Positive comparative superlative of adjectives. Degrees of comparison of adjectives

IN English language There are 3 degrees of comparison of adjectives: the positive degree, the comparative degree and superlative(the superlative degree).

Please note that the adjective comes before the noun and does not change in gender or number.

Positive degree adjective means that it is in its initial form and simply denotes the quality of an object, without comparing it with others: tall (tall), old (old), long (long), big (big), thin (thin), fat (thick). Education comparative And excellent degrees comparison depends on how many syllables the adjective contains.

Here are a few rules for forming degrees of comparison of adjectives in English with example sentences.

1. Monosyllabic adjectives add a suffix -er V comparative degree and suffix -est superlative:

• tall - taller - the tallest (high - higher - the highest)
• old - older - the oldest (old - older, older - the oldest, the oldest)
• long - longer - the longest (long - longer - the longest)

Here are some examples:

• Katie is taller than Rob. - Katie is taller than Rob.
• Katie is the tallest of all my friends. - Katie is the tallest of my friends.
• Rob is older than John. - Rob is older than John.
• Of the three students, Rob is the oldest. - Rob is the oldest of three students.
• My hair is longer than your hair. - My hair is longer than yours.
• Rob's story is the longest story I've ever heard. - Rob's story is the longest I've ever heard.

1. If a one-syllable adjective ends in a consonant preceded by a vowel, the consonant is doubled:

• big - bigger - the biggest (big - bigger - the biggest)
• thin - thinner - the thinnest (thin - thinner - the thinnest)
• fat - fatter - the fattest (full - fuller - the most complete)

Examples:

• My house is bigger than your house. - My house is bigger than your house.
• My house is the biggest of all the houses in the neighborhood. - My house is the largest of all in the area.
• Rob is thinner than John. - Rob is thinner than John.
• Of all the students in the class, Rob is the thinnest. - Rob is the skinniest of all the students in the class.
• My dog ​​is fatter than your dog. - My dog ​​is fatter than your dog.

1. Two-syllable adjectives form the comparative degree of comparison by adding more before adjectives, and the superlative degree, adding most:

• peaceful - more peaceful - the most peaceful (calm, peaceful - calmer - the calmest)
• pleasant - more pleasant - the most pleasant (pleasant - more pleasant - the most pleasant)
• careful - more careful - the most careful (careful - more careful - the most careful)

Example sentences:

• This morning is more peaceful than yesterday morning. - This morning is more peaceful than yesterday.
• John is more careful than Mike. - John is more careful than Mike.
• This evening is the most pleasant I"ve ever had. - This evening is the most pleasant of all that I have had.

1. If a two-syllable adjective ends in -y, then to form a comparative degree you need to change -y on -i and add a suffix -er, and to form a superlative degree - the suffix -est:

• happy - happier - the happiest (happy - happier - the happiest)
• angry - angrier - the angriest (angry - angrier - the angriest)
• busy - busier - the busiest (busy - busier - the busiest)

Example phrases:

• Robert is happier today than he was yesterday. - Today Robert is happier than yesterday.
• He is the happiest boy in the world. - He is the happiest boy in the world.
• John is angrier than Rob. - John is angrier than Rob.
• Katie is busier than John. - Katie is busier than John.
• Katie is the busiest person I"ve ever met. - Katie is the busiest busy man from all that I have met.

1. Two-syllable adjectives ending in -er, -le, -ow form comparative and superlative degrees of comparison by adding suffixes -er And -est respectively.

• narrow - narrower - the narrowest (narrow - already - the narrowest)
• gentle - gentler - the gentlest (noble - nobler - the most noble)

Examples:

• The streets in European countries are narrower than the streets in Russia. - The streets of European cities are narrower than in Russia.
• This street is the narrowest of all the roads in this town. - This street is the narrowest in this city.
• Big dogs are gentler than small dogs. - Big dogs nobler than the little ones.

Interesting English video about typical mistakes when using comparative degrees, adjectives (and a bonus - about adverbs!):

1. For adjectives of three syllables, the comparative and superlative degrees are formed by adding more And most before an adjective.

