ENG/P/2: COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES

SUB-THEME: COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES

Traditionally, adjectives were considered one of the main parts of speech of the English language, although historically they were classed together with nouns.

1. Adding er, est to adjectives to show the comparative and superlative degrees.

Examples

            cold                 –           colder than                  –           the coldest

tall                   –           taller than                    –           the tallest

short                –           shorter than                 –           the shortest

Filling in correctly

Adjective        –           Comparative  –           Superlative

old –           older than                    –           the oldest

long –                                               –

wide –                                               –

warm –                                               –

Sharp –                                               –

neat –                                               –

high –                                               –

fine –                                               –

nice –                                               –

wise –                                               –

pale –                                               –

tame –           tamer than                   –           the tamest

pale –           paler than                    –           the palest

young –           younger than   –           the youngest

Using the adjectives in brackets correctly to fill in the gaps.

1. The church is the ________________________ building in our village. (high)
2. Samuel is ______________________ than John. (tall)
3. Tom’s pencil is _______________ than mine. (long)
4. Grandmother’s blanket is ________________ than ours. (old)
5. The knife is ___________________ than yours. (sharp)
6. The pear was _______________ than the banana. (ripe)
7. King Solomon was the ________________ of all men. (wise)
8. I am the ______________ girl in the family. (old)
9. Carol has the _______________ writing in class. (neat)
10. This is the ______________ jam I have ever tasted. (nice)
11. The juice is ____________ than soda. (cold)
12. An elephant is _____________ than a hippopotamus. (large)

Comparison of Adjectives

Doubling the last letter and adding –er, -est

hot       –           hotter               –           hottest

big       –           bigger  –           biggest

1. Fill in correctly

            Adjective                                comparative               superlative

flat –           flatter than                  –           the flattest

wet –                                               –

thin –           thinner than                 –           the thinnest

sad –                                               –

red –                                               –

fat –                                               –

Make sentences using the above words.

Use the given adjectives correctly to fill in the gaps

a) This is the ________________ day of the week. (hot)

b) April was _______________ month of the year. (wet)

c) It was the ______________ day of his life. (sad)

d) The clown’s nose was ______________ the a cherry. (red)

e) Jumba is the _______________ boy in class. (fat)

f) Your slice of bread is ____________ than mine. (thin

Comparison of Adjectives

When we add –er or –est to words ending with y we change the y to i.

Examples

easy                 –           easier               –           easiest

Adjectives                               Comparative                          Superlative

1. happy –           happier                        –                       happiest
2. lazy –           lazier                            –                       laziest
3. tidy –           tidier than                    –                       the tidiest
4. pretty –                                               –
5. noisy –                                               –
6. merry –                                               –
7. easy –                                               –

Make sentences using the comparatives and superlative degree.

1. Liza was the ______________ girl in the whole class. (happy)
2. Musa seems to be ______________ than his brother. (lazy)
3. The rose is the _________________ flower in the garden. (pretty)
4. Her bedroom is ______________ than mine. (tidy)
5. The boys are _____________ than the girls. (noisy)
6. Christmas is the ___________________ time of year. (merry)