Famous superlative. Easy english - degrees of comparison. Degrees of Comparison of Compound Adjectives

comparative is needed mainly to compare one thing with another. After all, you must admit that it would be difficult to express yourself without comparing any objects. Comparative adjectives such as “more beautiful, better, warmer, colder, cooler, etc.” scroll through our dialect every day, we just may not notice it. Therefore, the entire topic below is important for digestibility and is presented with accessible simplicity.

How to make a comparative adjective from a positive degree of an adjective?

First, let's figure out what is the positive degree of an adjective? Everything is simple. The positive degree of an adjective is the original form of an adjective that indicates the quality of an item and is used without any comparison with other items. For example:

• It's beautiful day - Beautiful day.
• My teacher is very young - My teacher is too young.
• They're very friendly people - They are very friendly people.
• It's an expensive restaurant - This is an expensive restaurant.
• The rooms are very small - The rooms are very small.

Another question may come up here. What is the comparative degree of an adjective? And here it is even easier. The comparative degree of an adjective is a form of an adjective that indicates the quality of one subject in relation to another subject. For example:

• Vegetables are cheaper than meat - Vegetables are cheaper than meat.
• This bag of potatoes is heavier than that bag of tomatoes - This bag of potatoes is heavier than that bag of tomatoes.
• Spain is warmer than England - Spain is warmer than England.
• This new car is faster than my old one - This new car is faster than my old one.
• Sarah is older than her brother - Sarah is older than her brother.

Feel the difference? Now we will return to the main question: how to convert an adjective from a positive degree to a comparative degree?

When converted, the standard for all adjectives is to add the suffix "-er" to the end of the word. For example:

Standard rule: Adjective + "-er" suffix
Adjective (positive degree)	Translation	Adjective (comparative step)	Translation
old	Old	old er	older
Tall	Tall	Tall er	Higher
Slow	Slow	Slow er	Slower
Cold	Cold	Cold er	colder
Small	Little	Small er	Smaller
Strong	Strong	Strong er	Stronger
clean	Clean	clean er	cleaner
short	Short	short er	Briefly speaking
Long	Long	Long er	Longer
Cheap	Cheap	Cheap er	Cheaper

In English, when comparing, the conjunction “than” is often used:

• The coast road to the town is shorter than the mountain road - The road along the embankment to the city is shorter than the road through the mountains.
• My father is younger than my mother - My father is younger than my mother.
• His new mobile is smaller than his old one - His new mobile is smaller than his old one.
• The Empire State building is taller than the Statue of Liberty - The Empire State Building is taller than the Statue of Liberty.
• Wool is warmer than cotton - Wool is warmer than cotton.

In this case, there are always a number of the following conversion rules that must be observed:

1. For two-syllable adjectives ending in a consonant and "-y": change "-y" to "-i" + suffix "-er":

Rule for two-syllable adjectives ending in "-y": change y → i + "-er" suffix
Adjective (positive degree)	Translation	Adjective (comparative step)	Translation
Happy	Happy	happ ier	Happier
Easy	Easy	Eas ier	Easier
Dirty	Filthy	Dirt ier	Dirtier
Pretty	Cute	Prett ier	cuter
Wealthy	Rich	Wealth ier	richer

Examples:

• English is easier than Japanese - English is easier than Japanese.
• My suitcase is heavier than your suitcase - My suitcase is heavier than your suitcase.
• Your car is dirtier than mine - Your car is dirtier than mine.
• His new girlfriend is prettier than your Julia - His new girlfriend is prettier than your Julia.
• Last time she was happier than today - Last time she was happier than today.

2. If a one-syllable adjective ends in a vowel and a consonant: add the last consonant + the suffix "-er":

Adjective (positive degree)	Translation	Adjective (comparative step)	Translation
Big	Large	Big ger	More
Hot	Hot	Hot ter	hotter
Fat	Thick	Fat ter	thicker
Thin	Thin	Thin ner	Thinner

Examples:

• The Grand Hotel is bigger than is the Sea View Hotel - The Grand Hotel is bigger than The Sea View Hotel.
• My cup of tea is hotter than yours - My cup of tea is hotter than yours.
• Mike is fatter than John - Mike is fatter than John.
• The screw-driver is thinner than mine - This screwdriver is thinner than mine.