• generous - more generous - the most generous (generous - more generous - the most generous)
• important - more important - the most important (important - more important - the most important)
• intelligent - more intelligent - the most intelligent (smart - smarter - the smartest)

Example sentences:

• Katie is more generous than Mary. - Katie is more generous than Mary.
• John is the most generous of all the people I know. - John is the most generous person I know.
• Health is more important than money. - Health is more important than money.
• Katie is the most intelligent person I"ve ever met. - Katie is the smartest person I know.

1. Exceptional adjectives that have their own comparative and superlative form:

• Good - better - the best (good - better - the best)
• Bad - worse - the worst (bad - worse - the worst)
• Far - farther - the farthest (far - further - the farthest)
• Little - less - the least (small - less - the smallest)
• Many - more - the most (many - more - most of all)

Examples of phrases with exceptions:

• Italian food is better than American food. - Italian food is better than American food.
• My dog ​​is the best dog in the world. - My dog ​​is the best in the world.
• My sister"s cooking is worse than your sister"s cooking. - My sister cooks worse than yours.

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Qualitative adjectiveshave degrees of comparison. They express a greater or lesser degree of quality in a given item compared to another item.
For example: (My house is more beautiful than your house). sometimes the comparison is made within the same object (increase or decrease) at different periods of its development, i.e. at the present moment, compared to his past state.
For example: (Demand for the product has become higher than last year).

Adjectives have two degrees of comparison:
comparative;
excellent.

1.Comparative degree of adjective means that some characteristic is manifested to a greater or lesser extent in one object than in another.
For example: I'm happier than you. Your briefcase is heavier than mine. My dog ​​is smarter than yours.

The comparative degree is:
A) simple
B) difficult

A) Simple comparative degree formed using suffixes:
“her”(s): For example: handsome - more beautiful, smart - smarter, cold - colder;
"e" (with or without alternation of the last consonant of the base):
For example: big - larger, short - shorter, sweet - sweeter;
“she”: For example: old – older, young – younger.
Sometimes a different root is used to form the comparative degree of an adjective.
Good is better, bad is worse, small is smaller.
Adjectives in the simple comparative form do not change and have no endings!

B) Complex comparative degree is formed from the full form of the positive degree of the adjective using the particles more and less.
Big – more (less) big, beautiful – more (less) beautiful.

2) Superlative adjectives.
The superlative degree shows that some attribute is manifested in a given object to the greatest extent, compared with the same attribute in other similar objects.
This one is mine Best game; He is the smartest boy in the class.

Superlatives are:
A) simple
B) difficult
The superlative degree of an adjective can change according to gender, number and case.
(We have approached the highest mountains).

A) Simple superlative is formed using the suffixes “eysh”, “aysh”.
For example: The stupidest, the deepest, the rarest, the closest
Sometimes a different root is used to form the superlative degree of an adjective.
For example: Good is the best, bad is the worst.
B) Complex superlative is formed from the full form of the positive degree of the adjective using the particles most, most and least.
For example: Small - the smallest, the smallest, the least small, smart - the most intelligent, the most intelligent, the least intelligent.

Superlative adjectives, like full forms of positive adjectives, change according to gender, number and case.

Publication date: 01/28/2012 17:58 UTC

• Morphological analysis of the adjective in Russian.
• Full and short forms of adjectives. Declension and spelling of case forms of adjectives in Russian.
• The concept of an adjective. Morphological features of adjectives. Classes of adjectives in Russian.

In English, all adjectives can have 3 degrees of comparison: positive and superlative. And English-speaking people always use them, despite the fact that almost every one of them could already have forgotten about the names of such degrees. As a result, it has long become clear: it is not at all necessary to know all the names of the elements of the language, the main thing is to use them skillfully and correctly. IN Everyday life, you rarely have to talk about topics like grammar or vocabulary. It is possible that only children and language learners need such discussions.

Such a preface does not touch on the main topic, but simply helps to gradually focus on the material. Well, now briefly about the superlative degree of adjectives in English.

