Degrees of Comparison

What is the Positive Degree?

In Degrees of Comparison, adjectives have three forms used to compare qualities. The Positive Degree is the basic form of an adjective. It simply describes a quality without making any comparison.

Example:

• Ravi is a tall boy.


• This is a beautiful flower.

Here tall and beautiful are in the positive degree because no comparison is made.

Three Degrees of Comparison

Example

• Ravi is tall. (positive)


• Ravi is taller than Arun. (comparative)


• Ravi is the tallest in the class. (superlative)

Characteristics of Positive Degree

1. Describes Quality Only

Positive degree describes a person, place, animal, or thing without comparing it to another.

Examples:

• She is a kind person.


• The weather is cold today.


• This book is interesting.

2. Used with “as…as” for Equal Comparison

Positive degree can be used with as…as to show equality.

Examples:

• Ravi is as tall as his brother.


• This road is as long as that road.


• She is as intelligent as her friend.

3. Used with “not as…as”

To show inequality, we use not as…as.

Examples:

• This car is not as fast as that car.


• Today is not as hot as yesterday.


• He is not as strong as his brother.

Examples of Positive Degree Adjectives

Common positive degree adjectives:

• tall


• big


• small


• beautiful


• happy


• strong


• fast


• intelligent

• The mountain is high.


• She is happy today.


• The dog is strong.


• This house is big.

Example Sentences

1. The boy is tall.

2. The flower is beautiful.

3. She is kind to everyone.

4. The weather is pleasant today.

5. This book is interesting.

6. The river is long.

7. He is strong and healthy.

8. The room is clean.

9. The food tastes good.

10. The dog is friendly.

Common Mistakes

Comparative Degree

What is the Comparative Degree?

In Degrees of Comparison, adjectives change form to compare qualities. The Comparative Degree is used to compare two people, animals, places, or things.

It shows that one thing has more or less of a quality than another.

Example:

• Ravi is taller than Arun.

Here taller compares the height of two people (Ravi and Arun).

Structure of Comparative Degree

The general structure is:

Subject + comparative adjective + than + object

Example:

• This car is faster than that car.


• She is smarter than her brother.

Forming Comparative Degree

1. Add “-er” to Short Adjectives

For short adjectives (one syllable), we usually add -er.

Examples:

• Ravi is taller than Ramesh.


• This road is longer than that road.

2. Use “more” for Long Adjectives

Examples:

• This painting is more beautiful than that one.


• She is more intelligent than her classmates.

3. Some Irregular Comparatives

Examples:

• This book is better than that book.


• His condition is worse than yesterday.

Rules of Comparative Degree

Rule 1: Used to Compare Two Things

Comparative degree always compares two items.

Example:

• This building is taller than that building.

Rule 2: Use “than” After Comparative

The word than usually follows the comparative adjective.

Example:

• She is stronger than her sister.

Rule 3: Avoid Double Comparison

Do not use more and -er together.

Incorrect:

• more taller

Correct:

• taller

Example Sentences

1. Ravi is taller than Arun.

2. This book is more interesting than that book.

3. She is smarter than her brother.

4. This road is longer than the old road.

5. My house is bigger than yours.

6. This problem is easier than the previous one.

7. The blue car is faster than the red car.

8. She is more talented than her sister.

9. This movie is better than the last one.

10. Today is hotter than yesterday.

Common Mistakes

Degrees of Comparison – Superlative Degree

Superlative degree is used to compare one person or thing with all others in a group. It shows the highest level or extreme quality among three or more people, animals, or things.

In simple words, the superlative degree tells us which is the best, biggest, fastest, tallest, or most beautiful among many.

Example:

• Ram is the tallest boy in the class.


• This is the best movie I have seen.

Structure of Superlative Degree

There are two common ways to form the superlative degree.

1. Short Adjectives (Usually one syllable)

Add “-est” to the adjective.

Structure:

Adjective + est

Examples:

Example Sentences:

• Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.


• Cheetah is the fastest animal on land.


• This is the smallest room in the house.

2. Long Adjectives (Two or more syllables)

Use “most” before the adjective.

Structure:

most + adjective

Examples:

Example Sentences:

• She is the most beautiful girl in the class.


• He is the most intelligent student in the school.


• This is the most comfortable chair.

Rules of Superlative Degree

Rule 1: Use “the” before the superlative adjective

Superlative adjectives usually use “the”.

Examples:

• He is the tallest boy.


• This is the best restaurant in the city.

Rule 2: Used when comparing three or more

Superlative degree compares one with many.

Example:

• Ravi is the smartest student in the class.


• July is the hottest month of the year.

Rule 3: Some adjectives are irregular

Examples:

• This is the best book I have read.


• That was the worst day of my life.


• She has the least money among us.

Superlative Degree with "in" and "of"

Superlative degree is often used with “in” or “of”.

In → used with places or groups

Example:

• He is the tallest boy in the class.

Of → used with a group of people or things

Example:

• She is the most talented of all the singers.

Example Sentences

1. This is the biggest building in the city.

2. He is the strongest player on the team.

3. That was the happiest moment of my life.

4. She is the smartest student in our class.

5. This road is the longest in the country.

6. Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.

7. My brother is the youngest in our family.

8. That was the funniest joke I have heard.

9. This is the most interesting book in the library.

10. She is the most hardworking student in the school.

Common Mistakes