Comparison: Talking about equality and inequality

We use several different structures for comparing.

Similarity

To say that people, things or actions are similar in a way, we can use as and like. Adverbs such as too, also and as well can also be used.

She looks just like her mother.
He fought like a lion.
He fought as a lion does.
The papers were late and the post was too.
Structures such as so do I and neither do I can also be used.
She doesn’t like meat, and neither do I.
She likes music, and so do I.

To say that people or things are identical in a way, we can use the same as.

Her eyes are just the same color as mine.

To talk about differences we use the negative forms of these structures.

She doesn’t look like her mother.
Her eyes are not the same color as yours.

Equality

To say that people or things are equal in a way, we use the structure as…as or as much/many…as.

She earns as much money as he does.

In negative comparisons we can use not as…as or not so…as.

She doesn’t earn so much money as he does.

To say that people or things are unequal in a way we use comparative adjectives and adverbs with than.

She is taller than you.
She is more intelligent than her husband.
We can also use less than or least to talk about inequality.
She earns less than I do. OR I earn more than she does.
She is less ugly than you. OR You are uglier than her.

Comparison of equality is used to show that two things, people are similar. There is no difference between the subject and the object.It can be used with adjectives, adverbs and nouns.

The rule: S + V + as + adjective + as + O
              S + V + as + adverb + as + O
              S + V + as + much / many + Noun + as + O

Eg: John is 16 years old. Peter is 16 years old.
      John is as ols as Peter.
      Patrick speaks English as fluently as Sandra.
      There are as many people in this room as in the next room.

INDIRECT QUESTIONS

Here are some of the most common phrases used for asking indirect questions. Many of these phrases are questions (i.e., Do you know when the next train leaves?), while others are statements made to indicate a question (i.e., I wonder if he will be on time.).

Do you know … ?
I wonder / was wondering ….
Can you tell me … ?
Do you happen to know ...?
I have no idea ...
I'm not sure ...
I'd like to know ...
Have you any idea ...

Sometimes we also use these phrases to indicate that we'd like some more information.

I’m not sure…
I don’t know…

Examples:

Do you know when the concert begins?
I wonder when he will arrive.
Can you tell me how to check out a book.
I’m not sure what he considers appropriate.
I don’t know if he is coming to the party this evening.

INTENSIFIERS: MORE examples..

What are intensifiers?

Words which are used to add force to the meaning of verbs, adjectives or other adverbs are called intensifiers.

Examples of intensifiers

These are examples of intensifiers:

I strongly disagree.
It's extremely hot in Africa.
You play soccer very well.
Do you really mean it.
It's fairly interesting.
It's quite calm here.
He's pretty intelligent.
These students are rather noisy.
I so wanted to buy the dress.
She writes poems too often.
It's absolutely amazing.
I am a little angry with her.

INTENSIFIERS

Intensifiers are adverbs that enhance adjectives and adverbs. In English, they come
before the words they modify.

Examples:

It's quite hot today.
Ms. Stress is really busy right now.
He's my very best friend.
I'm a little tired today.
That was a pretty good shot.
Sam just got a brand new car.
I know her fairly well.
It's extremely hot outside.
You're absolutely right!

COMPARATIVE FORMS OF ADVERBS

COMPARATIVE FORMS OF ADVERBS
In general, comparative and superlative forms of adverbs are the same as for adjectives:

• add -er or -est to short adverbs:

Adverb	Comparative	Superlative
hard late fast	harder later faster	the hardestthe latest the fastest

Example:

• Jim works harder than his brother.
• Everyone in the race ran fast, but John ran the fastest of all.

with adverbs ending in -ly, use more for the comparative and most for the superlative:

Adverb	Comparative	Superlative
quietly slowly seriously	more quietlymore slowlymore seriously	most quietlymost slowlymost seriously

Example:

• The teacher spoke more slowly to help us to understand.
• Could you sing more quietly please?

Some adverbs have irregular comparative forms:

Adverb	Comparative	Superlative
badly far little well	worse farther/further less better	worst farthest/furthest least best

Example:

• The little boy ran further than his friends.
• You're driving worse today than yesterday !

BE CAREFUL! Sometimes 'most' can mean 'very':

• We were most grateful for your help
• I am most impressed by this application.

IRREGULAR COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES;ADVERBS; AND QUANTIFIERS

ADJECTIVE             ADVERB       COMPARATIVE   SUPERLATIVE
bad                                 badly                   worse                       worst
far                                     far                       further                     furthest
good                                well                      better                      best
little                                   little                      less                        more
many/ a lot of                      _                        more                       most
much/ a lot of                much/ a lot of           more                       most

(much is usually only used in questions and negative statements.

Adjectives Versus Adverbs: Three Degrees of Separation

Introduction

Three Degrees of Separation
Tough Sledding: Using Adjectives After Linking Verbs
A Note on Adjectives and Adverbs for Non-Native Speakers
Don't Use No Double Negatives
Often, you'll want to compare things rather than just describe them. Not to worry; English has this covered. Adjectives and adverbs have different forms to show

degrees of comparison. We even have a name for each of these forms of degree: positive, comparative, and superlative. Let's meet the whole gang.