Superlative adjectives helps highlight the highest degree of quality of an object. For example: Russian adjective“cheap” in a superlative would sound like “the cheapest.” Or the adjective “good” in the superlative degree will sound like “the best.” And so on.

Now let's look at how to compose superlative degree in English.

Here we either add the suffix “est” to the end of the adjective, or we add the adverb “most” before the adjective. Usually the definite article “the” is used before a superlative adjective. Let's look at everything in more detail:

To adjectives with one syllable, add the suffix “est”:

Example:

• The house is the cheapest in the district – This house is the cheapest in the district.
• My satchel is the smallest in the class - My backpack is the smallest in the class.
• It's the coldest winter I’ve ever seen – This one Cold winter, ever I've ever seen.

For adjectives with two syllables ending in er, ow or y (“y” changes to “i”) add the suffix “est”

Example:

• I'm the happiest man in the world – I am the most happy man in the world.
• It was the narrowest way I’ve ever gone – It was the narrowest path I’ve ever walked on.
• Lake Baikal is the deepest lake in the world – Baikal is the deepest lake in the world.

For other adjectives with two syllables there is an adverb "most"

Example:

• All say that he’s the most careful player in poker – Everyone says that he is the most careful player in poker.
• My uncle is the most honest man in our family - My uncle is the most honest man in our family.
• It's the most boring game I’ve ever seen – This is the most boring game I’ve ever seen.

Before adjectives with three or more syllables, we also use the word “most”

Example:

• Fedor is the most dangerous fighter – Fedor is the most dangerous fighter.
• This collection of book is the most interesting I’ve ever read - This is the most interesting collection of books that I have ever read.
• I think Helen is the most beautiful girl in the group - I think Lena is the most beautiful in the group.

This is what all the material on this topic is based on. But any rule always has a couple of exceptions:

• good – best
• bad – worst

Example:

• You're the best singer in your collective - You are the best singer in your collective.
• It was the worst day in his holidays – It was the worst day on his holiday.

As you can see, superlative adjectives used to compare one thing with things of the same kind for a certain quality. And is often used in combination with the…in, the…of or simply the:

• This is the most comfortable car in the world
• This is the most interesting book of them all
• This is the strongest man here

It is worth noting that superlative adjectives with a negative prefix are formed in exactly the same way as without it:

• unkind – unkindest
• unhappy - unhappiest
• dishonest - dish mostonest

P.S. However, it would be better and more common to say no as kind as... or not as honest as... than unkindest or dishonest.

Superlative adjectives can also be combined with it’s by far or it’s easily:

• It’s by far the most expensive car in the world
• It’s easily the most expensive of all the cars I’ve seen

This is probably the end. Studying degrees of comparison of adjectives will help you combine and compare some objects with others, as well as formulate more colorful speech, which certainly will not hurt anyone.

For those who feel like a Jedi, we recommend taking split training

Adjectives and adverbs in many languages ​​of the world have degrees of comparison. In English these are Positive Degree, Comparative Degree and Superlative degree, in Polish - rywny, wyższy, najwyższy, in French - le positif, le comparatif, le superlatif. The Russian language is no exception; it has positive, comparative and superlative adjectives. How are they different and what are their forms?

Degrees of comparison: types, table

Adjectives and adverbs derived from them have the ability to form degrees of comparison.

There are three of them:

• Positive.
• Comparative.
• Excellent.

Each of them expresses a different level of possession of an object or a specific specific quality.

For example: resourceful boy ( positive), however he can be more resourceful ( comparative), and in a certain life situation and become the most resourceful ( excellent).

From which adjectives can we form degrees of comparison?

As you know, all adjectives in the Russian language are divided into several categories.

• Qualitative - means the characteristics by which an object or Living being can have different degrees: sweet, sweeter, sweetest.
• Relative - call the signs of an object or living being in their relation to circumstances, actions or other persons, things: telephone call, wooden building.
• Possessive - indicate that something belongs to someone: Pushkin’s stanza, father’s parting words.

Only from the first category can the comparative and superlative degrees of adjectives be formed (charming - more charming, the most charming), since it is impossible to say: “a more wooden building” or “the most Pushkin stanza.”

