English
Grammar
Comparative and Superlative Adjectives
(Rules)
Comparative adjectives
We
use comparative adjectives to show change or make comparisons.
Examples:
This
car is certainly better, but it's much more expensive.
I'm
feeling happier now.
We
need a bigger garden.
We
use ‘than’ when we want to compare one thing with another.
Examples:
She
is two years older than me.
New
York is much bigger than Boston.
He
is a better player than Ronaldo.
France
is a bigger country than Britain.
When
we want to describe how something or someone changes, we use two comparatives
with ‘and’.
Examples:
The
balloon got bigger and bigger.
Everything
is getting more and more expensive.
Grandfather
is looking older and older.
We use
‘the’ with comparative adjectives to show that one thing depends on another.
Examples:
The
faster you drive, the more dangerous it is.
The
higher they climbed, the colder it got.
Superlative adjectives
We always
use ‘the’ with superlative adjectives.
Examples:
It
was the happiest day of my life.
Everest
is the highest mountain in the world.
That’s
the best film I have seen this year.
I
have three sisters: Jan is the oldest and Angela is the youngest.
Usually
–er and –est are added to one-syllable-words to make comparatives and
superlatives.
Examples:
Old –
older - oldest
Long
- longer - longest
If
an adjective ends in –e, –r and –st are added to make comparatives and
superlatives.
Examples:
Nice
– nicer - nicest
large - larger - largest
If
an adjective ends in a vowel and a consonant, we double the consonant.
Examples:
Big –
bigger - biggest
Fat -
fatter - fattest
If
an adjective ends in a consonant and –y, we change –y to –i and add –er or –est.
Examples:
Happy
– happier - happiest
Silly
- sillier - silliest
We
use more and most to make comparatives and superlatives for most two syllabic
adjectives and for all adjectives with three or more syllables.
Examples:
Careful
- more careful - most careful
Interesting
- more interesting - most interesting
With
the common two-syllable adjectives, we can either add –er/–r and –est/–st or
use ‘more’ and ‘most’.
Examples:
He
is handsomer than his brother.
His
brother is handsome, but he is more handsome.
She
is one of the politest people I have ever met.
She
is the most polite person I have ever met.
Some
adjectives, like good, bad and far have irregular comparatives and superlatives.
Examples:
good - better - best
bad
- worse - worst
far
- farther/further - farthest/furthest
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