# Adjectives that modify only one noun? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 1, 2009, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618 "2009-12-01T19:56:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/21 "2009-12-02T03:19:59Z")
Is anything other than a swoop ever described as fell? ---
**Author:** ![Sloane\_Cabot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc8723/32.png) [@Sloane\_Cabot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sloane_Cabot)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/22 "2009-12-02T03:32:37Z")
slithering snake ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/23 "2009-12-02T03:33:22Z")
> [@Arcite](#): > > Is anything other than a swoop ever described as fell? Yes, if you read Tolkien: “And the Dark Lord took it, and nursed it with fell meats, until it grew beyond the measure of all other things that fly; and he gave it to his servant to be his steed.” (_Return of the King_, chapter 6; p115 in my edition.) ---
**Author:** ![Trepa\_Mayfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@Trepa\_Mayfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trepa_Mayfield)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/24 "2009-12-02T03:55:29Z")
> [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](#): > > \*Spry \*is only ever used to describe old people Or by old people, as in _That’s a spry young lad!_. The only things that are fraught are danger and fear, even though it’s just the past tense (or something) of freight. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/25 "2009-12-02T04:36:54Z")
I thought of **run amok**. I never heard anything walking amok, or jumping amok. Earl Snake’s link has “amok” listed. ---
**Author:** ![runcible\_spoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc29f/32.png) [@runcible\_spoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/runcible_spoon)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/26 "2009-12-02T06:46:19Z")
> [@Johnny\_Angel](#): > > A window can also be ajar. > But as far as I know, only a gate can be ‘lych’. > Only deeds are ever described as ‘derring.’ > Only a spoon is ever ‘runcible’, though that’s kind of cheating since the word was made up by Edward Lear to describe a spoon with short tines one one end – ridiculous! Do can also be derring! As for runcible spoons… well, the less said on _that_ ridiculous subject, the better. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/27 "2009-12-02T07:35:04Z")
Only thing I’ve ever understood to be “boggled” is a mind. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/28 "2009-12-02T08:15:50Z")
> [@Johnny\_Angel](#): > > A window can also be ajar. > But as far as I know, only a gate can be ‘lych’. > Only deeds are ever described as ‘derring.’ > Only a spoon is ever ‘runcible’, though that’s kind of cheating since the word was made up by Edward Lear to describe a spoon with short tines one one end – ridiculous! Kind of like a spork, then? ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/29 "2009-12-02T09:21:09Z")
“nictitating?” (membrane) “twang?” (bar) “pinking?” (shears) ---
**Author:** ![Sefton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Sefton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sefton)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/30 "2009-12-02T12:12:22Z")
“runcible” is only used to describe a spoon, but I’m not sure that’s what you’re looking for. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/31 "2009-12-02T15:44:04Z")
> [@Johnny\_Angel](#): > > Only a spoon is ever ‘runcible’, though that’s kind of cheating since the word was made up by Edward Lear to describe a spoon with short tines one one end – ridiculous! ``` He has many friends, lay men and clerical, Old Foss is the name of his cat; His body is perfectly spherical, He weareth a runcible hat. ``` - Edward Lear, _The Self-Portrait of the Laureate of Nonsense_ ([see also](http://everything2.com/user/RoguePoet/writeups/runcible+spoon)) ---
**Author:** ![Spectralist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Spectralist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectralist)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/32 "2009-12-02T19:56:24Z")
> [@Arcite](#): > > Is anything other than a swoop ever described as fell? It’s often used in fantasy themed video games to describe something evil or demonic. ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2009, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/33 "2009-12-02T20:39:28Z")
AFAIK, toves are the only things that are slithy. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2009, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/34 "2009-12-03T01:22:43Z")
> [@whole\_bean](#): > > or fish, or fear, or hate, or whore _Fiddler on the Roof_ actually has a role for the “fishmonger” Love it. I haven’t heard of anything being “girded” other than loins. In contemporary usage “vestal” only refers to virgins… though, I assume it could refer to anything pertaining to Vesta. But since she’s _de mode_, she’s not used to refer to much of anything, except her famous virgins. Finally, I think “zoot” only modifies “suit.” But I could be wrong… (I’ve always been a fan of the word “petard,” though I know it’s a noun and isn’t totally relevant here… but I love that rarely used word.) ---
**Author:** ![CommanderCool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CommanderCool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CommanderCool)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2016, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/35 "2016-06-07T17:30:07Z")
I’ve been looking for a list of these “one-trick” adjectives for a long time now. Here’s what I’ve got: Prodigal Foregone Extenuating Fine-tooth Ulterior Pyrrhic ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2016, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/36 "2016-06-07T17:37:32Z")
Breath is pretty much the only thing that is bated anymore. Only tides are neap. Is anything immemorial but time? If you’re going to wreak something, odds are it’s havoc. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2016, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/37 "2016-06-07T17:39:59Z")
> [@CommanderCool](#): > > I’ve been looking for a list of these “one-trick” adjectives for a long time now. Here’s what I’ve got: > > Prodigal > Foregone > Extenuating > Fine-tooth > Ulterior > Pyrrhic Prodigal spending Foregone earnings Extenuating conditions Fine-tooth saw Ulterior purposes You got me on “Pyrrhic,” but “Pyrrhic victory” is essentially a fixed phrase. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2016, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/38 "2016-06-07T17:52:58Z")
If you know your English prosidy and scansion, there’s “pyrrhic foot” for two unaccented syllables. So for something like iambic pentameter, you’ll definitely find iambic feet, of course, but almost always some trochaic and pyrrhic feet, along with some spondees. There is also “pyrrhic meter” in Classic Greek poetry. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2016, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/39 "2016-06-07T18:34:44Z")
How about “inclement” with “weather”? ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2016, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618/40 "2016-06-07T18:57:00Z")
Riddled with bullets (Not an adjective I know, but they go so well together) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adjectives-that-modify-only-one-noun/519618.md?page=3)