Adverbs that come from the qualitative category of adjectives can also form degrees of comparison: cheerful - cheerfully (more cheerfully).

Comparative degree of adjectives in Russian

Before moving on to consider the comparative degree, it is worth mentioning a little about the positive degree. This is the name given to the initial degree of comparison (boring). In fact, it is considered only formally as a degree of comparison. But the next one is the comparative degree of the adjective (more boring, more boring). It serves to show that a certain object or person has a given quality in greater/lesser quantity than someone/something else. For example: “This tea is stronger (stronger) than the one we drank yesterday.”

Information about comparative forms

In the above example, you can see that the comparative degree in Russian can be formed in the following ways: using suffixes or by adding an additional word (in this example it is “more”). It turns out that we can distinguish 2 forms of the comparative degree of adjectives in the Russian language: simple and compound, or as it is sometimes called - complex.

Methods for forming a simple shape

There are several ways to form it.

• Using the suffixes -ee, -ey, -e, -she, added to the base: cheerful - more cheerful. However, it is worth remembering that if suffixes of the comparative degree of adjectives -e, -she are used, then alternation of consonants in the root of the word may occur, and the suffixes -k, -ok, -ek may be eliminated altogether. For example: narrow - narrower, ringing - louder.
• Sometimes a simple form can be formed by adding the same -ee, -ey, -e, -she, as well as the prefix po-. For example: soon - quickly, quickly - quickly. Adjectives formed in this way are usually the province of colloquial speech.
• Sometimes the comparative degree of adjectives in Russian is formed using a different word stem: bad - worse.

It is worth remembering that not every qualitative adjective can form a simple form. It so happened historically that it is simply impossible to form it from some words. For example, from adjectives such as “grand” or “businesslike”. After all, you can’t say: “grower” or “more businesslike.”

Unlike the positive, the simple comparative degree has no ending and does not change. For example, the adjective “light” changes according to gender and number: “light”, “light”, “light”, etc. In addition, it is declined according to cases. But the comparative degree of the adjective - “lighter” - is unchanged.

In this form, words, as a rule, perform the syntactic role of a predicate: “Words of love are sweeter than honey,” and in some cases they serve as definitions: “Make sweeter jam.”

Complex shape

Unlike the simple one, it is formed not with the help of suffixes or prefixes, but by adding the words “more” or “less” to the adjective in the positive degree. For example: “Rembrandt was a more brilliant artist than most of his contemporaries, but he was truly appreciated years after his death.”

Adjectives in complex form are declined by case, change by number and, accordingly, by gender, while “more” and “less” remain unchanged. For example: more powerful (powerful, powerful, powerful).

Both in simple and compound form, comparative adjectives in a sentence serve as predicates or modifiers: “Their relationship was closer and more elevated than that of anyone around them.”

Having considered the information about the comparative degree, it is now worth moving on to studying the superlative degree. And it will help you not to forget how the comparative degree of adjectives is formed - the table.

It briefly outlines all the information about simple and complex forms and their formation.

Brief information about superlatives

It serves to demonstrate that a certain object or living being is absolutely superior to any other in a certain quality, which is represented in it to the highest degree.

For example: “The third little pig’s house was the strongest and the wolf could not destroy it.”

A little about superlatives

Knowledge of how simple and complex comparative degrees of adjectives are formed will help you understand this topic. In the case of the superlative degree, both of its forms have similar names: simple and compound (complex) and are formed according to the corresponding principle.

