Comparative adjectives
Comparative adjectives are used to compare differences between the two objects they modify (larger, smaller, faster, higher). They are used in sentences where two nouns are compared, in this pattern:
Noun (subject) + verb + comparative adjective + than + noun (object).
Examples
My house is larger than hers.
This box is smaller than the one I lost.
Your dog runs faster than Jim’s dog.
The rock flew higher than the roof.
Jim and Jack are both my friends, but I like Jack better. (“than Jim” is understood)
Let’s illustrate how we use comparative adjectives with a hypothetical: you have metal blocks in front of you. The left block weighs 10 pounds and the right block weighs 20 pounds. Because the right block weighs more than the left block, we would say that the right block is heavier than the left block. On the other hand, we could also say that the left block is lighter than the right block. We are using comparative adjectives to compare the blocks to each other by indicating which one has a more extreme degree of a certain quality (heaviness or lightness)
A comparative adjective is formed from the positive form of an adjective, which is the form of an adjective you will find if you look it up in our incredible dictionary. The adjectives brave, fast, and cute are adjectives in the positive form, for example.
Here are the rules for forming comparatives from a positive form of the adjective:
1. Most one-syllable adjectives: Add -er to the end. For example, clear becomes clearer. If the adjective ends in -e, just add -r. For example, free becomes freer. If the adjective ends in -y, you sometimes replace the -y with an -i before adding -er. For example, dry becomes drier but shy becomes either shier or shyer.
2. One-syllable adjectives that end in consonant-vowel-consonant: Double the final consonant before adding -er. For example, big becomes bigger and wet becomes wetter.
Two-syllable adjectives that end in Y: Drop the -y, replace it with an -i, and then add -er. For example, rainy becomes rainier and ugly becomes uglier.
3. Two-syllable adjectives that end in -er, -le, or -ow: Add -er to the end. For example, narrow becomes narrower and simple becomes simpler.
All other adjectives that are two syllables or longer: Add the word more or less to the positive form. For example, acceptable becomes more acceptable and unmanageable becomes less unmanageable.
Additionally, there are some adjectives that are irregular. These include good, well, bad, far, and old. Their comparative forms are:
1. good and well → better
2. bad → worse (Note: The word badder is sometimes used as a slang or nonstandard comparative form of bad.)
3. far → Some style guides may say that farther is preferred for physical distance and further is preferred for figurative distance. However, these words are often used interchangeably in everyday speech and writing.
4. old → Most of the time, old behaves as a regular adjective and its comparative form is older. However, when discussing the ages of people, the word elder is sometimes used as the comparative form of old as in The elder kitten had darker fur than the younger one. In general, though, elder is not as commonly used, and many speakers and writers will use the word older even when referring to people.
Fill in the blanks below to complete the sentences. Study the above boxes.
1. I (tall) _____________________________________ my sister.
2. Sarah (busy) _____________________________________ Mary.
3. The sun (hot) _____________________________________ the earth.
4. The earth (large) _____________________________________ the moon.
5. Elephants (big) _____________________________________ horses.
6. Action movies (exciting) _____________________________________ comedies.
7. This restaurant (good) _____________________________________ that restaurant.
8. Salads (healthy) _____________________________________ hamburgers.
9. I think weekends (nice) _____________________________________ weekdays.
10. Lions (dangerous) _____________________________________ rabbits.
11. The sun (far) _____________________________________ the moon.
12. That hotel (bad) _____________________________________ this hotel.
13. Cars (fast) _____________________________________ bicycles.
14. Comedies (funny) _____________________________________ action movies.
15. I (nervous) _____________________________________ my friend.
Make the comparative form. If it’s possible, use ‘-er’. If not, use ‘more’.
1. Dogs are _________________________________ (intelligent) than rabbits.
2. Lucy is _________________________________ (old) than Ellie.
3. Russia is far _________________________________ (large) than the UK.
4. My Latin class is _________________________________ (boring) than my English class.
5. In the UK, the streets are generally _________________________________ (narrow) than
the streets in the USA.
6. London is _________________________________ (busy) than Glasgow.
7. Julie is _________________________________ (quiet) than her sister.
8. Amanda is _________________________________ (ambitious) than her classmates.
9. My garden is a lot _________________________________ (colourful) than this park.
10. His house is a bit _________________________________ (comfortable) than a hotel
Comparatives Using as….as
Make your own comparisons using the words provided and the structure as…as.
Example: My apartment/ large/ yours >>>My apartment is as large as yours.
My car /expensive/ your car >>>My car isn’t as expensive as your car.
1. biology/ interesting/ history ________________________________________________________________
2. train/ fast/ airplane _______________________________________________________________________
3. algebra/ difficult/ geometry _________________________________________________________________
4. Batman / popular/ Superman _______________________________________________________________
5. lemon/ sweet/ orange ______________________________________________________________________
6. morning/ warm/ afternoon __________________________________________________________________
7. robin / big/ eagle _________________________________________________________________________
8. my neighbor/ friendly/ yours ________________________________________________________________
9. tiger/ dangerous/ lion _____________________________________________________________________
10. bicycle/ expensive/ motorcycle _____________________________________________________________
11. house/ tall/ skyscraper ____________________________________________________________________
12. France/ beautiful/ Switzerland ______________________________________________________________
13. my old shoes/ comfortable/ new shoes _______________________________________________________
14. grammar/ difficult / spelling _______________________________________________________________
15. Beethoven/ famous / Mozart _______________________________________________________________
16. frozen yogurt/ fattening/ ice cream __________________________________________________________
17. Coke/ healthy/ fruit juice__________________________________________________________________
18. my apartment/ convenient/ yours ____________________________________________________________
19. big cities/ safe/ small towns ________________________________________________________________
20. New York hotels/ expensive/ Tokyo hotels __________________________________________________