Main points

· You add ‘-er’ for the comparative and ‘-est’ for the superlative of one-syllable adjectives and adverbs.

· You use ‘-er’ and ‘-est’ with some two-syllable adjectives.

· You use ‘more’ for the comparative and ‘most’ for the superlative of most two-syllable adjectives, all longer adjectives, and adverbs ending in ‘-ly’.

· Some common adjectives and adverbs have irregular forms.

1. You add ‘-er’ for the comparative form and ‘-est’ for the superlative form of one-syllable adjectives and adverbs. If they end in ‘-e’, you add ‘-r’ and ‘-st’.

They worked harder. If they end in a single vowel and consonant (except ‘-w’), you double the consonant.

The day grew hotter. Henry was the biggest of them.

2. With two-syllable adjectives ending in a consonant followed by ‘-y’, you change the ‘-y’ to ‘-i’ and add ‘-er’ and ‘-est’.

It couldn't be easier. That is the funniest bit of the film.

3. You use ‘more’ for the comparative and ‘most’ for the superlative of most two-syllable adjectives, all longer adjectives, and adverbs ending in ‘-ly’.

Be more careful next time. They are the most beautiful gardens in the world.

Note that for ‘early’ as an adjective or adverb, you use ‘earlier’ and ‘earliest’, not ‘more’ and ‘most’.

4. With some common two-syllable adjectives and adverbs, you can either add ‘-er’ and ‘-est’, or use ‘more’ and ‘most’.

Note that ‘clever’ and ‘quiet’ only add ‘-er’ and ‘-est’. It was quieter outside. He was the cleverest man I ever met.

5. You normally use ‘the’ with superlative adjectives in front of nouns, but you can omit ‘the’ after a link verb. It was the happiest day of my life. It was one of the most important discoveries.

WARNING: When ‘most’ is used without ‘the’ in front of adjectives and adverbs, it often means almost the same as ‘very’. This book was most interesting. I object most strongly.

6. A few common adjectives and adverbs have irregular comparative and superlative forms.

She would ask him when she knew him better. She sat near the furthest window.

Note that you use ‘elder’ or ‘eldest’ to say which brother, sister, or child in a family you mean. Our eldest daughter couldn't come.

7. You use comparative adjectives to compare one person or thing with another, or with the same person or thing at another time. After a comparative adjective, you often use ‘than’. She was much older than me.

8. You use a superlative to say that one person or thing has more of a quality than others in a group or others of that kind. Tokyo is Japan's largest city. He was the tallest person there.

9. You can use comparative and superlative adjectives in front of a noun. I was a better writer than he was. You can also use comparative and superlative adjectives after link verbs. My brother is younger than me.

10. You can use adverbs of degree in front of comparative adjectives.

This car's a bit more expensive. It's a rather more complicated story than that.

You can also use adverbs of degree such as ‘by far’, ‘easily’, ‘much’, or ‘quite’ in front of ‘the’ and superlative adjectives. She was easily the most intelligent person in the class. Note that you can put ‘very’ between ‘the’ and a superlative adjective ending in ‘-est’. It was of the very highest quality.

11. When you want to say that one situation depends on another, you can use ‘the’ and a comparative followed by ‘the’ and another comparative. The smaller it is, the cheaper it is to post. The larger the organization is, the greater the problem of administration becomes. When you want to say that something increases or decreases, you can use two comparatives linked by ‘and’. It's getting harder and harder to find a job.

12. You can use comparative and superlative adjectives in front of a noun. After a superlative adjective, you can use a prepositional phrase to specify the group you are talking about. Henry was the biggest of them.

You use ‘as… as…’ to compare people or things that are similar in some way. You use ‘as’ and an adjective or adverb, followed by ‘as’ and a noun group, an adverbial, or a clause. You're as bad as your sister. I am as good as she is.

13. You can make a negative comparison using ‘not as… as…’ or ‘not so… as…’. The food wasn't as good as yesterday. He is not so old as I thought.

14. When you want to say that one thing is very similar to something else, you can use ‘the same as’ followed by a noun group, an adverbial, or a clause. Your bag is the same as mine.

If people or things are very similar or identical, you can also say that they are ‘the same’. Teenage fashions are the same all over the world.

15. You can also compare people or things by using a link verb such as ‘be’, ‘feel’, ‘look’, or ‘seem’ and a phrase beginning with ‘like’. It was like a dream. He still feels like a child.

16. If the noun group after ‘as’ or ‘like’ in any of these structures is a pronoun, you use an object pronoun or possessive pronoun. Jane was as clever as him. His car is the same as mine.

17. You can also use ‘less’ and ‘least’ to make comparisons with the opposite meaning to ‘more’ and ‘most’. They were less fortunate than us. He was the least skilled of the workers.