Adjectives in English absolutely have to be in this order: opinion-size-age-shape-colour-origin-material-purpose Noun. So you can have a lovely little old rectangular green French silver whittling knife. But if you mess with that word order in the slightest you’ll sound like a maniac.”

So Mark Forsyth wrote for the BBC a few years ago. I just wanted to hold on to this insight, as I’d like to test it out for Latin when I have more time this summer.

But thus far, it seems right to me for English: right now, I’m looking at a little orange paperback Greek textbook on my desk, as well as an old broken porcelain coffee mug.