Universidad Metropolitana
Título V Campus
Comparative and superlative degree
of adjectives and adverbs
Learning Zone - Inglés
Definition:
 Adjective: It is used to express attributes to something or someone.
These appear before the noun, modify it and follow the next order of
determiners, observation, size and shape, age, color, origin, material and
qualifier.
 Adverb: It can modify a verb, an adjective, a phrase or clause and
another adverb. Adverbs can be identified quickly by their commonly
used suffix “ly” and can be found in various places of the sentence.
 You should use the comparative form of an adjective or adverb to
compare exactly two things. The superlative form is for comparing three
or more.
Rules: comparative and superlative
adjectives…
Rule # 1: Only one syllable, ending in E.
E.g.: wide, fine, cute
Comparative
Add -R:
wider, finer, cuter
Superlative
Add -ST:
widest, finest, cutest
 Comparative: Mary is cuter than Jenny.
 Superlative: Mary is the cutest girl of the classroom.
Rules: comparative and superlative
adjectives…
Rule # 2: Only one syllable, with one vowel and one consonant at the end.
E.g.: hot, big, fat
Comparative
Double the consonant, and add -ER:
hotter, bigger, fatter
Superlative
Double the consonant, and add -EST:
hottest, biggest, fattest
 Comparative: This summer is hotter than last year’s summer.
 Superlative: This is the hottest summer ever.
Rules: comparative and superlative
adjectives…
Rule # 3: Only one syllable, with more than one vowel or more than one
consonant at the end.
E.g.: light, neat, fast
Comparative
Add -ER:
lighter, neater, faster
Superlative
Add -EST:
lightest, neatest, fastest
 Comparative: This car is faster than my last car.
 Superlative: This car is the fastest I ever had.
Rules: comparative and superlative
adjectives…
Rule # 4: Two syllables, ending in Y.
E.g.: happy, silly, lonely
Comparative
Change Y to I, then add -ER:
happier, sillier, lonelier
Superlative
Change Y to I, then add -EST:
happiest, silliest, loneliest
 Comparative: I feel happier than ever.
 Superlative: I am the happiest woman of the world.
Rules: comparative and superlative
adjectives…
Rule # 5: Two syllables or more, not ending in Y.
E.g.: modern, interesting, beautiful
Comparative
Superlative
Use MORE before the adjective:
more modern, more interesting, more beautiful
Use MOST before the adjective:
most modern, most interesting, most beautiful
 Comparative: “The Da Vinci Code” book is more interesting than the
movie.
 Superlative: “The Da Vinci Code” is the most interesting book ever
written.
Comparative & superlative:
Irregular adjectives…
Irregular adjective Comparative form
Superlative form
Good
Better
Best
Bad
Worse
Worst
Far
Farther
Farthest
Little
Less
Least
Many
More
Most
Practice
 Comparative and superlative of adjectives
 Comparative and superlative of adjectives - 2
Interesting fact…
 The rules applied for the comparative and superlative
of adjectives are very similar to the rules of the
comparative and superlative of adverbs. You can play
with the rules and have fun…
Rules: comparative and superlative
adjectives…
Rule # 1: One syllable adverbs add –er or –est.
E.g.: fast, hard
Comparative
Add -ER:
faster, harder, cuter
Superlative
Add -EST:
fastest, hardest, cutest
 Comparative: John works harder than me.
 Superlative: John works the hardest.
Rules: comparative and superlative
adverbs…
Rule # 2: Adverbs with 2 or more syllables, use MORE and MOST with:
E.g.: carefully, quickly
Comparative
With two or more syllables, use MORE and
THAN: more carefully than, more quickly than
Superlative
Use THE MOST: the most carefully, the most
quickly
 Comparative: He ran more quickly than me.
 Superlative: Of all the athletes, he ran the most quickly.
Comparative & superlative:
Irregular adverbs…
Irregular adjective Comparative form
Superlative form
Good
Better than
The best
Bad
Worse than
The worst
Far
Well
Farther than/Further than The farthest/The furthest
Better than
The best
Practice
 Comparative and superlative of adverbs
 Comparative and superlative of adverbs - 2
Bibliography:
 http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/330/gramm
ar/regcom.htm
 http://www.eflnet.com/tutorials/adjcompsup.php
 http://www.english-zone.com/teach/crules3a.html
Prepared by:
 Cristabel R. Ocasio Ilarraza
 Nirazette L. González Abella
Back