33. Comparisons

Comparisons indicate degrees of difference with adjectives and adverbs.

E.g. It is cheaper to travel by train. The plane is the most expensive means of transport.

Comparative and Superlative Adjectives

	Positive	Comparative	Superlative
Short adjectives (with one syllable)	small short	Smaller shorter	smallest shortest
Adjectives with two syllables that end in -y/-er/-ow/-le	happy clever narrow simple	happier cleverer narrower simpler	happiest cleverest narrowest simplest
Adjectives with two syllables or more	comfortable	more/less comfortable	most/least comfortable

Comparative and Superlative Adverbs

	Positive	Comparative	Superlative
Short adverbs	hard fast early soon late near	harder faster earlier sooner later nearer	hardest fastest earliest soonest latest nearest
Adverbs with two syllables or more	slowly strongly	more/less slowly more/less strongly	most/least slowly most/least strongly

Irregular Forms.

Positive	Comparative	Superlative
good / well bad / badly far much / many little old	better worse further/father more less older (age); elder (in the family)	best worst furthest/fatherst most least oldest (age); eldest (in the family)

Mind the spelling:

Big – bigger - biggest

Happy – happier - happiest

After comparatives we use than.

E.g. It is cheaper to go by train than by plane.

We normally use the before a superlative.

E.g. He is the tallest in his class.

There are some patterns of comparison:

1. The + comparison, … the + comparison

E.g. The earlier we leave, the earlier we get home.

2. The same as

E.g. Their living room is the same size as ours.

Ex. 1. Add comparative and superlative forms to these adjectives and adverbs.

1. long 2. heavy 3. good 4. stable 5. early 6. many 7. busy 8.exciting

9.cold 10.badly 11.warm 12. young 13.little 14.old 15.interesting

16.friendly 17.unfriendly 18.crowded 19.wet 20.dry 21.well 22.bad

23.modern 24.often 25.boring 26.frightened 27.far 28.few 29.much

Ex. 2. Translate the adjectives and adverbs into English and make comparative and superlative forms.

1.красивый 2.короткий 3.маленький 4.высокий 5.молодой 6.большой 7.далекий 8.вкусный

9. хороший 11.дешевый 12.дорогой 14.плохо 15.мало 16.много 17.интересный 18.редко

19.полезный 20.неудобный 21.скучный 22. шумный 23.чистый 24.грязный 25.ясно 26.замечательный 27.трудный

Ex. 3. Put the adjectives and adverbs in the brackets into the correct form.

1. Her job is___________(difficult) than her friend’s.

2. Ann plays the piano ___________(well) than her sister.

3. Nobody is _____________(happy) than Maria.

4. He is the _____________(boring) person I have ever met.

5. A new house is much ____________(expensive) than an old one.

6. John’s descriptions are____________(colourful) than his brother’s.

7. Maria is___________(talented) than her cousin.

8. This is the______________(creamy) ice-cream I have had in a long time.

9. Pat’s car is__________(fast) than Tom’s.

10. This poster is______________(attractive) than the one in the hall.

11. Does your father feel__________(well) today than he did yesterday?

12. My dog is the___________(pretty).

13. This essay is the __________(good) in the class.

14. The (hot) the weather gets, the___________(bad) I feel.

15. George Washington is ___________(famous) than John Jay.

16. The gallery is the ___________(far) of the three buildings.

17. Nora is the _________(athletic) of all the women.

18. One of the _________(great) tennis players in the world is Kafelnikov.

19. Of the two books, this one is____________(interesting).

20. He acts ________(bad) now than ever before.

Ex. 4. Select the correct form in the brackets in the following sentences.

1. Of the five blouses, I like the green one (better/best).

2. Ann is the (more/most) beautiful of all the women.

3. The climate in Uzbekistan is (hoter/hotter) than in the UK.

4. He is the (cleverest/most clever) person I have ever met.

5. It is (much warmer/more warmer) today than it was yesterday.

6. Where is the (nearer/nearest) shop?

7. Her dress is better (than/as) mine.

8. What is the (most/more) interesting book you’ve read?

9. What is (less/least) difficult: to drive a car or to ride a bicycle?

Ex. 5. Answer the following questions.

