Visheshan (Adjectives)
विशेषण (Visheshan) (adjectives) are words that describe a quality, number or quantity of a noun or pronoun. REET gives an underlined word from a passage and asks for its part of speech, and telling apart a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan) (pronominal adjective) from a pronoun is the most essential skill here.
- 2 questions in REET 2024
- Class 6-8 depth
- 7 min read
How REET asks this
Both REET 2024 questions gave an underlined word from a passage (‘यह (yah)’, ‘प्राचीन (praachin)’) and asked for its part of speech. In ‘यह भूमि शस्यश्यामला हो जाती है (yah bhoomi shasyashyaamala ho jaati hai)’ (this land turns lush and green), ‘यह (yah)’ was marked as a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan) (because it comes before the noun ‘भूमि (bhoomi)’/land and points to it), while the word ‘प्राचीन (praachin)’ (ancient) was straightforwardly treated as a गुणवाचक (gunvachak) विशेषण (visheshan) (a descriptive/qualitative adjective). So along with identifying the types of adjectives, the distinction between pronoun and सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan) is also tested.
What is a विशेषण (visheshan) (adjective)?
Words that describe a quality, flaw, colour, size, number or quantity of a noun or pronoun, thereby limiting or clarifying its meaning, are called विशेषण (visheshan) (adjectives) — for example, in ‘सुंदर लड़की (sundar ladki)’ (beautiful girl), ‘सुंदर (sundar)’ is the adjective. The noun/pronoun whose quality is described is called the विशेष्य (visheshya) (the word being qualified).
Hindi grammar recognises four major types of adjectives: गुणवाचक (gunvachak) (descriptive — describing quality/flaw/colour/size: अच्छा (accha), लाल (laal), मीठा (meetha)), संख्यावाचक (sankhyavachak) (numeral — stating number: एक, दो (ek, do), कुछ (kuchh)), परिमाणवाचक (parimanvachak) (quantitative — stating measure/quantity: दो किलो (do kilo), थोड़ा (thoda)) and सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) (pronominal — a pronoun that comes before a noun and describes it: यह (yah), वह (vah), कौन-सा (kaun-sa)).
In Hindi, the usual word order is adjective first, then the noun being described (as in ‘सुंदर लड़की (sundar ladki)’), which matches English word order too, but in poetry and literary language this order sometimes reverses (as in ‘लड़की सुंदर है (ladki sundar hai)’, where the adjective comes after, as a predicate complement). Also, more than one adjective can appear in a single sentence, as in ‘वह एक लंबा, दुबला, ईमानदार युवक है (vah ek lamba, dubla, imaandaar yuvak hai)’ (he is a tall, thin, honest young man) — here ‘लंबा (lamba)’ and ‘दुबला (dubla)’ are descriptive adjectives, and ‘एक (ek)’ is a numeral adjective. In such mixed sentences, the exam expects you to identify the type of each adjective separately.
Types of adjectives with examples
| Type | Sub-type | Example |
|---|---|---|
| गुणवाचक (Gunvachak) विशेषण (visheshan) (descriptive) | quality, flaw, colour, size, taste, condition | अच्छा (accha) लड़का (ladka) (good boy), लाल (laal) फूल (phool) (red flower), मीठा (meetha) फल (phal) (sweet fruit), प्राचीन (praachin) काल (kaal) (ancient times) |
| संख्यावाचक (Sankhyavachak) विशेषण (visheshan) (numeral) | definite (cardinal: एक, दो (ek, do); ordinal: पहला (pahla), दूसरा (doosra)) and indefinite (कुछ (kuchh), कई (kai), anek) | दो किताबें (do kitaaben) (two books, definite), कई लोग (kai log) (many people, indefinite) |
| परिमाणवाचक (Parimanvachak) विशेषण (visheshan) (quantitative) | definite (a measured quantity) and indefinite (an estimated quantity) | दो लीटर दूध (do litre doodh) (two litres of milk, definite), थोड़ा (thoda) दूध (doodh) (a little milk, indefinite) |
| सार्वनामिक (Sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan) (pronominal) | a pronoun word that comes before a noun and points to it | यह (yah) भूमि (bhoomi) (this land), वह (vah) लड़का (ladka) (that boy), कौन-सा (kaun-sa) छात्र (chhaatr) (which student) |
Degrees of comparison for adjectives
To compare descriptive adjectives, Hindi recognises three degrees — मूलावस्था (moolavastha) (the positive degree, describing an ordinary quality, like ‘लघु (laghu)’, small), उत्तरावस्था (uttaravastha) or the comparative degree (comparing two things, like ‘लघुतर (laghutar)’, smaller than the other) and उत्तमावस्था (uttamavastha) (the superlative degree, meaning ‘the most’ or ‘the best’, like ‘लघुतम (laghutam)’, the smallest). These forms are built by adding the Sanskrit suffixes ‘तर (tar)’ and ‘तम (tam)’ — as in उच्च-उच्चतर-उच्चतम (uchch-uchchtar-uchchtam) (high-higher-highest), अधिक-अधिकतर-अधिकतम (adhik-adhiktar-adhiktam) (more-more/greater-most).
