Identifying Phrasal Adjective With Example

Good afternoon! Phrasal adjectives (also called compound adjectives) are two or more words working together as a single adjective to describe a noun. They're usually hyphenated when they come before the noun.

Examples:

• High-risk investment (An investment that carries a lot of risk)
• Long-lasting battery (A battery that lasts a long time)
• Well-known author (An author who is widely recognized)
• Full-time job (A job that requires full working hours)
• Fast-growing company (A company that is expanding quickly)

Tips for Using Phrasal Adjectives:

1. Hyphenate when before the noun
   • ✅ She made a last-minute decision.
   • ❌ Her decision was last-minute. (No hyphen needed when after the noun)
2. Keep meaning clear
   • A small business owner (An owner of a small business)
   • A small-business owner (An owner who runs a small business)
3. Be mindful of irregular forms
   • Some words like "well" (e.g., well-known) are hyphenated before the noun but not after:
     • She is a well-known artist.
     • The artist is well known.

I hope this helps!