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A1 · ⑪ Adjectives
Adjectives and comparison
They never change form — but their place is fixed, and the comparative depends on how long the word is.
45minthe whole
sheet
41questions
in the practice
3pages,
one at a time
01 · First page · short words and long words
The two roads
Short adjectives · add -er and -est
One syllable, or two ending in -y. The word itself changes.
- old → older → the oldest
- big → bigger → the biggest
- happy → happier → the happiest
- easy → easier → the easiest
Long adjectives · put more and most in front
Two syllables or more. The word stays exactly as it is.
- modern → more modern → the most modern
- expensive → more expensive → the most expensive
- difficult → more difficult → the most difficult
- beautiful → more beautiful → the most beautiful
adjective: An adjective describes a noun, and in English it never changes: one red car, two red cars, a red house. There is no gender and no plural to worry about. This is one of the places where English asks less of you than almost any other language.
comparative: The comparative puts two things side by side, and it is followed by than: cheaper than, more useful than. The choice between -er and more is decided by the length of the word, not by the meaning — count the syllables and you have your answer.
superlative: The superlative picks one out of all the others, and it always takes the in front: the cheapest, the most useful. Forgetting that the is one of the most common mistakes at this level, because the word feels optional and is not.
- It's a big house.
- They are big houses.
- This one is cheaper.
- It's the most expensive hotel.
- She is taller than me.
| The two degrees | ||
|---|---|---|
| Type of adjective | Comparative | Superlative |
| one syllable | old → older | the oldest |
| one syllable, one vowel + one consonant | big → bigger | the biggest |
| two syllables ending in -y | happy → happier | the happiest |
| two syllables or more | careful → more careful | the most careful |
| irregular · good | better | the best |
| irregular · bad | worse | the worst |
| irregular · far | further | the furthest |
| irregular · little / much | less / more | the least / the most |
Golden rule
Count the syllables, do not translate the meaning. One syllable takes -er. Three or more take more. Two syllables are the only grey area, and even there the rule is simple: if it ends in -y it takes -er, otherwise it takes more. And whatever you build, the superlative keeps its the.
Never build the two degrees twice. more bigger and the most easiest are wrong: either the word changes or you put more in front of it, never both. It is the single most audible mistake in a comparison.
02 · Second page · where they go, and how to compare
The uses
Before the noun
The adjective comes first, always, and it does not agree with anything.
a red cartwo red carsan interesting book
After be
It also stands alone after be, seem, look, feel — with nothing between them.
The car is red.You look tired.It seems easy.
Several together
When more than one describes the same noun, opinion comes before fact: a lovely old house.
a beautiful small gardena nice warm coat
-ed or -ing
-ed says how you feel, -ing says what causes it. A bored person is at a boring party.
I'm interested.The film was interesting.
than
The comparative is followed by than, never by that or of.
cheaper than this onemore useful than I thought
as … as
To say two things are equal, put as on both sides. In the negative it means less than.
as tall as younot as expensive as I feared
the … the
Two comparatives together say that one thing rises with the other.
The sooner, the better.The more you practise, the easier it gets.
much, far, a bit
To make a comparison stronger or weaker, put the word before the comparative, not after.
much cheapera bit olderfar more difficult
The order when there are several adjectives
English puts adjectives in a fixed order, and native speakers follow it without knowing it exists: opinion, size, age, shape, colour, origin, material. A lovely big old round brown Italian wooden table sounds right; changing the order sounds foreign even when every word is correct. You will almost never need more than two or three at once, so the practical version is short: what you THINK comes before what you can MEASURE, and colour comes last. A nice big red bag — never a red big nice bag.
🌍 For everyone
Both languages build the comparative with one word in front (bardziej, più), so more feels natural and -er does not. The result is more cheaper and more big. Remember it the other way round: the short word changes shape, and only the long one asks for help.
più grande → bigger (not more big)
An adjective never takes a plural, however plural the noun is. two red cars, ten difficult questions. Adding an -s to the adjective is the mistake that gives away a speaker whose own language agrees everything.
a house big → a big house
The adjective always comes before the noun in English.
two reds cars → two red cars
Adjectives have no plural: only the noun changes.
This is more cheap. → This is cheaper.
One syllable takes -er, not more.
It's more bigger. → It's bigger.
Never build the comparative twice: either -er or more, not both.
She is taller that me. → She is taller than me.
The comparative is followed by than, not that.
It was most expensive hotel. → It was the most expensive hotel.
The superlative always keeps the in front of it.
I am boring of this film. → I am bored with this film.
-ed is how you feel, -ing is what causes the feeling.
- This exercise is easier than the last one.
- It's the best film I've seen.
- She isn't as tall as her brother.
- The weather is much worse today.
03 · Third page · now it's your turn
Exercises
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