Comparative adjectives are used to compare two or more objects with each other: objects, people, animals, etc. Bigger, smaller, prettier, faster, cheaper, better, smarter, braver, smarter, more daring- these are all comparative degrees of adjectives in Russian.
In English, adjectives also have a comparative degree ( comparative adjectives or simply comparative): bigger, less, more beautiful, faster, cheaper, better, cleverer, braver, more intelligent, more daring
The rules for the formation of comparative adjectives are very easy to understand, and to develop fluency, experience is needed, you need to repeat them more often, and it is better to repeat phrases, phrases or whole sentences. How to remember better, you can read in the article.
In this article, we will give many examples of the formation and use of the comparative degree of adjectives in English.
Comparative adjectives. Education rules. Examples.
Look at the table:
1. Examples for comparative adjectives formed from monosyllabic ones:
This coffee is very weak. I like it a bit stronger. (This coffee is very weak. I like a little stronger)
Going by bus is cheaper than by train. (The bus ride is cheaper than the train ride)
The weather is very cold today. I expected it to be warmer.(The weather is cold today. I expected it to be warmer)
The water is colder today than it was two days ago. (The water is colder today than it was two days ago)
Mike studies harder than his brother. (Mike studies harder than his brother)
This building is higher than that one. (This building is taller than that one)
My daughter is thinner than her. (My daughter is thinner than her)
My sister is older than me. (My sister is older than me)
Can we walk a bit faster? (Can we go a little faster?)
Pay attention to the following subtleties:
1. After the comparative degree of adjectives, the union is often used than(than), emphasizing the object for comparison.
2. If a one-syllable adjective ends in -e, then in a comparative degree only -r: large - larger, late - later, wide - wider.
3. If a one-syllable adjective ends one vowel + one consonant, then the comparative degree duplicates the consonant: big-bigger, wet-wetter, thin-thinner
2. Examples of comparative adjectives formed from disyllabic adjectives ending in -y:
Yesterday I woke up earlier than usual (Yesterday I woke up earlier than usual)
you look happier today (You look happier today)
My bag seemed to get heavy as I carried it (My bag seemed to be heavier when I carried it)
We were busier at work today than usual (We were busier at work today than usual)
3. Examples of the comparative degree of adjectives formed from disyllabic and more adjectives
I think Hungarian is more difficult than Spanish. (I think Hungarian is harder than Spanish)
For lanuage learners, enthusiasm is more important than talent. (For language learners, enthusiasm is more important than talent)
I expected the hotel to be more expensive. (I expected the hotel to be more expensive)
I'd like to do something more interesting(I would like to do something more interesting)
Why don't you phone me more often? (Why don't you call me more often?)
I'd like to have a more reliable car (I would like to have a more reliable car)
unfortunately his illness more serious than we thought at first. (Unfortunately, his illness was more serious than we thought at first)
4. Exceptions.
Some words do not follow the general rules and form their comparative adjectives in a special way. They are called wrong IRREGULAR:
A holiday by the sea is better than a holiday in the mountains. (A holiday by the sea is better than a holiday in the mountains)
The warmer the weather the better I feel. (The warmer the weather, the better I feel)
I can't walk any further. (I can't go on)
The traffic is worse than usual today. (Traffic worse than usual today)
The weather got worse and worse. (weather gets worse and worse)
His English is becoming better from day to day. (His English is getting better day by day)
In order to compare the qualities of a particular subject in English, we use the comparative degree of adjectives. Adjectives can take the form of comparative or superlative degrees. If we want to say that some subject is superior in quality to another, then we use the comparative degree of adjectives.
Comparative Degree Education
1. The comparative form is formed with the ending – “er”, which is added to monosyllabic adjectives.
For example:
- fast - faster (fast - faster);
- simple - simpler (simple - easier);
- John runs faster than Ann. (John runs faster than Anya.);
- This task is simpler than the previous one. (This task is easier than the previous one.)
