Collateral adjective facts for kids

A collateral adjective is a special kind of adjective that describes a noun, but its word origin is different from the noun it describes. Think of it like a word from a different family! English has many collateral adjectives because it has borrowed lots of words from other languages, especially French, Latin, and Greek.

For example, the word "horse" is an English word. But the adjective we use for things related to horses is "equine." "Equine" comes from the Latin word "equus," which means "horse." So, "equine" is a collateral adjective for "horse." This is why we talk about "equine science" when we study horses.

What Are Collateral Adjectives?

A collateral adjective is an adjective that doesn't look like the noun it describes. This happens because the adjective often comes from a different language than the noun. It's like having two different words that mean the same thing, but one is used as an adjective.

For instance, the word "moon" is an old English word. But when we talk about things related to the moon, we often use the adjective "lunar," as in "lunar calendar." The word "lunar" comes from the Latin word "luna," which also means "moon." So, "lunar" is a collateral adjective for "moon."

Why Does English Have Them?

English is a language that has borrowed many words over hundreds of years. It has taken words from French, Latin, and Greek, among others. When English borrowed these words, it sometimes took the noun from one language and the adjective from another.

• Horse (English) → Equine (from Latin equus)
• Moon (English) → Lunar (from Latin luna)

These borrowed adjectives help us describe things in different ways. They also show how languages mix and change over time.

Collateral vs. Derived Adjectives

Sometimes, a noun can have two different types of adjectives:

• Collateral adjectives: These come from a different word origin than the noun.
• Derived adjectives: These adjectives come from the same word origin as the noun. They usually look very similar to the noun.

Let's look at the word "father."

• The word "fatherly" is a derived adjective. It comes directly from "father" and means "like a father."
• The word "paternal" is a collateral adjective. It comes from the Latin word "pater," which also means "father." We use "paternal" in phrases like "paternal instincts."

Both "fatherly" and "paternal" describe things related to a father, but they come from different language roots. This makes English a very rich language with many ways to express ideas!