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Let us study the comparatives... |
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1. MODIFIERS with AS... AS... |
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We often use the modifiers almost, just,
and nearly, and half, twice, three times,
etc. with as...as... |
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a) You can use so instead of the first as in
negative sentences, e.g. She's not nearly so difficult as people say.
b) After as...as we can either use a subject pronoun + auxiliary
verb, or an object pronoun, e.g. She drives as fast as I do OR
She drives as fast as me. |
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Twice can only be used before as...as
NOT Our new flat is twice bigger-tlian our old one
. However three times, four times, etc. can be
used with as...as or with a comparative adjective or adverb, e.g.
The holiday cost three times more than I'd expected. |
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1. |
My sister's
almost as tall
as me /
almost as tall as I am. |
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2. |
She's
just as bossy
now as when she was a child. |
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3. |
Their house is
nearly as big as
yours. |
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4. |
His latest film isn't
half as good as
his previous one. |
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5. |
Our new flat is
twice as big as
our old one. |
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6. |
The holiday cost
three times as
much as I'd expected. |
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2. MODIFIERS with comparative adjectives or adverbs |
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We use far, much, or a lot
(informal) + comparative adjective or adverb for a big difference: |
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1. |
The French wine is
far more
expensive than the South African one.
The play was
much better than I'd expected.
He's driving a
lot more carefully since he got points on his
licence. |
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When we use more + noun for big differences we use
much / far / a lot more + an uncountable noun and
many / far / a lot more + a plural countable noun. |
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2. |
She earns
much more money
than I do.
Women today have
many more opportunities than they used to. |
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We use slightly, a little, or a bit
(informal) + comparative adjective or adverb for a small difference. |
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3. |
She's
a little better
than she was yesterday.
The later train is
slightly cheaper
than the earlier one.
Could you two talk
a bit more
quietly, please? |
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When we use more + noun for small differences,
we use a little / slightly / a bit more + an
uncountable noun and a few / slightly / a bit more
+ a plural countable noun. |
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4. |
A: Would you like some more coffee?
B: Just a little
more, please.
We've only got a
few more minutes before the show starts. |
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We sometimes repeat a comparative adjective or adverb
for emphasis. When the comparative is formed with more, the
adjective / adverb is only used after the second more (NOT
It's getting more difficult and more difficult). |
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5. |
The taxi driver drove
faster and
faster.
It's getting
more and more difficult to make ends meet
nowadays. |
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3. MODIFIERS with superlatives |
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We often use by far / much / easily,
and nearly / almost to modify superlative adjectives or
adverbs. |
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1. |
It was
by far the
nicest of all the hotels we stayed at.
She's much the
prettiest of the three children.
That was easily
the best fish I've had for ages.
I'm nearly the
oldest in my class. |
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4. THE... THE... + comparatives |
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We can use comparatives with the...the to say
that things change or vary together. |
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a) When the verb in the first part is be, it
can be left out, e.g. The more dangerous a sport (is), the more some
people seem to be attracted to it. |
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b) We often use more + noun in this structure,
e.g. The more coffee you drink, the less well you sleep. |
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c) When the second comparative is better, a
reduced structure can be used, e.g. the bigger the better, etc.
and also in set phrases like the more the merrier. |
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1. |
The more
dangerous a sport (is),
the more
exciting it is to watch.
The bigger
the car (is),
the more expensive it is to run.
The faster
I speak in English,
the more
mistakes I make.
A: When do you want me to do it? B:
The sooner the
better. |
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On the next page you will be able to practise
this grammar. |
