Adjectives play a crucial role in the clarity and precision of OET writing, particularly when describing patient symptoms and conditions.
Whether you’re preparing for the OET or refining your professional communication, understanding how to use adjectives effectively can greatly enhance your language skills.
In this blog, we’ll explore key rules and examples of how adjectives can add depth to your descriptions, making your writing more engaging and accurate. Whether you’re seeking the best OET coaching centre in Mohali or Punjab or looking for comprehensive OET exam preparation online, understanding these language nuances will significantly enhance your performance.
Let’s dive into the specifics of using adjectives correctly, with a focus on how this knowledge can benefit your OET test preparation.
Adjectives are words that are used to describe nouns, giving them depth and interest. You should use a range of adjectives to add detail and to make your writing more precise and concise.
For example, if the noun is pain, a patient may use any of the following adjectives to describe it: burning, dull, throbbing, excruciating, worsening, stabbing, pounding, tingling, sharp.
Let’s look at another example.
The patient eats a diet that comprises of mainly fatty foods.
This can be re-written as:
The patient consumes a fat-rich diet.
In the above sentence, two words ‘fat’ and ‘rich’ are two words acting as a single unit to describe the noun ‘diet’.
Here, I’d like to discuss rule number 1: When two or more words act as an adjective before a noun, they are hyphenated. They are also called compound adjectives.
A few more examples that may be useful for your writing are mentioned below.
The patient has been advised a low-fat diet.
I am writing to refer Ms Jones, a 45-year-old woman, for follow-up care and management.
Let’s now look at rule number 2: If you are using two adjectives before a noun, and they are interchangeable, use a comma to separate them.
For example
The patient is a strong, healthy man.
This could also be rewritten as- The patient is a healthy, strong man.
If the order cannot be switched, then the adjectives are not separated by a comma.
Rule number 3 is about the order of adjectives.
When you have more than one adjective modifying a noun, there’s a certain pattern in which the adjectives will usually occur in the sentence.
Let’s take the example of noun ‘pain’. Here is the order in which the adjectives modifying the noun ‘pain’ will be placed.
1. Severity of pain
2. Origin of pain
3. Type of pain
Look at the following dialogue between a patient and a nurse.
Nurse: So, I understand you’ve been suffering from headaches. Can you tell me Where you feel the pain during your headaches?
Patient: It’s mainly in the left side of my head.
Nurse: Okay! And could you also tell me what does the pain feel like?
Patient: It’s a throbbing pain.
Nurse: Hmm. On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your pain on a scale of 1-10, where 0 is no pain and 10 is the worst pain you’ve ever experienced.
Patient: Oh, it’s quite severe, so I would rate it at 8.
Nurse: Oh, that must be difficult!
Exercise 6
Complete the following sentence with adjectives in the correct order.
The patient presented with a complaint of __________________ headaches.
Suggested answer
The patient presented with a complaint of severe right-sided throbbing headaches.
Exercise 7
Use a hyphen to punctuate compound words that work together as adjective to modify a noun.
1. Mr Jones neds to be scheduled for a follow up appointment.
2. The patient developed a bluish black bruise around the wound.
3. The doctor gave the child’s parents a patient information leaflet.
4. I am referring the above captioned patient to you for further assessment and further treatment.
5. The patient has been commenced on a high intensity exercise program to promote weight loss.
Answers
1. Mr Jones neds to be scheduled for a follow-up appointment.
2. The patient developed a bluish-black bruise around the wound.
3. The doctor gave the child’s parents a patient-information leaflet.
4. I am referring the above-captioned patient to you for further assessment and further treatment.
5. The patient has been commenced on a high-intensity exercise program to promote weight loss.
Exercise 8
Change each phrase into a compound adjective.
1. pain in the left side of the leg
___________
2. diet low in salt
___________
Answer
1. left-sided leg pain
2. low-salt diet
Rule 4: If the first word in a compound adjective is an adverb (ending in -ly) or very, do not add a hyphen between the words in that case.
For example,
The patient has had poorly controlled hypertension for 2 years.
Ms Conrad is an internationally renowned psychiatrist.
Understanding and applying the correct use of adjectives can elevate your communication skills, making your descriptions more precise and impactful.
This is especially important for healthcare professionals preparing for the OET, where language accuracy is critical.
As one of the best OET coaching centres near you, we are committed to providing the resources and guidance you need to excel. Whether you prefer in-person training or OET exam preparation online, our expertise will help you achieve your goals.
By applying these rules to your writing, you’ll be well on your way to success in both your exams and your professional life.