They are formed according to the same principle:

• The simple one is formed by adding the suffixes -eysh, -aysh to the stem: caring - caring. Similar to the comparative, the superlative may also lose the stem suffix -k: low, lowest. A word formed using a simple superlative form is declined according to cases and changes according to numbers and genders. While the comparative degree of an adjective in a simple form is devoid of this property. For example: “light”. As stated above, in comparative form it is invariably “lighter”. But in the superlative degree - “brightest”, it can change: “brightest”, “brightest”.
• The compound form is formed by adding the words "most", "least" or "most" ("most", "most", "most") to the adjective in the positive degree. For example: the brightest, the least entertaining, the funniest. In some cases, the comparative degree of the adjective plus the word “all” may also participate in the formation. For example: “This girl completed the task faster than anyone in the class.” As with the comparative form, the superlative adjective changes according to the same categories. And the additional words: “most” or “least” remain unchanged: “The wolf ran the shortest route to Grandma’s house and got ahead of Little Red Riding Hood.” However, “most” also changes: “The wolf ran the shortest route to Grandma’s house and got ahead of Little Red Riding Hood.”

Concerning syntactic role, then adjectives in this degree, as a rule, act as predicates: “A most amazing journey.” Less often - definitions: “It was a story about an amazing journey.” And in complex form, they most often serve as definitions: “He was smarter than everyone else at school.”

Superlative and comparative degrees of adjectives: exercises to consolidate knowledge

To better remember all the material presented, you should practice by doing a few fairly simple exercises.

The topic of comparative degrees of adjectives itself is quite easy. However, in order to avoid mistakes, it is worth remembering the basic rules, especially since in most European languages ​​adjectives also have 3 degrees of comparison. Therefore, having figured out what they are in Russian, you can safely take on the study of the grammar of foreign languages.

Qualitative adjectives have an inconsistent morphological feature of degrees of comparison.

School grammar indicates (see, for example, complex 2) that there are two degrees of comparison - comparative and superlative. It is more correct to distinguish three degrees of comparison - positive, comparative and superlative. The positive degree of comparison is the initial form of the adjective, in relation to which we recognize other forms as expressing greater/lesser or greatest/smallest degrees of the attribute.

The comparative degree of the adjective indicates that the attribute is manifested to a greater / lesser extent in this object compared to another object (Petya is taller than Vasya; This river is deeper than the other) or the same object in other circumstances (Petya is taller than he was last year; The river is deeper in this place than in that one).

The comparative degree can be simple or compound.

The simple comparative degree denotes a greater degree of manifestation of a characteristic and is formed as follows:

basis of the positive degree + formative suffixes -ee(s), -e, -she/-zhe (fast-ee, higher-e, earlier-she, deeper).

If at the end of a stem of a positive degree there is an element k/ok, this segment is often truncated: deep-y - deep-zhe.

Some adjectives have suppletive forms, that is, formed from another base: bad - worse, good - better.

When forming a simple comparative degree, the prefix po- (newer) can be added. The simple comparative degree with a prefix is ​​used if the adjective takes the position inconsistent definition(Give me a newer newspaper) and does not require introducing into the sentence what this attribute is being compared with. If there is in a sentence both what is being compared and what is being compared with, the prefix po- introduces a conversational connotation (These boots are newer than those).

The morphological features of the simple comparative degree are uncharacteristic of an adjective. This

1) immutability,

2) the ability to control a noun,

3) use primarily as a predicate (He is taller than his father). The position of definition can only be occupied by a simple comparative degree in a separate position (Much taller than other students, he seemed almost an adult) or in a non-separated position with the prefix po- in the position after the noun (Buy me fresher newspapers).

The compound comparative degree denotes both a greater and lesser degree of manifestation of a characteristic and is formed as follows:

element more/less + positive degree (more/less high).

The difference between a compound comparative degree and a simple one is as follows:

1) the compound comparative degree is broader in meaning, since it denotes not only a greater, but also a lesser degree of manifestation of a characteristic;

2) the compound comparative degree changes in the same way as the positive degree of comparison (original form), i.e., according to gender, number and cases, and can also appear in a short form (more beautiful);

3) a compound comparative degree can be either a predicate or a non-isolated and isolated definition (A less interesting article was presented in this journal. This article is less interesting than the previous one.)

The superlative degree of comparison indicates the greatest/smallest degree of manifestation of the characteristic (the highest mountain) or a very large/small degree of manifestation of the characteristic (the kindest person).

The superlative degree of comparison, like the comparative, can be simple or compound.