1. What is the highest mountain in the world?

2. What is the longest river in Russia? In Europe?

3. Which country is larger: Canada or China?

4. What language has longer words: English or Russian?

5. What’s the best way to learn a foreign language?

6. Who is the eldest in your family?

7. What is the most dangerous sea animal?

8. Who lives longer – elephants or people?

9. What is the most comfortable means of transport?

10. Where is the oldest underground in the world?

Ex. 6. Put the words in the correct order.

1. is / interesting / book / the / than / this / more / one / previous.

2. the / family / is / the / in / shortest / he.

3. than / her / to / difficult / she / more / deal / brother / is / with.

4. best / you / call / when / to / is / the / time?

5. is / East / best / West / home / or.

6. expected / were / fewer / party / at / there / the / we / people / than / had.

7. feel / sicker / you / in / the / you / longer / stay / bed / the.

8. world / in / the / the / richest / who / person / is?

Ex. 7. Translate into English.

1. Нил длиннее Волги.

2. Какой месяц самый короткий в году?

3. Говорите, пожалуйста, тише, вы разбудите ребенка.

4. Завтра можно встать позже, потому что нам не надо ехать на работу.

5. Вы написали работу лучше всех.

6. Вы старше вашего друга?

7. Какое самое высокое здание в Москве?

8. Какая страна имеет самое большое население?

9. Какой язык самый распространенный в мире?

10. В мае обычно теплее, чем в апреле.

11. В дорогих магазинах продавцы более вежливые, чем в дешевых.

12. Чем больше вы занимаетесь, тем лучше вы говорите.

13. Давайте встретимся завтра раньше, хорошо?

14. Лучше поздно, чем никогда.

15. Сегодня люди меньше двигаются, чем раньше.

16. Кто больше зарабатывает – учителя или врачи?

As … as comparative pattern

We use as … as to say that things are equal or unequal.

E.g. My flat is as comfortable as hers.

It is colder today. It isn’t as warm as it was yesterday.

He is as tall as his father.

He is not as tall as his father.

Ex. 8. Complete the sentences with than or as.

1. This task is more difficult ... the previous one.

2. He is the same age ... his wife.

3. My brother is not as young ... yours.

4. Brazil is larger … Spain.

5. His car isn’t ... expensive as mine.

6. Can you answer ... soon as possible?

7. My mother is younger … my father.

8. He doesn’t earn … much as his wife.

9. I don’t know anyone who reads more … he does.

10. Is this task as difficult … the previous one?

Ex. 9. Rewrite the sentences so that they have the same meaning.

1. He is older than he looks. He isn’t............................................................

2. This building isn’t as high as our house. Our house is.............................

3. She does not work as hard as she used to. She used to work...................

4. I don’t earn as much as you do. You earn ...............................................

5. My house is farther from the sea than yours. Your house .......................

6. I know English better than French. I don’t know French.........................

7. I feel tired today, but I felt more tired yesterday. I am not.....

8. The beach was nearer than I thought. The beach wasn’t............................

9. Tom is younger than Jim. Jim isn’t............................................................

10. I don’t know as many people as he does. He knows..................................

Ex. 10. Put the words into the correct order.

1. looks / healthy / is / as / he / not / as / he.

2. know / many / as / you / do / I / people / as.

3. is / as / queen / she / rich / as / a.

4. not / is / yours / book / interesting / this / as / as.

5. bored / not / did/ today/ she / does / she / look / as / yesterday / as.

Ex. 11. Translate into English.

1. Моя квартира такая же большая, как его.

2. Вчера было не так холодно, как сегодня.

3. Его мать не такая старая, как отец.

4. Вы можете остаться у нас столько, сколько хотите.

5. Я не хотел будить ребенка и вошел так тихо, как мог.

6. Я катаюсь на велосипеде не так много в этом году, как в прошлом.

7. Он не ходит в театр так часто, как раньше.

8. Этот таксист не так хорошо знает город, как его коллега.

9. Эта улица будет такая же красивая, как ваша.

10. Я не знаю о машинах столько, сколько он.