Comparative adjectives what is

In many cases, both forms are used, although one usage will be more common than the other. If you are not sure whether a two-syllable adjective can take a comparative or superlative ending, play it safe and use more and most instead. For adjectives ending in y , change the y to an i before adding the ending.

Adjectives with three or more syllables form the comparative by putting more in front of the adjective, and the superlative by putting most in front. Home Welcome to EF. Programs See everything we do. Offices Find an office near you. About EF Who we are. Careers Join the team. The key to constructing comparative adjectives lies with the number of syllables and the ending of the word. These two components will help you select the proper suffix to add for words that follow the basic rules.

While many words follow the basic rules of building a comparative adjective or the special rule described above, there are some exceptions.

Examples include:. When using comparative adjectives in a sentence, you should usually use the word "than" to structure your sentence. For example:. Are you starting to get comfortable with comparative adjectives? Once you have mastered how to form and use comparative adjectives, turn your attention to learning about superlative adjectives. These words compare three or more nouns and usually use the -est suffix instead of -er, though, of course, there are some exceptions.

Get started with a worksheet and lesson plan for both comparative and superlative adjectives, then grow your knowledge by learning several examples of superlative adjectives. All rights reserved. What Is a Comparative Adjective? Adjective vs. Comparative Adjective All adjectives function in the same way. Type Word Example Adjective angry That person seems angry. We use comparative adjectives when talking about two things not three or more things.

Earth Mars Diameter km 12, 6, Mars is smaller than Earth. Distance from Sun million km Mars is more distant from the Sun. Length of day hours 24 25 A day on Mars is slightly longer than a day on Earth. Comparative adjectives enable us to express the difference between two people or things. There are three different cases:. For example:. If an adjective has one syllable, or two syllables with -y as the second syllable, we add -er to create the comparative.

As you can see in the first example, if an adjective ends in a vowel and consonant e. For example, bigger, fatter, thinner. Here are the irregular comparatives:. In a similar way to comparatives, there are two ways to use superlatives.

If an adjective has one syllable, or two syllables with -y as the second syllable, we add -est to create the superlative. As with comparatives, if an adjective ends in a vowel and consonant e.

For example, saddest, fittest, hottest. The same adjectives that are irregular for comparatives are also irregular for the superlative form:. The least difficult tense in English is the present simple. Learning how to use comparatives and superlatives will make a big difference to your level of conversation. In the courses at Wall Street English you learn these forms of English grammar through listening and speaking and in both personal and business contexts.