2. If an adjective ends in a consonant followed by a vowel, the consonant is doubled.
For example:
- Big - bigger (Big - more);
- Thin - thinner (Thin - thinner);
- My house is bigger than yours. (My house is bigger than yours.);
- Black copybook is thinner than the green one. (The black notebook is thinner than the green one.)
3. Two-syllable words ending in the letter “y” also form a comparative degree with the ending – “er”, with “y” changing to “i”.
For example:
- Early - earlier (early - earlier);
- Easy - easier (light - lighter).
4. To form the comparative degree of polysyllabic adjectives, we use the word "more", which is placed before the adjective.
For example:
- More expensive (more expensive);
- More comfortable (more convenient);
- My computer is more expensive than yours. (My computer is more expensive than yours.);
- This sofa is more comfortable than the chair. (This sofa is more comfortable than a chair.)
5. Adverbs ending in -“ly” also form the comparative with “more”.
For example:
- Carefully - more carefully (carefully - more carefully);
- Seriously - more seriously (seriously - more seriously);
- She uses computer more carefully than before. (She uses the computer more carefully than before.);
- They study English more seriously than they used to. (They study English more seriously than they used to.)
6. With disyllabic adjectives like 'quiet', 'clever', 'narrow', 'shallow', 'simple', we can use both the word "more" and the ending -"er".
Some adjectives and adverbs are not formed according to the rule:
For example:
- This book is better. (This book is better.);
- Your answer was worse than yesterday's. (Your answer is worse than yesterday's.)
7. The superlative degree of comparison of adjectives is formed with the ending - "est" for monosyllabic words and with the word "most" for polysyllabic words.
It must be remembered that before the adjective in the superlative degree of comparison, there must be a definite article.
For example:
- Long - the longest (long - the longest);
- Hot - the hottest (hot - the hottest);
- Easy - the easiest (easy - the easiest);
- Difficult - the most difficult (difficult - the most difficult);
- Expensive - the most expensive (expensive - the most expensive);
- Famous - the most famous (famous - the most famous);
- Today is the hottest day of the month. (Today is the hottest day of the month.);
- This hotel is the most expensive in the city. (This hotel is the most expensive in the city.);
- This poet is the most famous in his family. (This poet is the most famous in his family.);
- This task is the easiest one in the book. (This task is the easiest in the book.)
8. The adjectives “good” “bad” “far” do not form superlatives according to the rule:
- The best, the worst, the furthest.
Pay attention to the following suggestions:
- This theater is the eldest building in the city. (The building of this theater is the oldest in the city.);
- His eldest son is 15 years old. (His eldest son is 15 years old.)
Using the degree of comparison of adjectives
Often the degrees of comparison of adjectives are used in sentences of the following constructions:
What is the longest river in the world? (What is the longest river in the world?)
What is the best room in the hotel? (What is the best room in a hotel?)
John is the cleverest student in our class. (John is the smartest in the class.)
What is the happiest day of your life? (What was the happiest day of your life?)
Today is the coldest day of this winter. (Today is the coldest day of winter.)
What is the most interesting film you have ever seen? (What is the most interesting movie you have ever seen?)
This dish was the most delicious I have ever tasted. (This dish is the most delicious I have ever tasted.)
Let's go by bus. It is much cheaper. (Let's take the bus. It's much cheaper.)
Don't go by plain. It is a lot more expensive. (Don't take the plane. It's significantly more expensive.)
Can you speak a bit more slowly? (Could you speak a little slower?)
This book is slightly more interesting than the other one. (This book is a little more interesting than the other.)
This teacher is far more serious than he seemed at first. (This teacher is much more serious than it seemed at first glance.)
Video for beginners - the basic adjectives of the English language are shown in the pictures: tall-short, fat-slim, young-old, happy-sad:
English Joke
A guy from Georgia enrolled at Harvard and on his first day he was walking across the campus and asked an upperclassman (drawing heavily),"Excuse me, can you tell me where the library is at?"
The upperclassman responded, "At Harvard we do not end sentences with prepositions."
The Georgian then replied, “Well then, could you tell me where the library is at, asshole?”