The simple superlative degree of comparison of an adjective denotes the greatest degree of manifestation of a characteristic and is formed as follows:

basis of the positive degree + formative suffixes -eysh- / -aysh- (after k, g, x, causing alternation): good-eysh-y, high-aysh-y

When forming a simple superlative degree of comparison, the prefix nai-: the kindest can be used.

The morphological features of the simple superlative degree of comparison of adjectives are the same as those of the positive degree, i.e. variability by gender, number, case, use in syntactic function definitions and predicates. Unlike the positive degree, the simple superlative degree of comparison of an adjective does not have a short form.

The compound superlative degree of comparison of adjectives denotes both the greatest and the least degree of manifestation of a characteristic and is formed in three ways:

1) element the most + positive degree (the smartest);

2) element most/least + positive degree (most/least smart);

3) simple comparative degree + element of everything / everyone (He was smarter than everyone else).

The forms of the compound superlative degree, formed by the first and second methods, have morphological features characteristic of the positive degree, i.e. they change according to gender, number and cases, and may have short form(most convenient), act both as a definition and as a nominal part of the predicate. Forms of the compound superlative degree, formed in the third way, are unchangeable and act primarily as the nominal part of the predicate.

Not all qualitative adjectives have forms of degrees of comparison, and the absence simple shapes degrees of comparison are observed more often than the absence of compound forms.

The absence of simple comparative and superlative degrees may be due to

1) with the formal structure of the adjective: if the adjective contains a suffix that coincides with the suffixes of relative adjectives, it may not have a simple comparative degree (emaciated - *more emaciated, *emaciated, advanced - *more advanced);

2) with the lexical meaning of the adjective: the meaning of the degree of manifestation of the attribute can already be expressed at the base of the adjective - in its root (barefoot - * barefoot) or in the suffix (thick - * fatter, angry - * feisty, white-ish - *whiter, blue-ish - *blue).

Compound forms of degrees of comparison are not formed only for words with a semantic limitation, i.e. in the second case. So, there are no forms *more feisty, *less whitish, but there are forms less emaciated, more advanced.

Completeness/brevity of adjectives

Qualitative adjectives have a full and a short form

The short form is formed by adding positive degree endings to the stem: Ø for the masculine, -а for the feminine, -о / -е for the neuter, -ы / -идла plural(deep-Ø, deep-a, deep-o, deep-i).

A short form is not formed from qualitative adjectives, which

1) have the suffixes characteristic of relative adjectives -sk-, -ov-/-ev-, -n-: brown, coffee, brotherly;

2) indicate the colors of animals: brown, black;

3) have suffixes of subjective assessment: tall, blue.

The short form has grammatical differences from the full form: it does not change by case, in a sentence it acts primarily as a nominal part of the predicate (cases like the red maiden, the white combustible stone are phraseologically archaic); the short form acts as a definition only in a separate syntactic position (Angry at the whole world, he almost stopped leaving the house).

In the position of the predicate, the meaning of the full and short forms usually coincides, but for some adjectives the following semantic differences are possible between them:

1) the short form denotes excessive manifestation of a characteristic with a negative assessment, cf.: short skirt - short skirt;

2) the short form denotes a temporary sign, the full form - permanent, cf.: the child is sick - the child is sick.

There are such qualitative adjectives that have only a short form: glad, much, must.

Transition of adjectives from category to category

It is possible for an adjective to have several meanings belonging to different categories. In school grammar this is called “the transition of an adjective from category to category.” Yes, y relative adjective a value characteristic of quality may develop (for example: iron part (relative) - iron will(qual.) - metaphorical transfer). Possessives may have meanings characteristic of relative and qualitative (for example: Foxy burrow(possessive) - fox hat (relative) - fox habits (qualitative). Qualitative adjectives, used terminologically, function as relative adjectives (voiceless consonants). In this case, the adjective retains the type of its declension, but is often changed morphological characteristics: qualitative ones lose degrees of comparison and a short form (for example, it is impossible to say * This consonant is deaf), while relative ones, on the contrary, can acquire these signs (With each word his voice became more and more honey-like, and his habits more and more foxy.).