Degree of Comparison

What is it?

The Degrees of Comparison in English

grammar are made with the Adjective
and Adverb words to show how big or
small, high or low, more or less, many
or few, etc., of the qualities, numbers
and positions of the nouns (persons,
things and places) in comparison to
the others mentioned in the other part
of a sentence/expression.
Kinds of Degree Comparison

Degree of
Comparison

Positive Comparative Superlative

Degree Degree Degree

Degree of Degree of Progressive Parallel

Equality Inequality Degree Degree
 Positive Degree

• One noun – person, thing or place – and one quality…

above average
tall
– adjective
• John is a
man.
• Eifel tower is a
tall
man-made structure.
One noun with one quality – ‘tall’ adjective in
positive form
 Degree of equality

The adjective or adverb is in

positive form showing that two
persons or things are the same –
two nouns having the same
quality.

The common conjunction used is

“as…as”.
 Degree of Equality: Example
• John is as strong as James.

• Tzuyu of TWICE is as beautiful as

Suzy of Miss A.
 Degree of inequality

• The adjective or adverb is in

positive form showing that two
persons or things are not the
same – two nouns not having the
same quality.
 Degree of Inequality: Example
• Peter is not as fast as Paul.

• V of BTS is not as good rapper as

Suga of BTS.
 Comparative Degree

• Two persons, things or places are being compared

with one adjective or adverb to show that one has
more quality or quantity of the adjective or adverb than
the other.

• The adjective or adverb takes ‘r’ or ‘er’ to its positive

form, and is said to be in comparative form.
The conjunction ‘than’ is used to connect the two
clauses
 Comparative Degree: Example

• A horse can run faster than a dog.

• Chen of EXO sings better than Jin

of BTS.
Progressive
Degree

Parallel
Degree
 Progressive Degree

• Two adjectives or adverbs are being

compared to show that one continues to
increase (or decrease) when the other
increases (or decreases).

• The adjective or adverb is in its

comparative form with the definite article
‘the’ before it.
 Progressive Degree: Example
• The steeper the hill, the more
difficult it is to push the rock.

• The more difficult an exam, the

more stressful it is for the students.
 Parallel Degree
• The quality or quantity of the adjective or
adverb continues to increase (or decrease)
as the time passes.

• The adjective or adverb in its comparative

form is repeated using the conjunction
‘and’.
 Parallel Degree: Example
• The days are getting hotter and hotter.

• It is getting hotter and hotter day by

day.
 Superlative Degree

• Comparing one noun – person, thing or place – with several

others of its kind to show that this particular noun has the
highest degree of the quality or quantity of the adjective or
adverb being used to compare.

• The adjective or adverb takes the ‘superlative form’, ending

with ‘st’ or ‘est’, with the definite article ‘the’ before it.

• The preposition ‘of’ is used when the comparison is among

items, and ‘in’ is used to specify the place, position or area.
 Superlative Degree: Example of
“of”
• The elephant is the largest of all land
animals.

• The giraffe is the tallest of all land animals.

 Superlative Degree: Example of
“in”
• Susan is the most intelligent girl
in the class.
ICE-BERAKING: Look carefully at the pictures below. Find
the difference(s) between the pictures below.

2
Can you make degree of comparison sentences
from the picture in the ice-breaking page?
Comparing and Contrasting using
Degree of Comparison