Adjectives

Comparative and superlative forms

This presentation has been taken, revised, and adapted from different sources.
What is an adjective?
It is a word that describes a noun.
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IMPORTANT INFORMATION
1. In English, adjectives do not take an “S” in the plural; they do not change.
Example: A red book Two red books
2. In English we write an adjective:
a. Before a noun: A big house b. After the verb To Be: The house is big

3. Adjectives tell us more about a noun (function). They can:

 * Describe feelings or qualities: He is a lonely man.

 * Give nationality or origin: Pierre is French.
 * Tell more about a thing's characteristics: A wooden table
 * Tell us about age: He's a young man.
 * Tell us about size and measurement: John is a tall man.
 * Tell us about color: Paul wore a red shirt.
 * Tell us about material/what something is made of: It was a wooden table.
 * Tell us about shape: A rectangular box
 * Express a judgement or a value: Grammar is boring.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION (Cont.)
4. Adjectives are used in a certain order in English. Where a number of adjectives
are used together, the order depends on the function of the adjective.
The usual order is:
 1. * Value/opinion: delicious, lovely, charming
 2. * Size: small, huge, tiny
 3. * Age/Temperature: old, hot, young
 4. * Shape: round, square, rectangular
 5. * Color: red, blonde, black
 6. * Origin: Swedish, Victorian, Chinese
 7. * Material: plastic, wooden, silver

Example: A lovely, small, old, square, red, Chinese, wooden box.

COMPARATIVE FORM OF ADJECTIVES
 The comparative form is used to compare two
objects, ideas, persons, or places. We use
than to compare the two objects.
Ex: Madrid is more interesting than London.
 By themselves adjectives are in the positive
degree. Adjectives can be used to indicate that
something or someone has a relatively equal,
greater or lesser degree of some quality or
feature.
1. Equal degree:
 Use as…as to indicate that two things
(people, animals, objects, places, and so
on) have the same or equal degree of some
attribute or feature…
Ex: Jane is as big as her sister.
2. Greater degree:
 The comparative of majority form of an adjective is used to
indicate that one of two things (people, animals, objects,
places and so on…) has more of some attribute or feature.
An adjective is changed to this form either by adding the
suffix –er or by using the quantifier more before it:

* a) Generally, if the adjective has one syllable,

add –er: Ex. Small -- Smaller than
Sweet -- Sweeter than
* b) If the adjective has more than one syllable,
use more: Exs. Difficult ---- More difficult than
Interesting -- More interesting than
Exceptions:

1. If the adjective has only one syllable and ends in a single

vowel followed by –d or –g, the consonant is doubled when
the –er is added. Ex. Red ----- Redder than
Big ----- Bigger than
2. If the adjective ends in –y, you replace it by –i followed
by –er.
Ex. Happy -- Happier than Messy ---- Messier than
Busy ---- Busier than Easy ------ Easier than
3) Some adjectives have irregular comparative forms
Ex. Bad ----- Worse than Far ------ Farther than
Good ------ Better than Well ---- Better than
Much ------ More than
3) Lesser Degree:
 The compararison a of minority form of an adjective
is used to indicate that one of two things (people,
animals, objects, places, and so on…) has less of
some attribute or feature. The degree of minority is
formed with less before the adjective
Ex. Tall ----- Less tall than
Small ----- Less small than
Attractive ------ Less attractive than
Bad ----- Less bad than
 Superlative Forms of Adjectives
 When you face a thing (people, animals, objects, places, and so on) before
all the other ones, you are talking of the superlative forms of the adjectives
and it is used to show which object is the most of something when
speaking about three or more objects.
*For one-syllable or two-syllable adjectives ending in –y, use:
the + adjective + est
Examples: pretty --- the prettiest big --- the biggest,
tall --- the tallest large --- the largest
*For most other adjectives of two or more syllables, use:
• the most + adjective or the least + adjective
 Examples: beautiful -- the most beautiful
beautiful -- the least beautiful
 
 Irregular adjectives:
 However, there are irregular adjectives, they don’t follow the rules:
 Adjective Comparative Superlative
  
 Bad worse the worst
 Far farther/further the farthest/furthest
 Good better the best
 Little less the least
 Many/a lot of more the most
 Much*/a lot of more the most
 REGULAR ADJECTIVES
Adjectives Comparative Superlative
One Syllable:
Young Younger than The youngest
One Syllable
+ y: Easy Easier than The easiest

Two syllables The most happy

Happy Lesshappy than The least happy

Happier than The happiest

Adjectives Comparative Superlative
three
Syllables or More beautiful The most
more: than beautiful
Beautiful
 IRREGULAR ADJECTIVES
Adjectives Comparative Superlative
good Better than The best
bad Worse than The worst
Farther than
far The farthest
(physical difference)

Further than
far
(mental difference)

quiet Quieter than The quiest