It is useful to study this concept alongside descriptive adjectives for REET, because questions sometimes ask not directly for the type of adjective, but for which degree it represents — for example, for the word ‘सुंदरतम (sundartam)’ (most beautiful), you might be asked which degree this is an example of (answer: the superlative degree).
Keep in mind that the ‘तर (tar)’-‘तम (tam)’ suffixes don’t attach naturally to every descriptive adjective — in some native Hindi (तद्भव (tadbhav)) adjectives, comparison is done by adding words like ‘से अधिक (se adhik)’, ‘से ज्यादा (se zyada)’ or ‘सबसे (sabse)’ (as in ‘अच्छा (accha)’ becoming ‘सबसे अच्छा (sabse accha)’, the best), while तत्सम (tatsam) (Sanskrit-derived) adjectives take the suffix directly (उच्च-उच्चतम (uchch-uchchtam)). It is also useful in the exam to recognise which method a given adjective uses to form its comparative degree.
The विशेष्य (visheshya) is the noun/pronoun whose quality is described by the adjective — for instance, in ‘सुंदर लड़की (sundar ladki)’, ‘लड़की (ladki)’ (girl) is the विशेष्य (visheshya). The easiest way to spot a descriptive adjective is to ask ‘कैसा (kaisa)/कैसी (kaisi)/कैसे (kaise)’ (what kind of) before the noun — whatever answers that question is the descriptive adjective. Generally, simple descriptive and numeral adjectives are taught in Classes 1-5, while special attention to the comparative degree (तर (tar)/तम (tam)) is given in Classes 6-8 (Level 2 depth).
One more important rule is that adjectives, too, can change their form according to gender and number, especially when they come right before the विशेष्य (visheshya) — as in ‘अच्छा (accha) लड़का (ladka)’ (good boy, masculine singular), ‘अच्छी (acchi) लड़की (ladki)’ (good girl, feminine singular), and ‘अच्छे (acche) लड़के (ladke)’ (good boys, masculine plural). Note that not all adjectives change this way — some, like ‘सुंदर (sundar)’ and ‘ईमानदार (imaandaar)’, stay the same across every gender and number (सुंदर (sundar) लड़का (ladka), सुंदर लड़की (sundar ladki)). In REET, sentence-correction questions may also test spotting a mismatched gender-number pairing between an adjective and its विशेष्य (visheshya), so it’s worth understanding this rule thoroughly with examples.
Identifying a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan)
When pronoun words like ‘यह (yah)’, ‘वह (vah)’, ‘कोई (koi)’, ‘कौन-सा (kaun-sa)’ come right before a noun and describe or identify it (rather than standing in place of the noun themselves), they are called सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan) (pronominal adjectives). For example, in ‘यह भूमि शस्यश्यामला हो जाती है (yah bhoomi shasyashyaamala ho jaati hai)’ (this land turns lush and green), ‘यह (yah)’ is not standing alone in place of a noun — it is joined with ‘भूमि (bhoomi)’ (land) and pointing to it — so it is a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan), not a pure pronoun. This distinction connects directly to the pronoun topic, so studying both together is worthwhile.
How to teach this to children
Activity
Show objects in class (fruits, flowers, toys) and ask children to describe their qualities (colour, size, taste) — this makes descriptive adjectives feel natural and intuitive.
Teaching material
Colour-coded cards for the four types (quality-red, number-blue, quantity-green, pronominal-yellow) work well for a classification game in Classes 6-8.
Common misconception
Children always take a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan) to be a plain pronoun, because the word itself (यह (yah), वह (vah), कोई (koi)) is the same — it’s essential to teach the distinction by looking at the word’s position in the sentence (alone versus with a noun).
