Use of comma separating two adjectives


If I had the phrase



two blond haired, blue eyed people




  1. would the comma be out of place?

  2. should I hyphenate "blond haired" and "blue eyed"?



Answer



There is a two-part test for adjectives:


(1) Can you replace the comma with the word and?


(2) Can you reverse the order of the adjectives and keep the same meaning?


If the paired adjectives fail the two-part test, then no comma is used. This shows that they must remain in a certain order to make sense. These are called cumulative adjectives.



*The feisty, little dog ran off with the sausages. – incorrect


The feisty little dog ran off with the sausages. – correct


*The little feisty dog ran off with the sausages. – incorrect


*The feisty and little dog ran off with the sausages. – incorrect



If two adjectives modify a noun in the same way, place a comma between the two adjectives. These are called coordinate adjectives.


If the sentence passes both the two-pair test, then you have coordinate adjectives.



Did you read about Macomber's short, happy life? – correct


Did you read about Macomber's short and happy life? – correct


Did you read about Macomber's happy, short life? – correct



One never uses a hyphen to separate two adjectives. It's always a comma, and you decide whether to use a comma or not by the type of adjective you are using.


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