Comparative and Superlative Adjectives Exercises and Rules

comparatives and superlatives adjectives in english

ESL students, have you ever wondered how to use comparative and superlative adjectives correctly? In this blog post, we will provide you with some exercises to help you master these concepts. Keep reading for tips and tricks on using comparative and superlative adjectives in English!

Table of Contents

Comparative Adjectives

The comparative form of an adjective is used to compare two things. To form the comparative form of an adjective, you simply add -er to the end of the word. For example:

tall – taller
short – shorter
thin – thinner

Superlative Adjectives

The superlative form of an adjective is used to compare three or more things. To form the superlative form of an adjective, you add -est to the end of the word. For example:

tall – tallest
short – shortest
thin – thinnest

Rules of Comparative and Superaltive Adjectives

When comparing more than two things, use the following rules:

– If two things are equal, use the comparative form.

For example:

Tokyo is as large as London. (compare two cities)

– If one thing is bigger/smaller/thinner/fatter than the other, use the superlative form.

For example:

Los Angeles is the largest city in the United States. (compare cities)
Paris is the thinnest city in Europe. (compare cities)

– If two things are not equal, use the comparative form of the adjective with more/less.

For example:

Houston has more museums than any other city in Texas. (compare cities)
Dallas has less crime than any other city in Texas. (compare cities)

Rules for comparative and superlative adjectives

For most one-syllable adjectives, just add -er or -est.

For example:
big – bigger – biggest
happy – happier – happiest

For adjectives that have two syllables and end in -y, change the y to i and add -er or -est.

For example:

crazy – crazier – craziest
lazy – lazier – laziest

For adjectives that have two syllables and do not end in -y, add more or less to the comparative or superlative form.

For example:

intelligent – more intelligent – most intelligent
enormous – more enormous – most enormous

Some adjectives have irregular comparative and superlative forms.

For example:

good – better – best
bad – worse – worst
many – more – most
much – more – most

When using comparative and superlative adjectives in English, remember to use the correct forms of these words.

For example:

She is a better tennis player than he is. (compare two people)
Tokyo is the largest city in Japan. (compare cities)
He is the worst student in the class. (compare people)

Incorrect: She is the best tennis player than he is.

Incorrect: Tokyo is the largest city than Japan.

Incorrect: He is the worst student in the class then he is.

Exercises of Comparative and Superlative Adjectives

1) Circle the correct comparative and superlative forms of the following adjectives.

happy – happier – happiest
clever – cleverer – cleverest
large – larger – largest
happy – happier – happiest
clever – cleverer – cleverest

2) Put the correct adjectives:

She is more ______ than me. (pretty, prettier, prettiest)
He is less ______ than his brother. (tall, taller, tallest)
Jane is the most ______ person I know. (intelligent, more intelligent, most intelligent)

3) Complete the sentences with the correct comparative or superlative forms of the adjectives in brackets.