Assessment
Give 5 sentences and ask students to identify the underlined adjective’s type, repeatedly including the सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik)-विशेषण (visheshan)-versus-pronoun pair.
Memory trick / exam tip
If a noun comes right after ‘यह (yah)/वह (vah)/कौन-सा (kaun-sa)’, treat it as a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan); if these words stand alone (with no noun following), treat them as a pronoun. This single rule works for both the pronoun and the adjective topics.
Questions asked in REET 2024 (solved)
Question 34
In the sentence 'यह भूमि शस्यश्यामला हो जाती है।' (This land becomes lush/green with crops), the word 'यह' used is –
- Aसार्वनामिक विशेषण
- Bपरिमाण बोधक विशेषण
- Cनिजवाचक सर्वनाम
- Dसंबंध वाचक सर्वनाम
Explanation
जब सर्वनाम शब्द (यह, वह आदि) संज्ञा से पहले आकर उसकी विशेषता बताता है तो वह सार्वनामिक विशेषण कहलाता है। ‘यह भूमि’ में ‘यह’ संज्ञा ‘भूमि’ की ओर संकेत कर उसकी विशेषता बता रहा है, इसलिए यह सार्वनामिक (संकेतवाचक) विशेषण है। यहाँ ‘यह’ स्वतंत्र सर्वनाम के रूप में प्रयुक्त नहीं हुआ।
Question 86
The word 'प्राचीन' is a-
- Aसंज्ञा
- Bसर्वनाम
- Cविशेषण
- Dकारक
Explanation
‘प्राचीन’ शब्द काल/समय संबंधी गुण बताता है, जैसे ‘प्राचीन काल’ में यह संज्ञा ‘काल’ की विशेषता बता रहा है। अतः यह गुणवाचक विशेषण है।
Practice questions
Question 1
In 'मीठा आम', what type of adjective is 'मीठा'?
- Aसंख्यावाचक विशेषण
- Bगुणवाचक विशेषण
- Cपरिमाणवाचक विशेषण
- Dसार्वनामिक विशेषण
Explanation
‘मीठा (Meetha)’ describes the taste (quality) of the mango, so it is a गुणवाचक (gunvachak) (descriptive) विशेषण (visheshan). Descriptive adjectives describe quality, flaw, colour, size, taste, and so on.
Question 2
In the sentence 'कुछ छात्र अनुपस्थित थे', what type of adjective is 'कुछ'?
- Aनिश्चित संख्यावाचक विशेषण
- Bअनिश्चित संख्यावाचक विशेषण
- Cगुणवाचक विशेषण
- Dसार्वनामिक विशेषण
Explanation
‘कुछ (Kuchh)’ doesn’t give the exact number of absent students, only an approximate/indefinite sense of number, so it is an अनिश्चित (anishchit) (indefinite) संख्यावाचक (sankhyavachak) विशेषण (visheshan).
Question 3
In the sentence 'दो किलो चावल लाओ', what type of adjective is 'दो किलो'?
- Aनिश्चित परिमाणवाचक विशेषण
- Bअनिश्चित परिमाणवाचक विशेषण
- Cनिश्चित संख्यावाचक विशेषण
- Dगुणवाचक विशेषण
Explanation
‘दो किलो (Do kilo)’ (two kilos) states a definite, measured quantity (something weighed, not counted), so it is a निश्चित (nishchit) (definite) परिमाणवाचक (parimanvachak) विशेषण (visheshan).
Question 4
In the sentence 'वह किताब मेज़ पर है', the word 'वह' is a
- Aसर्वनाम
- Bसार्वनामिक विशेषण
- Cक्रिया-विशेषण
- Dसंज्ञा
Explanation
‘वह (Vah)’ doesn’t stand alone here — it comes before the noun ‘किताब (kitaab)’ (book) and points to it, so it is a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan), not a pure pronoun.
Question 5
In the sentence 'पहला विद्यार्थी कक्षा में आया', what type of adjective is 'पहला'?
- Aगणनावाचक संख्यावाचक विशेषण
- Bक्रमवाचक संख्यावाचक विशेषण
- Cआवृत्तिवाचक संख्यावाचक विशेषण
- Dसमुदायवाचक संख्यावाचक विशेषण
Explanation
‘पहला (Pahla)’ (first) indicates order (serial position), not a count, so it is a क्रमवाचक (kramvachak) (ordinal) संख्यावाचक (sankhyavachak) विशेषण (visheshan). Cardinal numbers give a straight count (एक, दो (ek, do)), while ordinal numbers give a position (पहला (pahla), दूसरा (doosra)).