3. For adjectives ending in "-e", add only one suffix "-r":

Adjective (positive degree)	Translation	Adjective (comparative step)	Translation
Nice	Nice	Nick er	nicer
True	Loyal	Tru er	Or rather
White	White	Whit er	Whiter
politics	Polite	Polit er	more polite
large	Large	Larg er	Larger

For example:

• My arguments is truer than yours - My arguments are truer than yours.
• Her shirt is whiter than her girlfriends' - Her shirt is whiter than her friend's.
• Wheels of your car is larger than wheels of mine - The wheels of your car are larger than the wheels of mine.

4. Before two-syllable adjectives that do not end in “-y” and before adjectives that consist of 3 or more syllables, when converted to a comparative degree, add the function word “more - more”, without adding a suffix:

For adjectives with 2 or more syllables
positive degree	Translation	comparative	Translation
Careful	Careful	More careful	More careful
Worried	Excited	More worried	More excited
Expensive	Expensive	More expensive	More expensive
intelligent	Clever	More intelligent	Smarter
Beautiful	Beautiful	More beautiful	More beautiful

For example:

• The train is more expensive than the bus - The train is more expensive than the bus.
• Drivers in this country are more careless than drivers in my country - Drivers in this country are more careless than drivers in my country.
• The exam today was more difficult than last year's exam - Today's exam was more difficult than last year's exam.
• The students ask more intelligent questions than they did before - Students ask smarter questions than they did before.
• Her second book is more interesting than her first - Her second book is more interesting than her first.

5. Also, we cannot do without exceptions, which, when transformed, take on a completely different form than in all of the above points:

Comparative Adjective Exceptions
positive degree	Translation	comparative	Translation
Good	Good	Better	It is better
Bad	Bad	Word	Worse
Little	Little	Less	Smaller
Far	Far	Farther	Farther

For example:

• Ms. Davies is a better teacher than Mr. Andrews - Mrs. Davis is a better teacher than Mr. Andrews.
• These boots are worse than those that we received last year - These boots are worse than those that we received last year.
• I've less money than you have - I have less money than you.
• From here to Moscow is farther than to St. Petersburg - From here to Moscow is further than to St. Petersburg.

To enhance the expression, we can insert adverbs such as a bit (a little), a lot (much), much (significantly) before comparative adjectives:

• She's a lot happier now - She is much happier now.
• I'm a bit older than you - I'm a little older than you.
• This book is much more interesting than the other one - This book is much more interesting than the others.

This is the end of this post. Perhaps there is something you would like to ask or add to this article. If so, please leave your comment below. Good luck.

One of the easy and understandable - the topic degrees of comparison of adjectives in English.
It has 2 nuances that are worth paying attention to.
The practical exercises at the end of the article will help to fully assimilate the material and use it in speech.

Purpose: to understand the principle of the formation of two degrees of comparison.
Comparative is needed to compare objects and phenomena, and excellent - to distinguish it from the mass on any basis.
Officially, there is also positive or neutral when the adjective is in its initial form. There are no differences in the formation of adjectives in English and Russian.
This is the first nuance.
Second: there are six exceptions.

Most quality adjectives have degrees of comparison that have a quality characteristic: big - more - the biggest.
For comparison: sea - sea - the most sea. "Marine" is not a qualitative adjective, and has no degrees of comparison.
There are simple adjectives, and there are those with more syllables.

Simple adjectives

Consist of 1 - 2 syllables: strange, brave, tiny. They form degrees of comparison synthetically, that is, by adding a suffix and an article.
Further in the tables: positive - I, comparative - II, excellent - III.

I	II		III
high	high	er	the	high	est
Small	small			small
Strong	strong			strong
Rich	rich			rich
Big	big			bigg
Hungry	hungri			hungri
Healthy	healthi			healthi
Happy	happy			happy

Replacement: letter y changes to i.

Which consonants are doubled: g,n, t, p, l.

