Editing Middle English (section)

===Adjectives===
Single-syllable adjectives added ''{{lang|enm|-e}}'' when modifying a noun in the plural and when used after the definite article ({{lang|enm|þe}}), after a demonstrative ({{lang|enm|þis}}, {{lang|enm|þat}}), after a possessive pronoun (e.g., {{lang|enm|hir}}, {{lang|enm|our}}), or with a name or in a form of address. This derives from the Old English "weak" declension of adjectives.<ref name="Burrow-2005-pp27-28">Burrow & Turville-Petre 2005, pp.&nbsp;27–28</ref> This inflexion continued to be used in writing even after final -e had ceased to be pronounced.<ref name="Burrow-2005-p28">Burrow & Turville-Petre 2005, p.&nbsp;28</ref> In earlier texts, multisyllable adjectives also receive a final ''-e'' in these situations, but this occurs less regularly in later Middle English texts. Otherwise, adjectives have no ending and adjectives already ending in ''{{lang|enm|-e}}'' etymologically receive no ending as well.<ref name="Burrow-2005-p28"/>

Earlier texts sometimes inflect adjectives for case as well. ''[[Layamon's Brut]]'' inflects adjectives for the masculine accusative, genitive, and dative, the feminine dative, and the plural genitive.<ref name="Burrow-2005-pp28-29">Burrow & Turville-Petre 2005, pp.&nbsp;28–29</ref> ''The Owl and the Nightingale'' adds a final ''-e'' to all adjectives not in the nominative, here only inflecting adjectives in the weak declension (as described above).<ref name="Burrow-2005-p29">Burrow & Turville-Petre 2005, p.&nbsp;29</ref>

[[Comparative]]s and superlatives were usually formed by adding ''{{lang|enm|-er}}'' and ''{{lang|enm|-est}}''. Adjectives with long vowels sometimes shortened these vowels in the comparative and superlative (e.g., {{lang|enm|greet}}, great; {{lang|enm|gretter}}, greater).<ref name="Burrow-2005-p29"/> Adjectives ending in ''{{lang|enm|-ly}}'' or ''{{lang|enm|-lich}}'' formed comparatives either with ''{{lang|enm|-lier}}'', ''{{lang|enm|-liest}}'' or ''{{lang|enm|-loker}}'', ''{{lang|enm|-lokest}}''.<ref name="Burrow-2005-p29"/> A few adjectives also displayed [[Germanic umlaut]] in their comparatives and superlatives, such as {{lang|enm|long}}, {{lang|enm|lenger}}.<ref name="Burrow-2005-p29"/> Other irregular forms were mostly the same as in modern English.<ref name="Burrow-2005-p29"/>