Most words ending in ing are present participles.  These are frequently used as adjectives; therefore, most participles will make sense with the addition of the word thing, or any other noun, after them; as, a pleasing thing, a moving spectacle, mouldering ruins.

In the Latin language, and many others, adjectives, like nouns, have gender, number, and case; but in the English language, they have neither gender, person, number, nor case.  These properties belong to creatures and things, and not to their qualities; therefore gender, person, number, and case, are the properties of nouns, and not of adjectives.

Adjectives are varied only to express the degrees of comparison.  They have three degrees of comparison, the Positive, the Comparative, and the Superlative.

The positive degree expresses the quality of an object without any increase or diminution; as, good, wise, great.

The comparative degree increases or lessens the positive in signification; as, better, wiser, greater, less wise.

The superlative degree increases or lessens the positive to the highest or lowest degree; as, best, wisest, greatest, least wise.

COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES.

More and most form the comparative and superlative degrees by increasing the positive; and less and least, by diminishing it.

Comparison by increasing the positive

Pos.         Comp.         Sup.
great,        greater,        greatest.
wise,         wiser,          wisest.
holy,         more holy       most holy.
frugal,       more frugal     most frugal.

Comparison by diminishing the positive.

Pos.         Comp.         Sup.
wise,         less wise       least wise.
holy,         less holy,      least holy.
frugal,       less frugal,    least frugal.

NUMERAL ADJECTIVES.

Words used in counting, are called numeral adjectives of the cardinal kind; as, one, two, three, four, twenty, fifty, &c.

Words used in numbering, are called numeral adjectives of the ordinal kind; as, first, second, third, fourth, twentieth, fiftieth, &c.

    NOTE.  The words many, few, and several, as they always refer to
    an indefinite number, may be properly called numeral adjectives of
    the indefinite kind.

    NOTES.

1.  The simple word, or Positive, becomes the Comparative by adding r, or er; and the Positive becomes the Superlative, by adding st, or est, to the end of it; as, Pos. wise, Com. wise_r_, Sup. wise_st_; rich, rich_er_, rich_est_; bold, bold_er_, bold_est_.  The adverbs, more and most, less and least, when placed before the adjective,