When: after a closed syllable.

What is a closed syllable: in a syllable after a vowel, a consonant is required.
An example in Russian: daughter, bank, diary-nickname.
Examples of an open syllable: do_ro_ga, cafe_fe, kra_sa_vi_tsa_.
* Note: if the adjective has an “e” at the end, then it does not double. Fine-finer-the finest.

Compound adjectives

Change through the analytical method of education.
This is achieved by adding the words "more" and "most", "more" and "the most".

I		II		III
important		more	important	the most	important
emotional			emotional		emotional
different			different		different
beautiful			beautiful		beautiful
successful					successful
expensive			expensive		expensive
responsible			responsible		responsible
efficient			efficient		efficient

4 eliminations + 2 more

Ancient adjectives do not change according to the relatively new rules in English. Hence the exceptions.

I	II	III
good	better	the	best
bad	worse		worst
little	less		least
many/much	more		most

There are six such words, below are two more. Why are these adjectives "special"?
The words far and old: have some differences.

"Distant" in two senses: time and space. They have different meanings and spellings in comparative and superlative degrees.
The word "far" has two meanings: space and time.
Also, these differences are obvious in degrees of comparison: father / further, where the first means “far” in space, and the second - “further” in time.

What shall we do with future generations? - What should we do with future generations?

The same is true with the word "old/senior": to say that someone is older, we use "older".
If "older" - then the form of the word for the comparative degree "elder".
When a superlative is needed, "the oldest" is used to indicate age, and "the eldest" is seniority, usually in a family.

Our lovely granny isn`t the oldest one in our family. - Our beloved grandmother is not the oldest in our huge family.

Use

The comparative degree implies the presence of the word “what”, exactly, as in Russian. Its equivalent is "than".

Example: Mary`s husband is richer than Sue`s. This teacher is cleverer than that one. Those girls are more beautiful than models.

Practice

To understand does not mean to know. Only practice and training of the skill bring the result of speaking.
Below are some tasks to help you do this. By repeating such work on the Ebbinghaus scale, one can quickly master the topic in practice, and not just understand it.

Form degrees of comparison:

Poor - ... - ... .
Fluffy - ... - ... .
Good - ... - ... .
Interesting - … - … .
Difficult - ... - ... .
Sweet - ... - ... .
Wonderful - … - … .

Insert the desired option:

Betty is (funny) girl in our summer camp!
Mike`s sister is (successful) than Jack`s cousin.
Our pets are (nice) at this competition!
Grandfather`s (old) in our family.
My (old) brother is a real professional.
(Interesting) thing about travels is meeting new friends.

Translation into Russian:

I don't know anyone more dangerous than Hitler.
We like reading the newest fashion magazines.
Father is the strongest!

English translation:

The farthest store.
She is the best.
These kids are so smart!
I have never seen anyone more beautiful than you!

Writing:

1. Happy - happ.er - the happ.est.
2. Hungry - hungr.er - the hungr.est.
3. Thin - thin.er - the thin.est.
4. Fat - fat.er - the fat.est.

The difficulties that arise when using the degrees of comparison of adjectives in English in oral and written speech suggest the presence of discrepancies.
In this case, you should focus on the structural combination of complex adjectives.

In English, all adjectives can have 3 degrees of comparison: positive, comparative and superlative. And English-speaking people always use them, despite the fact that practically every one of them could already forget about the names of such degrees. As a result, it became clear long ago: it is not at all necessary to know all the names of the elements of the language, the main thing is to use them skillfully and correctly. In everyday life, it is rare to have to talk about such topics as grammar or vocabulary. Perhaps only children and language learners need such discussions.

Such a preface does not touch on the main topic, but simply helps to gradually focus on the material. Well, now briefly about the superlative degree of adjectives in English.

Superlative adjectives helps to highlight the highest degree of quality of the object. For example: the Russian adjective "cheap" in superlatives will sound like "the cheapest." Or the adjective "good" in the superlative degree will sound like "the best." Etc.

Now let's see how it is made superlatives in English.

