Adjective patterns

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Some adjectives are followed by special patterns which complete their meaning. We'll learn here the most important patterns. 

1. Adjective + Prepositional phrase

1.1. Adjective + "at" phrase

adjective	"at" phrase	Example
angry*	at	Mary's angry at her cat.
good	at	My firiend is good at math.
hopeless	at	His father is hopeless at what he's doing.

1.2. Adjective + "about" phrase

adjective	"about" phrase	Example
angry*	about	They're angry about what their teacher said.
annoyed	about	His mother was annoyed about what happened yesterday.
sorry	about	I'm sorry about how I talked to you.
worried	about	The leader's worried about what will happen to his teamwork.

Note: There's a difference between angry at or angry about with angry with. We are angry with a person, but we are angry at or about thing, action, or event. Example: Mary's angry with her boyfriend. But: Mary's angry at his action.

1.3. Adjective + "for" phrase

adjective	"for" phrase	Example
ready	for	Are you ready for a test?

Note: [Adjective + for] is mostly used with the pattern [It + be + adjective + for ... + to + verb]. See section 3 below.

1.4. Adjective + "from" phrase

adjective	"from" phrase	Example
different	from	James is different from his eldest brother.
distant	from	He looks distant from his family after the operation.
free	from	The people were free from the barbaric dictator. *

* credit

1.5. Adjective + "of" phrase

adjective	"of" phrase	Example
afraid	of	My children are afraid of dogs.
ashamed	of	The president is ashamed of his mistake.
aware	of	Although he's aware of the risks involved with the surgery, but he still intends to get it.*
fond	of	He is fond of his friend's sister.
full	of	Today my job was full of mistakes.
proud	of	Your parent are proud of you.
tired	of	He's tired of repeated questions of his students.

1.6. Adjective + "to" phrase

adjective	"to" phrase	Example
close	to	She lives close to the stadium.
similar	to	This book is similar to mine.

1.7. Adjective + "with" phrase

adjective	"with" phrase	Example
angry	with	My wife's angry with me.
bored	with	He was getting bored with doing the same thing every day.
delighted	with	.
familiar	with	.
pleased	with	.
satisfied	with	The students will be satisfied with their exam results.

2. Adjective + That-clause 

adjective	That-clause	Example
afraid	that	I'm afraid that you'll miss the train.
angry	that	.
happy	that	His mother is happy that he got home safely.
pleased	that	.
sorry	that	The teacher is very sorry that his students failed the exam.
surprised	that	.

2.1. It + Be + Adjective + That-clause

adjective	that-clause	Example
certain	that	It's certain that the shipment will arrive safely.
clear	that	It's clear that we have to accept the terms and conditions.
essential*	that	It's essential that the shipment (should) arrive safely.
important*	that	It's important that we (should) tell the truth.
likely	that	.
necessary*	that	.
obvious	that	.
possible	that	It's possible that he'll win the race.
true	that	.

3. Adjective + To + Verb 

adjective	to	verb	Example
able	to	do	She is able to do this job.
afraid	to	talk	My friend is afraid to talk to girls.
careful	to	k	.
certain	to	t	.
content	to		.
delighted	to	see	Boss is delighted to see our team come back.
determined	to	i	.
eager	to	t	.
fit	to		.
free	to		.
glad	to	t	.
happy	to		.
keen	to	u	.
likely	to		.
ready	to	meet	We are ready to meet with the president.
silly	to		.
sorry	to	hear	His mother is sorry to hear that thing.
sure	to	k	.
surprised	to		.
thankful	to		.
willing	to	pay	He's willing to pay the debt.
wise	to	sell	This seller is wise to sell those items.

1. It + be + adjective + to + verb
2. adjective + to + verb

easy to	1. It's easy to learn English grammar.
	2. English grammar is easy to learn.
difficult to	1. It's difficult to learn French grammar.
	2. French grammar is difficult to learn.
hard to	1. It's hard to learn Japanese grammar.
	2. Japanese grammar is hard to learn.
impossible to	1. It's impossible to swim across this river.
	2. This river is impossible to swim across.

1. It + be + adjective + for + noun phrase + to + verb
2. adjective + for + noun phrase + to + verb

easy to	1. It's easy for Sam to learn English grammar.
	2. English grammar is easy for Sam to learn.
difficult to	1. It's difficult for me to learn French grammar.
	2. French grammar is difficult for me to learn.
hard to	1. It's hard for my friends to learn Japanese grammar.
	2. Japanese grammar is hard for my friends to learn.
impossible to	1. It's impossible for this old man to swim across this river.
	2. This river is impossible for this old man to swim across.

Some adjectives have the it-pattern only. We can either use a for-phrase before the TO-INFINITIVE.

essential to	1. It's essential (for Sam) to learn English grammar.
	2. English grammar is essential (for Sam) to learn.
important to	1. It's important (for me) to learn French grammar.
	2. French grammar is important (for me) to learn.
strange to	1. It's strange (for my friends) to learn Japanese grammar.
	2. Japanese grammar is strange (for my friends) to learn.