Degree of Comparison Rules

It is no doubt that the English Language is the most crucial part of most of the entrance exams in India. It forms a significant part of the High School syllabus too and is needed in many competitive exams like banking, SSC, CLAT, CAT, GMAT and proficiency tests. Students often consider English to be the easiest part of any entrance. Well, it can be so if practised smartly. The degree of Comparison is one of the most scoring parts of the English syllabus and it is always advised that students practise it sincerely to do well in their exams. Here, we shall discuss the Degree of Comparison rules.

Forms of Adjective

Adjectives have three forms to be used for comparison : positive, comparative and superlative.

I. In the case of one item or person, the positive is used.
II. In the case of two items or persons, the comparative is used.
III. In the case of three or more than three items or persons, the superlative is used.

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Rules of Degree of Comparison

Let’s now have a look at the basic rules of Degree of Comparison.

Rule 1

When the comparison is of a single entity between two people, more or most is to be used.

For eg:
Rita is smarter than Gita – Incorrect
Rita is more smarter than Gita – Correct

Rule 2

When the comparison is between two different qualities of one person or entity, more is used.

For eg:
He is wiser than shrewd – Incorrect
He is more wiser than shrewd – Correct.

Degrees of comparison from Aimee789

Rule 3 

Double comparatives or superlatives are not used anymore for comparison.

Rule 4

Comparison must be between two similar things.

For instance:
If we are comparing speeds, the comparison must be between the speeds of either a single entity or two or more entities. 

Rule 5

In the case where ‘than’ or ‘as’ is followed by a first person/second person pronoun, the verb can be omitted, but not in the case of third person. 

Example:
She is not as smart as her sister – Incorrect
She is not as smart as her sister is – Correct

Also Read: Top 30 Commonly Confusing Words in English!

Rule 6

Superlative degree should be used for comparing three or more, whereas comparative degree should be used for comparing two.

Rule 7

Two adjectives in different degrees of comparison when being used in the same sentence, must be complete in themselves.

Rule 8

A list of words mentioned below must be followed by ‘to’ and not by ‘than’.

• Senior
• Superior
• Elder
• Junior
• Inferior
• Preferable
• Prefer

For eg: She is junior to me.

Also Read: English Vocabulary: Tips to Improve

Rule 9

We can’t use ‘More’ or ‘Most’ for adjectives that make absolute sense in themselves. For words like unique, parallel or universe.

These were the rules of degree of comparison. Now let’s have a look at the various examples: 

POSITIVE	COMPARATIVE	SUPERLATIVE
big	bigger	biggest
Small	smaller	smallest
good	better	best
brief	briefer	briefest
Beautiful	More beautiful	Most beautiful
Busy	Busier	Busiest
bright	brighter	brightest
clean	cleaner	cleaner
Cheap	cheaper	cheapest
expensive	More expensive	Most expensive
close	closer	closest
clear	clearer	clearest
dark	darker	darkest
deep	deeper	deepest
dry	drier	driest
dense	denser	densest
Cool	cooler	coolest

Degree of Comparison Rules: Exercises

Now let’s take a look at our progress by solving a few questions.

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So, this was all about the degree of comparison rules. Hope you found it to be helpful and informative. For more such content, stay connected to Leverage Edu!