Here, either we add the suffix "est" to the end of the adjective, or we add the adverb "most" before the adjective. Usually, the definite article "the" is placed before the superlative adjective. Let's look at everything in more detail:

For adjectives with one syllable, add the suffix "est":

Adjective	translate	Superlative	translate
cheap	cheap	cheapest	the cheapest
small	little	smallest	the smallest
hot	hot	hot test	the hottest
wide	wide	widest	the widest
nice	nice	nicest	most pleasant

Basic spelling rules

Example:

• The house is the cheapest in the district - This house is the cheapest in the district.
• My satchel is the smallest in the class - My satchel is the smallest in the class.
• It's the coldest winter I've ever seen - This is the coldest winter I've ever seen.

For adjectives with two syllables ending in er, ow or y ("y" changes to "i") add the suffix "est"

Example:

• I'm the happiest man in the world - I am the happiest man in the world.
• It was the narrowest way I've ever gone - It was the narrowest path I've ever walked.
• Lake Baikal is the deepest lake in the world - Baikal is the deepest lake in the world.

For other adjectives with two syllables, there is an adverb "most"

Adjective	translate	Superlative	translate
boring	boring	most boring	most boring
honest	fair	most honest	the most honest
careful	careful	most careful	the most careful

Example:

• All say that he's the most careful player in poker - Everyone says that he is the most careful player in poker.
• My uncle is the most honest man in our family - My uncle is the most honest man in our family.
• It's the most boring game I've ever seen - This is the most boring game I've ever seen.

Before adjectives with three or more syllables, we also use the word "most"

Adjective	translate	Superlative	translate
beautiful	beautiful	most beautiful	the most beautiful
expensive	expensive	most expensive	dearest
interesting	interesting	most interesting	the most ineresting

Example:

• Fedor is the most dangerous fighter - Fedor is the most dangerous fighter.
• This collection of book is the most interesting I've ever read - This is the most interesting collection of books that I have ever read.
• I think Helen is the most beautiful girl in the group - I think Lena is the most beautiful in the group.

This is what all the material on this topic is based on. But there are always a couple of exceptions to any rule:

• good-best
• bad-worst

Example:

• You're the best singer in your collective - You are the best singer in your team.
• It was the worst day in his holidays - It was the worst day of his vacation.

As you can see superlative adjectives used to compare one thing with things of the same kind in a certain quality. And often used in conjunction with the…in, the…of or just the:

• This is the most comfortable car in the world
• This is the most interesting book of them all
• This is the strongest man here

It is worth noting that superlative adjectives with a negative prefix are formed in the same way as without it:

• unkind – unkindest
• unhappy - unhappy
• dishonest - most dishonest

P.S. However, it is better and more common to say no as kind as … or not as honest as … than unkindest or dishonest.

Superlative adjectives can also be combined with it's by far or it's easily:

• It's by far the most expensive car in the world
• It's easily the most expensive of all the cars I've seen

This is probably the end. Study of degrees of comparison of adjectives will help you combine and compare objects with others more, as well as formulate more colorful speech, which will certainly not hurt anyone.

For those who feel like a Jedi, we recommend that you take a split training

In English, there are 3 degrees of comparison of adjectives: the positive degree (the positive degree), the comparative degree (the comparative degree) and the superlative degree (the superlative degree).

Note that the adjective comes before the noun and does not change in gender or number.

positive degree adjective means that it is in its initial form and simply indicates the quality of the object, without comparing it with others: tall (tall), old (old), long (long), big (big), thin (thin), fat (thick ). Education comparative and excellent degrees Comparisons depend on how many syllables the adjective contains.

And here are a few rules for the formation of degrees of comparison of adjectives in English with examples of sentences.

1. One-syllable adjectives add a suffix -er comparative and suffix -est in superlatives:

• tall - taller - the tallest (high - higher - tallest)
• old - older - the oldest (old - older, older - oldest, oldest)
• long - longer - the longest (long - longer - the longest)

Here are some examples:

• Katie is taller than Rob. - Katie is taller than Rob.
• Katie is the tallest of all my friends. - Katie is the tallest of my friends.
• Rob is older than John. - Rob is older than John.
• Of the three students, Rob is the oldest. - Rob is the oldest of the three students.
• My hair is longer than your hair. - My hair is longer than yours.
• Rob "s story is the longest story I" ve ever heard. - Rob's story is the longest I've ever heard.

