Make Writing More Descriptive by Mastering Noun Phrases

A noun phrase is a group of words that is built around a noun. Adjectives are used to provide a richer description of the noun, e.g. three soft brown puppies, a small black leather bag, five adventurous young students. The trick with noun phrases is placing the adjectives in the correct order!

This set of noun phrases worksheets has been designed by our team to help students construct noun phrases with adjectives in the correct order. Each worksheet provides engaging activities to help students explore how adjectives related to quantity, opinion, size, shape, color, material and purpose come together to form smooth, natural-sounding noun phrases.

Some of the activities in this worksheet pack include:

• Build a Sentence
• Sort the Adjectives
• Spot the Mistake
• And many more!

This resource downloads as a black-and-white PDF or editable Google Slides file. The download also includes an answer key to make grading the worksheets fast and easy.

With clear instructions and varied question formats, these noun phrases activities encourage students to think critically about word order and experiment with their own descriptive writing.

Why Teach the Noun Phrase to Students?

Learning about the noun phrase has multiple benefits for students. It is a key step in developing strong descriptive writing skills. Here’s why teaching this skill matters:

• Enhances descriptive writing – Students can add more detail and color to their sentences, making their writing more vivid and interesting.
• Improves grammar understanding –  Practicing noun phrases reinforces correct adjective order, helping students write sentences that sound natural and accurate.
• Prepares for higher-level language skills – Mastery of noun groups lays the foundation for more complex sentence construction in later years.

Download This Nominal Phrase Worksheet Pack

Use the Download button above to access your preferred version of this resource. (Note: You will be prompted to make a copy of the Google Slides template on your personal drive before accessing it.)

As this resource contains answers, you may wish to print one copy only, then remove the answer sheet before making further copies.

For sustainability purposes, please consider printing this worksheet pack double-sided.

This resource was created by Kaylyn Chupp, a teacher in Florida and a Teach Starter collaborator.

More Resources for Exploring Noun Phrase Examples

If you’re looking for more engaging noun phrase examples to use in your grammar lessons, you’ve come to the right place! Click below to explore more teacher-created gems to complement your ELA planning.

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Order of Adjectives Chart

Use this order of adjectives chart to explain the sequence that must be followed when adding adjectives to a noun to create a noun group.

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Noun Phrase Examples Sorting Activity

Teach noun phrase examples with this hands-on sorting activity where students decide whether the order of adjectives in each noun phrase is correct or incorrect.

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Noun Phrase Interactive Activity

Engage your students with this interactive noun phrase digital activity that helps them build descriptive noun phrases by using the correct order of adjectives.