Question 6
In the sentence 'दोनों भाई साथ पढ़ते हैं', what type of sankhyavachak visheshan (numeral adjective) is 'दोनों'?
- Aगणनावाचक
- Bक्रमवाचक
- Cसमुदायवाचक
- Dआवृत्तिवाचक
Explanation
‘दोनों (Dono)’ (both) states number as a group (a collective sense, not an individual count), so it is a समुदायवाचक (samudayvachak) (collective) संख्यावाचक (sankhyavachak) विशेषण (visheshan) — words like ‘तीनों (teeno)’ (all three), ‘चारों (chaaro)’ (all four) belong to this same category.
Question 7
In the sentence 'कौन-सी किताब तुम्हें चाहिए?', the word 'कौन-सी' is a
- Aप्रश्नवाचक सर्वनाम
- Bसार्वनामिक विशेषण
- Cगुणवाचक विशेषण
- Dक्रिया-विशेषण
Explanation
‘कौन-सी (Kaun-si)’ comes before the noun ‘किताब (kitaab)’ (book) and asks a question about it, rather than standing alone in its place — so it is a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) (interrogative) विशेषण (visheshan).
Question 8
The most effective classroom activity while teaching adjectives is
- Aकेवल परिभाषा रटवाना
- Bवास्तविक वस्तुएँ दिखाकर उनकी विशेषता (रंग, आकार, संख्या) बतवाना
- Cबिना उदाहरण के भेद समझाना
- Dविशेषण को पाठ्यक्रम से हटा देना
Explanation
A concrete topic like adjectives is understood best when children look at, and touch, real objects and describe their own qualities — this naturally clarifies all three of quality, number and quantity.
Question 9
In the sentence 'बहुत पानी बह गया', what type of adjective is 'बहुत'?
- Aनिश्चित परिमाणवाचक विशेषण
- Bअनिश्चित परिमाणवाचक विशेषण
- Cनिश्चित संख्यावाचक विशेषण
- Dगुणवाचक विशेषण
Explanation
‘बहुत (Bahut)’ (a lot) doesn’t give the exact measured quantity of water, only an estimated, larger amount, so it is an अनिश्चित (anishchit) (indefinite) परिमाणवाचक (parimanvachak) विशेषण (visheshan).
Question 10
The relationship between visheshan (adjective) and visheshya (the qualified noun) is
- Aविशेषण संज्ञा/सर्वनाम (विशेष्य) की विशेषता बताता है
- Bविशेष्य विशेषण की विशेषता बताता है
- Cदोनों एक ही शब्द-भेद हैं
- Dविशेषण हमेशा क्रिया की विशेषता बताता है
Explanation
The word (विशेषण (visheshan)) that describes the quality of a noun/pronoun (विशेष्य (visheshya)) — that is, the adjective always describes the विशेष्य (visheshya), not the other way around.
Frequently asked questions
What is a विशेषण (visheshan) (adjective)?+
Words that describe a quality, number or quantity of a noun or pronoun, thereby limiting or clarifying its meaning, are called विशेषण (visheshan) (adjectives).
How many types of adjectives are there?+
Hindi grammar recognises four major types of adjectives — गुणवाचक (gunvachak) (descriptive), संख्यावाचक (sankhyavachak) (numeral), परिमाणवाचक (parimanvachak) (quantitative) and सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) (pronominal).
How many REET questions come from adjectives?+
REET 2024 had 2 questions from this topic, both based on identifying the part of speech of an underlined word from a passage.
What is the difference between a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan) and a pronoun?+
When a pronoun word stands alone in place of a noun, it is a pronoun; when the same word comes before a noun and describes it, it is called a सार्वनामिक (sarvanamik) विशेषण (visheshan).
How many degrees of comparison do adjectives have?+
Three — the positive degree (an ordinary quality, like लघु (laghu)/small), the comparative degree (comparing two things, like लघुतर (laghutar)/smaller) and the superlative degree (the most, like लघुतम (laghutam)/smallest), formed by adding the ‘तर (tar)’ and ‘तम (tam)’ suffixes.
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Change Log
- 17 September 2026 — English page published — mirrors the fact-checked Hindi page, independently bilingual-accuracy checked