1. If a monosyllabic adjective ends in a consonant preceded by a vowel, the consonant is doubled:

• big - bigger - the biggest (big - more - the biggest)
• thin - thinner - the thinnest (thin - thinner - thinnest)
• fat - fatter - the fattest (full - fuller - most complete)

Examples:

• My house is bigger than your house. - My house is bigger than your house.
• My house is the biggest of all the houses in the neighborhood. - My house is the largest of all in the area.
• Rob is thinner than John. - Rob is thinner than John.
• Of all the students in the class, Rob is the thinnest. - Rob is the thinnest of all the students in the class.
• My dog ​​is fatter than your dog. - My dog ​​is fatter than your dog.

1. Disyllabic adjectives form a comparative degree of comparison by adding more before adjectives, and a superlative degree, adding most:

• peaceful - more peaceful - the most peaceful (calm, peaceful - calmer - the most peaceful)
• pleasant - more pleasant - the most pleasant (pleasant - more pleasant - most pleasant)
• careful - more careful - the most careful (careful - more careful - the most careful)

Suggestion examples:

• This morning is more peaceful than yesterday morning. - This morning is more peaceful than yesterday.
• John is more careful than Mike. - John is more careful than Mike.
• This evening is the most pleasant I "ve ever had. - This evening is the most pleasant of all that I have had.

1. If a two-syllable adjective ends in -y, then to form a comparative degree, you need to change -y on the -i and add suffix -er, and for superlatives, the suffix -est:

• happy - happier - the happiest (happy - happier - happiest)
• angry - angrier - the angriest (angry - meaner - the most evil)
• busy - busier - the busiest (busy - busier - busiest)

Phrase examples:

• Robert is happy today than he was yesterday. Today Robert is happier than yesterday.
• He is the happiest boy in the world. - He is the happiest boy in the world.
• John is angry than Rob. - John is angrier than Rob.
• Katie is busier than John. - Katie is busier than John.
• Katie is the busiest person I "ve ever met. - Katie is the busiest person I've ever met.

1. Two-syllable adjectives ending in -er, -le, -ow form comparative and superlative degrees of comparison by adding suffixes -er and -est respectively.

• narrow - narrower - the narrowest (narrow - already - the narrowest)
• gentle - gentler - the gentlest (noble - nobler - most noble)

Examples:

• The streets in European countries are narrower than the streets in Russia. - The streets of European cities are narrower than in Russia.
• This street is the narrowest of all the roads in this town. - This street is the narrowest in this city.
• Big dogs are gentler than small dogs. - Big dogs are nobler than small ones.

An interesting English video about typical mistakes when using comparative degrees of adjectives (and a bonus - about adverbs!):

1. For adjectives of three syllables, the comparative and superlative degrees are formed by adding more and most before an adjective.

• generous - more generous - the most generous (generous - more generous - the most generous)
• important - more important - the most important (important - more important - the most important)
• intelligent - more intelligent - the most intelligent (smart - smarter - the smartest)

Suggestion examples:

• Katie is more generous than Mary. - Katie is more generous than Mary.
• John is the most generous of all the people I know. - John is the most generous person I know.
• Health is more important than money. - Health is more important than money.
• Katie is the most intelligent person I "ve ever met. - Katie is the smartest person I know.

1. Exception adjectives that have their own comparative and superlative forms:

• Good - better - the best (good - better - the best)
• Bad - worse - the worst (bad - worse - the worst)
• Far - farther - the farthest (far - further - the most distant)
• Little - less - the least (small - less - smallest)
• Many - more - the most (many - more - most)

Examples of phrases with exceptions:

• Italian food is better than American food. - Italian food is better than American food.
• My dog ​​is the best dog in the world. - My dog ​​is the best in the world.
• My sister's cooking is worse than your sister's cooking. - My sister cooks worse than yours.

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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
in. 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)