Comparison

Comparison (EB7.2-6)

Use rules for a one-syllable adjective

Positive	Comaprative	Superlative
1. add -er to moust adjectives
cheap	cheaper	the cheapest
slow	slower	the slowest
2. add -r if end in -e
nice	nicer	the nicest
late	later	the latest
3. double the last consonant, the add -er if ending in a consonant + vowel + consonat
big	bigger	the biggest
hot	hoter	the hotest

Use rules for a two-syllable adjective

Positive	Comparative	Superlative
4. drop the y and add ier if ending in y
happy	happier	the happiest
easy	easier	the easiest
5. add er to following
able	abler	the ablest
cruel	crueler	the cruelest
narrow	narrower	the narrowest
quiet	quieter	the quietest
simple	simpler	the simplest
gentle	gentler	the gentlest

Use an irregular form for the following adjectives

Positive Comparative Superlative

bad worse the worst

far father (in distance) the fathest

far further (in depth) the futhest

good better the best

little less the least

many more the most

much more the most

Put more before other two-or-more-syllable adjectives

Positive Comparative Superlative

capable more capable the most capable

difficult more difficult the most difficult

idle more idle the most idle

EXAMPLES:

Positive comparative:
A car is slower than a train.
Is it better than yours?
A negative comparison:
A train is not as slow as a car.
It's not as good as yours.
A gradual process:
The old car went slower and slower.
The weather is getting colder and colder.

To weaken an adjective put not as before adjective or less.

EXAMPLES:
no as cheap
not as expencive
less expancive

Comparison (EG 101)

Before the comparative of adjectives and adverbs we can use: a bit, a little, a lot, far .

EXAMPLES:
Could you speak a bit more slowly?
Her illness was far more serious than we at first thought.

We use the structure the + comparative the better to say that one thing depends on another thing.

EXAMPLES:
The warmer the weather, the better I feel.
The more you have, the more you want.