Degrees of comparison - Positive, Comparative, Superlative

There are 3 degrees of comparison. They are:

Positive, Comparative and Superlative

1.      Positive degree

When we speak about only one person or thing, we use the Positive degree.

This house is big.
In this sentence only one noun “The house” is talked about.

• He is a tall student.
• This flower is beautiful.
• He is an intelligent boy.
Each sentence mentioned above talks about only one noun.

2.      Comparative degree 

When we compare two persons or two things with each other, we use both the Positive degree and Comparative degree.

a. This house is bigger than that one. (Comparative degree)
This house is not as big as that one. (Positive degree)

b. This flower is more beautiful than that. (Comparative)
That flower is not as beautiful as this. (Positive)

c. He is more intelligent than this boy. (Comparative)
This boy is not as intelligent as him. (Positive)

d. He is taller than Mr. Watson. (Comparative)
Mr. Watson is not as tall as him. (Positive)

3.      Superlative Degree

     When we compare more than two persons or things with one another, we use all the three: Positive, Comparative and Superlative degrees. 

a. This is the biggest house in this street. (Superlative)
This house is bigger than any other house in this street. (Comparative)
No other house in this street is as big as this one. (Positive)

b. This flower is the most beautiful one in this garden. (Superlative)
This flower is more beautiful than any other flower in this garden. (Comparative)
No other flower in this garden is as beautiful as this one. (Comparative)

c. He is the most intelligent in this class. (Superlative)
He is more intelligent than other boys in the class. (Comparative)
No other boy is as intelligent as this boy. (Positive)

d. He is the tallest student in this class. (Superlative)
He is taller than other students in this class. (Comparative)
No other student is as tall as this student. (Positive)

The term “tallest” is superlative version of the term “tall”.

e. Among the members of the group, Mr. Clinton speaks most effectively.

The term “effectively” is an adverb.

Note: All the terms used in the above examples are either adjectives or adverbs. (mostly adjectives are used for changing the degrees)

Also, in the superlative degree, we always prefix the article 'the' before the adjective.

You never use more with an adjective already in comparative or superlative.
For eg.: This movie is more better. (This is wrong) You will just say: This movie is better.

Formation of Comparative and Superlative

Form the comparative and superlative forms of a one-syllable adjective by adding –er for the comparative form and –est for the superlative.

One syllable adjective	Comparative	Superlative
tall	taller	tallest
old	older	oldest
long	longer	longest

If the one-syllable adjective ends with an e, just add –r for the comparative form and –st for the superlative form.

One syllable adjective ending with -e	Comparative	Superlative
large	larger	largest
wise	wiser	wisest

If the one-syllable adjective ends with a single consonant with a vowel before it, double the consonant and add –er for the comparative form; and double the consonant and add –est for the superlative form.

One-syllable adjective ending with a single consonant with a single vowel before it	Comparative	Superlative
big	bigger	biggest
thin	thinner	thinnest
fat	fatter	fattest

With most two-syllable adjectives, you form the comparative with more and the superlative with most.

Two-syllable adjective	Comparative	Superlative
peaceful	more peaceful	most peaceful
pleasant	more pleasant	most pleasant
careful	more careful	most careful
thoughtful	more thoughtful	most thoughtful

If the two-syllable adjectives ends with –y, change the y to i and add –er for the comparative form. For the superlative form change the y to i and add –est.

Two-syllable adjective ending with -y	Comparative	Superlative
happy	happier	happiest
angry	angrier	angriest
busy	busier	busiest

Two-syllable adjectives ending in –er, -le, or –ow take –er and –est to form the comparative and superlative forms.

Two-syllable adjective ending with –er, -le or –ow	Comparative	Superlative
narrow	narrower	narrowest
gentle	gentler	gentlest

For adjectives with three syllables or more, you form the comparative with more and the superlative with most.

Adjective with three or more syllables	Comparative	Superlative
generous	more generous	most generous
important	more important	most important
intelligent	more intelligent	most intelligent

There are exceptions for irregular adjectives.

Adjective	Comparative	Superlative
good	better	best
bad	worse	worst
far	farther	farthest
little	less	least
Many	more	most

Two-syllable adjectives that follow two rules. These adjectives can be used with -er and -est and with more and most.

Adjective	Comparative	Superlative
clever	cleverer	cleverest
clever	more clever	most clever
gentle	gentler	gentlest
gentle	more gentle	most gentle
friendly	friendlier	friendliest
friendly	more friendly	most friendly
quiet	quieter	quietest
quiet	more quiet	most quiet
simple	simpler	simplest
simple	more simple	most simple