LANGUAGE DESCRIPTION YEAR 1

COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES

What are comparatives and superlatives?

At the simplest level:

Comparatives are adjectives and adverbs that end in er (e.g. bigger, richer, faster)

Superlatives are adjectives and adverbs that end in est (e.g. biggest, richest, fastest)

Gradable adjectives have three degrees of comparison:

The Positive Degree, used when no comparison is made;
The Comparative Degree, used when two things are compared;
The Superlative Degree, used when more than two things are compared.
FORM
We form the comparative (two objects compared) and the superlative (more than two
objects compared) in one of two ways:
a.

add er or est to the adjective

b.

put more or most before the adjective

a.Comparative form of adjectives

Regular Comparatives
There are two regular comparative forms of adjectives in English.
1.

For adjectives with one syllable or those ending in y:

X is ______________________ er than Y.

EXAMPLE
The one-bedroom apartment

ADJECTIV

COMPARATIV

Big

Bigger than

is bigger than the studio.

RULE
For adjectives that end in
consonant-vowel-consonant,
double the consonant, add
er.

This neighborhood is safer

than that one.
The studio is noisier than
the one bedroom
The studio is smaller than
the one-bedroom

2. For adjectives with two or more syllables:

X is (more/less) ________________________ than Y.
EXAMPLE

ADJECTIV

COMPARATIVE

RULE

E
The

studio

economical

is

than

more

the

one-

bedroom.
The studio is less expensive
than the one-bedroom

NOTES
Some adjectives with two syllables can take either er or more/less. For example:
quiet-quieter or more quiet. With other two-syllable words, we have to use
more/most. Sometimes there is nothing in the spelling or pronunciation of the
word which helps us to know this, but there are also a number of useful rules of
thumb:
Adjectives that are the same as present or past participle, e.g. boiling, boring,
damaged
Todays lecture was even more boring than usual.
Adjectives that have typical adjective ending such as al, -ant, -ard, -ate,
-ect, -ed, -ful.
The most crucial thing is to arrive in good time.
In formal English we say: Joe is taller than I(am).
In informal English we sometimes say: Joe is taller than me.
Be sure to compare two like things: My hair is longer than Ritas (hair). NOT: My
hair is longer than Rita.
W e can use less and the least with all adjectives and adverbs, regardless of the
number of syllables in the words.
Irregular Comparatives
EXAMPLES
This neighbourhood is better than that one.

EXPLANATIONS
The comparative

This years winter was worse than last years.

good,

The one-bedroom is further away from the bus-stop

irregular.

than the studio is.

Good better

bad,

and

forms
far

of
are

Bad worse
This apartment is much better than that one.

Far - further
Use
much

This apartment is much further than the other one.

comparison stronger.

to

b. Superlative form of Adjectives

Regular Superlatives
EXAMPLE

ADJECTIVE

SUPERLATIVE

RULE

make

The Sears Tower in

FORM
The tallest

Tall

One-

syllable

Chicago is the tallest

adjectives:

the

building in the US
Jupiter is the largest

adjective + est

planet.
The hottest place in
the world in Ethiopia.
The easiest subject
for me is geography.
The most nutritious
fruit is the avocado.
The least expensive
food on the menu is a
hamburger.
Irregular forms
EXAMPLE
That
college

has

the

best

ADJECTIVE
good

SUPERLATIVE FORM
The best

professors.
That was the worst movie I saw last
year.
He ran the farthest.
NOTE
We use a range of words and expressions before the superlative form of adjectives to make
them seem stronger. We generally dont use them before the superlative form of adverbs (*
She ran altogether the fastest).
simply, easily, altogether, quite, by far and away
e.g. Shes easily the best candidate.
It was simply the most wonderful performance I ever heard.

TASK 1
What would you tell the learner who made the following mistakes, so that she
understood the mistake and could avoid making it again?
1. thinest
2. more bigger
3. happyer

4. more good
5. beautifulest
TASK 2

Write the comparative and superlative of:

Boring

cheap fine full funny handsome hard honest interesting

lazy light nervous sad safe silly sorry

stupid uncomfortable

useful violent wet

TASK 3

Irregular Comparison

good/well- better-best

bad-worse-worst

far-

farther-farthest
old-older/elder-oldest/eldest

little-less-least

much/many-

more-most
Answer the questions, using the words from the list at the top.
1. If Im not happy with the pen Ive got and money is not a
problem, what should I do? Buy a better pen.
2. Three thousand people entered a poetry competition. Maxs
poem won. Why?
3. Five friends all arrived for lunch at the same time. Alice had left
home an hour before anyone else. Why?
4. I had a cold. I went to work, but left early and went home to bed.
Why?
5. I wanted to make a pear tart, but I realized all the pears were
going bad, I used parts of some of the pears. Which three pears
did I throw away?
6. My cousin has a medical problem. The doctors have done some
tests, but they still cant decide what the problem is. What are
they going to do?
7. Why does it take longer for me to walk to the post office than to
the park?