Adjectives (and some adverbs) have three degrees of comparison:
| Degree | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Positive | Describes one thing, no comparison | Delhi is a big city. |
| Comparative | Compares two things (+ than) | Mumbai is bigger than Pune. |
| Superlative | Compares one with all others in a group (the …) | Mumbai is the biggest city in Maharashtra. |
How to form comparatives and superlatives
| Adjective type | Comparative | Superlative | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| One syllable | + -er | the + -est | tall → taller → the tallest; fast → faster → the fastest |
| Two syllables ending in -y | y → -ier | the + y → -iest | happy → happier → the happiest; easy → easier → the easiest |
| Two or more syllables (most) | more + adjective | the most + adjective | careful → more careful → the most careful; expensive → more expensive → the most expensive |
| Less / least (any length) | less + adjective | the least + adjective | less important → the least important |
Spelling changes
- Ends in -e: add -r / -st → large, larger, largest; nice, nicer, nicest
- Consonant-vowel-consonant (one syllable): double the last letter → big, bigger, biggest; hot, hotter, hottest; thin, thinner, thinnest
- Consonant + y: y → i → busy, busier, busiest; dry, drier, driest
- Don't double w or y: new, newer, newest; grey, greyer, greyest
Irregular adjectives
| Positive | Comparative | Superlative |
|---|---|---|
| good / well | better | the best |
| bad / badly | worse | the worst |
| many / much | more | the most |
| little (amount) | less | the least |
| far | farther / further | the farthest / the furthest |
| old (family, formal) | elder | the eldest |
| late | later / latter | the latest / the last |
Older vs. elder: elder/eldest is used only for family members and only before a noun: my elder brother. Use older everywhere else: He is older than me (✗ elder than me).
Farther vs. further: both work for distance; only further means "more/additional": further information.
Latest vs. last: latest = most recent (the latest news); last = final (the last chapter).
Two-syllable adjectives: -er or more?
Two-syllable adjectives ending in -y use -ier/-iest. Most others use more/most (more modern, more useful, more famous). A few can take either form:
When in doubt, more/most is rarely "wrong" for two-syllable adjectives — but never use both together (✗ more easier).
Useful comparison structures
| Structure | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| comparative + than | difference between two | Tea is cheaper than coffee. |
| as + adjective + as | equal | She is as tall as her mother. |
| not as / not so + adjective + as | less | This film isn't as good as the book. |
| the + superlative + in / of | highest in a group | the best player in the team; the hottest day of the year |
| much / far / a lot / a bit + comparative | size of the difference | much faster, far better, a bit cheaper |
| comparative and comparative | continuous change | It's getting colder and colder. Prices are becoming more and more expensive. |
| the + comparative, the + comparative | one change causes another | The more you practise, the better you get. |
| twice / three times as … as | multiples | This phone costs twice as much as that one. |
These structures are essential for describing charts in IELTS Writing Task 1 ("almost twice as high as", "the lowest figure").
Comparing adverbs
- One-syllable adverbs take -er/-est: fast → faster, hard → harder, late → later.
- Adverbs ending in -ly use more/most: quickly → more quickly → most quickly; carefully → more carefully.
- Irregular: well → better → best; badly → worse → worst.
Changing the degree of comparison (sentence transformation)
A common school and competitive-exam task: rewrite a sentence in another degree without changing its meaning.
| Superlative | Comparative | Positive |
|---|---|---|
| Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world. | Mount Everest is higher than any other mountain in the world. | No other mountain in the world is as high as Mount Everest. |
| Kolkata is one of the oldest cities in India. | Kolkata is older than most other cities in India. | Very few cities in India are as old as Kolkata. |
Common mistakes
| ✗ Incorrect | ✓ Correct |
|---|---|
| She is more taller than me. | She is taller than me. |
| This is the most easiest question. | This is the easiest question. |
| He is the better player in the team. | He is the best player in the team. (more than two) |
| My brother is elder than me. | My brother is older than me. |
| This book is gooder than that one. | This book is better than that one. |
| Delhi is bigger than any city in India. | Delhi is bigger than any other city in India. |
| He is the tallest boy of the class. | He is the tallest boy in the class. (in for places/groups) |
Practice
A. Write the comparative and superlative.
- cheap
- thin
- funny
- beautiful
- bad
- far
Show answers
- cheaper, the cheapest
- thinner, the thinnest
- funnier, the funniest
- more beautiful, the most beautiful
- worse, the worst
- farther/further, the farthest/furthest
B. Rewrite in the degree shown.
- Gold is the most precious metal. (comparative)
- No other student in the class is as clever as Meera. (superlative)
- Iron is more useful than any other metal. (positive)
Show answers
- Gold is more precious than any other metal.
- Meera is the cleverest student in the class.
- No other metal is as useful as iron.
Comparatives and superlatives are adjectives — see where they fit in parts of speech. Superlatives always take the; the full rules are in articles a, an and the.
Frequently asked questions
What are the three degrees of comparison?
Positive (big), comparative (bigger) and superlative (the biggest). The positive describes one thing, the comparative compares two, and the superlative compares one thing with all the others in a group.
When do we use “more” instead of “-er”?
Use -er for one-syllable adjectives (taller) and two-syllable adjectives ending in -y (happier). Use “more” for most adjectives with two or more syllables (more careful, more expensive).
What is the comparative of “good”?
The comparative of good is “better” and the superlative is “the best”. Good is irregular, so “gooder” and “more good” are incorrect.
What is the difference between older and elder?
“Elder” and “eldest” are used only for family members before a noun (my elder sister). “Older” is used in all other cases, including with “than”: She is older than me.
How do you change a superlative into a comparative?
Use “-er than any other + singular noun”: “Everest is the highest mountain” becomes “Everest is higher than any other mountain.” For positive degree use “No other … is as … as”.