Positive degree: the base form of the adjective or adverb. It does not show comparison.
Comparative degree: the form an adjective or adverb takes to compare two things.
Superlative degree: the form an adjective or adverb takes to compare three or more things.
Strictly Speaking

What do these three words have in common: childish, yellowish, and flowery? They are all adjectives created from nouns. Creating adjectives from nouns: another hobby you might want to consider.

The following table shows the three degrees of comparison with some sample adjectives and adverbs.

Comparative Levels of Adjectives and Adverbs
Part of Speech Positive Comparative Superlative
Adjective low lower lowest
Adjective big bigger biggest
Adjective fat fatter fattest
Adverb highly more highly most highly
Adverb widely more widely most widely
Adverb easily more easily most easily
You Could Look It Up

The positive degree is the base form of the adjective or adverb. It does not show comparison. The comparative degree compares two things; the superlative degree compares three or more things. As you can see from this table, the comparative and superlative degrees of adjectives and adverbs are formed differently. Here's how:

Strictly Speaking

Less and least can also be used to form the comparative and superlative degrees of most adjectives and adverbs, as in less attractive and least attractive.

Less and fewer cannot be interchanged. Less refers to amounts that form a whole or can't be counted (less money, less filling), while fewer refers to items that can be counted (fewer coins, fewer calories).

All adverbs that end in -ly form their comparative and superlative degree with more and most.
quickly, more quickly, most quickly
slowly, more slowly, most slowly
Avoid using more or most when they sound awkward, as in “more soon than I expected.” In general, use -er/-est with one- and two-syllable modifiers.
fast, faster, fastest
high, higher, highest
When a word has three or more syllables, use more and most to form the comparative and superlative degree.
beloved, more beloved, most beloved
detested, more detested, most detested
Size Does Matter

Now that you know how to form comparisons with adjectives and adverbs, follow these guidelines to make these comparisons correct.

Use the comparative degree (-er or more form) to compare two things.
Your memory is better than mine.
Donald Trump is more successful than Donald Duck, Don Ameche, or Don Ho.
Use the superlative form (-est or most) to compare three or more things.
This is the largest room in the house.
This is the most awful meeting.
Never use -er and more or -est and most together. One or the other will do the trick nicely.
No: This is the more heavier brother.
Yes: This is the heavier brother.
No: He is the most heaviest brother.
Yes: He is the heaviest brother.
Good, Gooder, Goodest: Irregular Adjectives and Adverbs

Danger, Will Robinson

Irregular adjective/adverb use, like much of life, is the result of accidents. In this case, it arose from the way the language formed. Good, for instance, has Indo-European roots; worse and worst, in contrast, originated in Old English. So here's one reason English isn't consistent, Mouseketeers. Of course, life can't be that easy in the land of adjectives and adverbs. And so it isn't. A few adjectives and adverbs don't follow these rules. They sneer at them, going their own separate ways. Like errant congressmen, there's just no predicting what these adjectives and adverbs will do next. The following table shows the most common irregular adjectives and adverbs. Tap the noggin and memorize these forms.

Inconsiderate Adjectives and Adverbs
Positive Comparative Superlative
good better best
well better best
bad worse worst
badly worse worst
far farther farthest
far further furthest
late later         later or latest
little (amount) less least
many more most
much more most
some more most

Keep Your Balance

In most cases, the comparative and superlative degree shouldn't present any more difficulty than doing pick-up brain surgery with a screw driver or dealing with your two-year-old. Upon occasion, however, the way the sentence is phrased may make your comparison unclear. You balance your tires and your checkbook, so balance your sentences. Here's how:

Compare similar items.
Finish the comparison.
No: Nick's feet are bigger than Charles's. (Charles's what?)
Yes: Nick's feet are bigger than Charles's feet.
No: My wife's CD collection is larger than my son's.
Yes: My wife's CD collection is larger than my son's CD collection.
Other and Else

Another common error is illogical comparisons. Why bother creating new illogical situations, when the world is filled with existing ones that fit the bill so nicely? Because the thing you're comparing is part of a group, you have to differentiate it from the group by using the word other or else before you can set it apart in a comparison. Therefore, to avoid adding to the world's existing stock of stupidity, when you compare one item in a group with the rest of the group, be sure to include the word other or else. Then, your comparison will make sense.

Dopey: The Godfather was greater than any modern American movie.
Sensible: The Godfather was greater than any other modern American movie.
Dopey: Francis Ford Coppola won more awards than anyone at the ceremony.
Sensible: Francis Ford Coppola won more awards than anyone else at the ceremony.

Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Grammar and Style © 2003 by Laurie E. Rozakis, Ph.D.. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Used by arrangement with Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

To order this book direct from the publisher, visit the Penguin USA website or call 1-800-253-6476. You can also purchase this book at Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble. Read more: Adjectives Versus Adverbs: Three Degrees of Separation — Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/cig/grammar-style/three-degrees-

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