Today in our article we will consider a simple, but very important topic of grammar - the degree of comparison of adjectives in English. Any sentence, written or spoken aloud, very rarely does without this part of speech (adjective). In everyday life, whether in Russian, English or any other language, we very often characterize something using words we know for this. Let's learn the basic rules of this topic.
Degrees of comparison of adjectives in English
For starters, the good news is that this part of speech in English does not need to be changed by gender and number, as is done in Russian. It is enough to memorize certain rules, remember the exceptions and do a couple of simple exercises to consolidate. It will take you a maximum of a couple of hours. So, adjectives in a positive (ordinary) degree do not have any endings or suffixes, this is how they are written in the dictionary, for example: beautiful (beautiful), new (new), scary (scary) and so on. To make a comparative or superlative version of these words, i.e. words, for example, "beautiful" and "beautiful" or "newer" and "newest", we just need to add suffixes at the end of the word -er(for comparative) and -est(for excellent). However, that's not all. In some cases, the degrees of comparison of adjectives in English can be formed using auxiliary more- which means "more", and most- translates as "the most". These were the basic grammar rules of our topic, let's look at them in more detail with examples and exercises.
Degrees of comparison of adjectives in English: cases when it is necessary to use suffixes -er And -est
Everything is quite simple: the main thing is to correctly count the syllables in words. If we are dealing with one-syllable adjectives or two-syllable adjectives that end in -er,-y,-le And -ow, comparisons must be formed using the suffixes we have already named. See a small table with examples below.
Also remember the basic spelling rules, so as not only to correctly form a certain degree of comparison of adjectives in English, but also to write down the result without errors. First, if a word has a short vowel in the middle and ends in a consonant, then the latter is doubled when the degree of comparison is formed. For example: fa t-fa tt er-fa tt est. Second, if the adjective ends in -y, and it is preceded by a consonant, then in both degrees -y is replaced by -i. For example earl y-earl i er-earl i est (earliest - earlier - earliest). There is only one exception, remember: shy-shyer-shyest (shy - more shy - the most shy). And finally, if the word ends with -e, then when forming comparisons, only suffixes should be added -r And -st. For example, remember: wid e-wid er-wid est(wide - wider - widest) and so on.
How to correctly form the degrees of comparison of adjectives containing three or more syllables
Remember the following words and rules. By the way, in those cases when you doubt how to form one or another degree of comparison, feel free to use the words more And most, this is not a blunder. So...
1. If the word is polysyllabic, then its comparison is formed by adding auxiliary more And most. Consider examples:
- ridiculous- more ridiculous- most ridiculous (ridiculous - more ridiculous - the most ridiculous);
- acceptable- more acceptable- most acceptable (acceptable - more acceptable - most acceptable).
2. Applying the same rule, we form degrees of comparison for those ending in -ed And -ing, -ful or -less adjectives. Look: powerful - more powerful - most powerful (strong - stronger - most powerful).
3. With application more And most the following adjectives are also formed:
- certain - confident;
- correct - correct;
- famous - famous;
- modern - modern;
- normal - normal.
Degrees of comparison of adjectives in English. Topic reinforcement exercises
Try the following simple exercises, the answers to which are given at the end of the article.
Task number 1
Form all degrees of an adjective using suffixes -er And -est: low, cold, clean, dry, shy, fine, simple.
Task number 2
Form all the degrees of polysyllabic adjectives you know using the words more, most: helpful, amusing, pleasant, creative, cheerful.
Answers
Exercise #1
Low - lower - lowest, cold - colder - coldest, clean - cleaner - cleanest, dry - drier - driest, shy - shyer - shyest, fine - finer - finest, simple - simpler - simplest.
Exercise #2
Helpful - more helpful - most helpful, amusing - more amusing - most amusing, pleasant - more pleasant - most pleasant, recreative - more recreative - most recreative, cheerful - more cheerful - most cheerful.
Degrees of adjectives comparison Degrees of comparison of adjectives
Adjectives in English do not change in number or case, they change in degrees of comparison. This applies to quality adjectives. Relative adjectives do not have degrees of comparison (about qualitative and relative adjectives - in the material "").
