Adjectives describe nouns. In grammatical jargon, we say they “modify” nouns. One noun can support more than one adjective, as in “a vicious, interminable quarrel.” The adjectives “vicious” and “interminable” characterize the intensity and duration of the quarrel. A series of adjectives can be an effective way to home in.
But a series of adjectives won’t work as well when the adjectives are nouns used as adjectives (“noun adjectives”), such as “venue” in “venue motion” and “settlement” in “settlement talks.” Strings of noun adjectives are not reader-friendly. They repeatedly offer the reader false closure, as in the following sentence regarding electronic discovery costs:
