ADJECTIVES

Someone asked this:

Why I can say:       She is a   beautiful     girl.

                                                            adjective         noun

 But I can’t say        She is      alike        Lucy.

                                            adjective         noun

First,let me tell you what an adjective is.

* An adjective is a word that describes nouns and prononuns.

Example:

               

1.) Sonia is pretty.        2.)Sonia is a pretty girl.

 

3.)She is nice.

Adjectives  come after linking verbs (be-look-seem -smell- taste-feel)
or before nouns.
But certain adjectives appear ONLY in the predicate of the sentence, and they can not appear DIRECTLY in front of the noun they describe.
Your sentence  "She is alike Lucy"  should be "She is like Lucy".
                        
Here you have the adjectives:

Adjectives in front of nouns	Adjectives after a linking verb
like live /laiv/ lone frightened sleeping	alike alive alone afraid asleep

EXERCISE
Choose the correct adjective

1. Tom and Albert are brothers.They don't look_________(alike-like)
2. He bought______lobsters. (alive-live)
3. Are you going to be___________? (alone-lone)
4. The ______boy cried for his mother. (afraid- frightened)
5. They are_______people. (asleep-sleeping)

Answer: 1) alike     2)live   3)alone   4)frightened    5)sleeping