguish a people group from an abstract concern and choose respectful wording.
Reveal a possible response
People affected by the accident were offered assistance. The unknown can be unsettling, so the notice explains what will happen next.
Success check: Do not add factual claims about any real group.
Take it with you
I can distinguish an adjective referring to a group from one naming an abstract idea.