Comparative/superlative
Comparative is the name for the grammar used when comparing two things. The two basic ways to
compare are using as .. as or than. Examples of each are shown below:
● She's twice as old as her sister. ● This computer is better than that one.
● He's not as stupid as he looks! ● She's stronger at chess than I am.
● I'm almost as good in maths as in science. ● Our car is bigger than your car.
● This book is not as exciting as the last one. ● This grammar topic is easier than most
others
● The cafeteria is not as crowded as usual. ● I find science more difficult than
mathematics.
● Russian is not quite as difficult as Chinese. ● Today's ESL lesson was more interesting
than usual.
When comparing with as .. as, the adjective does not change. When comparing with than, however,
some changes are necessary, depending on the number of syllables the adjective has:
Case Adjective Comparative Form Superlative Form
close closer closest
1-syllable adjectives
huge huger hugest
ending in "e" large larger largest
strange stranger strangest
1-syllable adjectives big bigger biggest
fat fatter fattest
ending in a consonant with a single
red redder reddest
vowel preceding it
thin thinner thinnest
1-syllable adjectives dry drier driest
spry sprier/spryer spriest/spryest
ending in "y"
wry wrier/wryer wriest/wryest
fast faster fastest
1-syllable adjectives, great greater greatest
quick quicker quickest
other cases
short shorter shortest
tall taller tallest
beautiful more beautiful most beautiful
colorful more colorful most colorful
2 or more syllable adjectives,
complete more complete most complete
other cases delicious more delicious most delicious
generous more generous most generous
important more important most important
bad worse worst
far (place) farther farthest
Irregular and confusing adjectives
far (place or time) further furthest
good better best
late (time) later latest
late (order) latter last
little (amount) less least
many/much/some more most
Superlatives are typically accompanied by the word the.
● That shade of blue is the most beautiful color.
● This is the longest song that I have ever heard.
PART A: Complete the second sentence so that it means the same as the first one.
0 His early pictures are less interesting than his more recent ones.
His early pictures aren’t as interesting as his more recent ones.
1 Diet and exercise are equally important.
Diet is ________________ exercise.
2 Kirsty and Joe are equally sensitive.
Kirsty is ________________ Joe.
3 You can walk further than me.
I can’t walk ________________ you can.
4 Lucky and Kim work equally hard.
Lucky works ________________ Kim.
5 Michael’s brother plays the violin better than he does.
Michael doesn’t play the violin ________________ his brother.
6. Last year’s holiday was more enjoyable than this year’s holiday.
This year’s holiday ________________________ last year’s holiday.
7. The book was good and the film was equally good.
The film was ________________ the book.
8. Sarah drives faster than Jessica.
Jessica ________________________ Sarah.
PART B: Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the adjectives given.
1. Tim is____________________ boy in the class. (intelligent)
2. Air pollution in Istanbul is ___________________in Ankara. (bad)
3. He is ___________________person in this town. He doesn’t have a TV in his house. (poor)
4. Picasso’s paintings are _____________________than Van Gogh’s. (expensive)
5. Paris Hilton is ______________________woman in the world. (beautiful)
6. Planes are _______________________means of transport. (fast)
7. This is ________________________food I’ve ever eaten at this restaurant. (delicious)
8. Walking is _______________________ running. (easy)
9. Cem Yılmaz is ____________________ Beyazıt Öztürk. (funny)
10. My mother is ______________________ my father. (understanding)
11. Chemistry is my ______________________subject at school. (good)
12. Who is _________________actor in Hollywood? (rich)
PART C: Complete the following sentences with the comparative form of the adjectives.
1. Fruit and vegetables / healthy / chips
______________________________________________________________
2. The countryside / quiet / cities
_______________________________________________________________________
3. Racing cars / fast / normal cars
_______________________________________________________________________
4. Jeans /comfortable/ suits
_______________________________________________________________________
5. Jamaica / hot / the UK
_______________________________________________________________________
6. Chinese / difficult / English
_______________________________________________________________________
7. The canteen / noisy / the library
_______________________________________________________________________