There are three degrees of comparison of quality adjectives in English:
1. Positive (positive). Adjective in its usual form.big
2. Comparative (comparative). Shows that one object has bo? a higher degree of quality than the other. Often used with the preposition than (than).
bigger more
3. Excellent (superlative). Indicates that the object has the highest degree of quality.
the biggest
Rules for the formation of degrees of comparison
1. The comparative degree is formed by adding the suffix -er [?r] to the stem of the word. Excellent - suffix -est [?st]. A few nuances:A. In adjectives with one syllable, the last letter is doubled.
hot - hotter - the hottest
b. If the last letter of the adjective is -y, and it is preceded by a consonant, then it is replaced by -i; if a vowel, then -y remains unchanged.
busy - busier - the busiest
gray - grayer - the grayest
V. If the last letter in the adjective is mute -e (that is, not pronounced), then when writing it is omitted and merges with -e in the comparative or superlative suffix.
cute - cuter - the cutest
2. If an adjective has two or more syllables, then more is used in the comparative degree before it, and the most in the superlative degree:
beautiful - more beautiful - the most beautiful
3. There are a number of two-syllable adjectives that can change both according to the first rule and according to the second:
able
angry
clever
common
cruel
frequent
friendly
gentle
handsome
narrow
pleasant pleasant
polite
quiet
serious
simple
sour sour
4. Adjectives-exceptions:
good/well - better - the best
good - better - the best / the best
bad - worse - the worst
bad - worse - worst
little - less - the least
small - smaller - smallest/smallest
much (innumerable) / many (incalc.) - more - the most
many - more - most
old - older - the oldest
old - older - oldest
old - elder - the eldest
older - older - the oldest (only about people; for example: my elder brother is my older brother)
late - later - the latest/the last
late - later - latest (new, latest in time)
near - nearer - the nearest
close - closer - closest (distance)
near - nearer - next / the next
close - closer - next (in time or in order)
far-farther-the farthest
farthest - farthest - farthest (distance only)
far - further - the furthest
farthest - more distant - most distant (in the abstract sense)
Comparing degrees of adjectives is one of the easiest topics in English. But even despite the ease, it causes difficulties for some students. In this article, we have revealed the most important rules on this topic and provided many examples to make it easier to understand the material.
Education
To understand how to form the superlative degree of adjectives in English, count the number of syllables in the adjective. If there are only one or two of them, then feel free to add an ending to it -est . For example, tall - the tallest (highest - the highest), thin- the thinnest (thinnest - the thinnest). Ending -iest added to words that end in -y
- by adding an ending -est to all one-syllable and some two-syllable qualitative adjectives that end in -y, -e, -er, -ow.
- with the help of a word the most , which is placed before the adjective.
Let's consider this rule in more detail using the examples in the table.
You can distinguish the superlative degree of adjectives by the expression have ever (ever) and prepositions at, on, in, among, of all, one of.
This is the most beautiful song I have ever heard. - This is the most beautiful song I have ever heard.
James is the strongest boy among us.- James is the strongest boy among us.
ТIf the adjective ends in a consonant, then the consonant when adding the ending -est doubles.
hot-the hot test . This is the hottest coffee I have ever drunk. This is the hottest coffee I have ever drunk.
Exception
But not all adjectives form the superlative form according to the rules. Such adjectives are an exception and must be remembered.
- good-best
Which of these trousers suit me best? Which of these trousers suit me best?
- bad-worst
John is the worst student in his class. John is the worst student in his class.
- little-least
At least wait until she calls you. At least wait until she calls you.
- many - most
It is the most expensive telephone in this shop. This is the most expensive phone in this store.
- far - farthest/furthest
farthest used to indicate distance furthest- in other meanings.
I live farthest from everybody in our class. – I live furthest in our class;
It is the furthest information about the accident. “This is the latest information about the incident.
oldest means age and eldest- seniority.
This is the oldest building in this street. – This is the oldest building on this street;
My eldest sister lives in Moscow. – My elder sister lives in Moscow.