Comparatives
We use comparative adjectives to compare two things, two people, two places etc.
There are three types of adjectives when making comparatives:
1)One-syllable adjectives and two-syllable adjectives ending in "y"
In order to make the comparative forms of these adjectives, we add the suffix "-er" to the adjective.
Examples:
tall + er
taller
happy + erhappier
In one-syllable adjectives that end with a consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) pattern, such as "big", we double the final consonant before adding "-er" to form the comparative.
Examples:
big + erbigger
hot + erhotter
If a one-syllable adjective ends with "e", we only add "-r".
Examples:
fine + rfiner
nice + rnicer
In one-syllable and two-syllable adjectives that end in "y", such as "happy", we change the final "y" to "i" before adding "-er" to form the comparative.
Examples:
easy + ereasier
dry + erdrier
2)Two-syllable and longer adjectives
For most adjectives with two (except those ending in "y") or more syllables , we use: "more" + adjective.
Examples:
modernmore modern
beautifulmore beautiful
3)Irregular adjectives
Some adjectives have completely different comparative forms:
goodbetter
badworse
farfarther / further
littleless
We often use the preposition "than" after comparatives.
Examples:
She's taller than her sister.
Our city is more polluted than other cities in our country.
The comparative form of adjectives ending in "ed" is made with "more".
Example:
Today, I feel more bored than I was yesterday.
The comparative form of adverbs ending in "ly" is made with "more".
Example:
He drives more slowly than his brother.
We can use less + adjective as the opposite of more + adjective.
Example:
This books is less interesting than the one I read last month.
We use the structure: as + adjective/adverb + as to show that two things are the same in terms of a quality.
Examples:
She's as tall as her brother.
This book isn't as interesting as that one.
Exercises
Choose the correct word in italics.
1He doesn't work as hard / harder as his brother.
He doesn't work as hard as his brother.
2Madrid is less expensive as / than New York.
Madrid is less expensive than New York.
3I feel more tired this week as / than last week.
I feel more tired this week than last week.
4She isn't lazy. She just runs more slowly / slower than us.
She isn't lazy. She just runs more slowly than us.
5The city centre is more busy / busier than the suburbs.
The city centre is busier than the suburbs.
6His new album wasn't as / more popular as the previous one.
His new album wasn't as popular as the previous one.