Методическая разработка: степени сравнения прилагательных и наречий
методическая разработка по английскому языку

Good to know...

Do you ever find yourself wanting to compare things or say how they are different from each other?

If you do, are you able to express yourself? 

This is where this flashcard will come in handy!

Today you will learn:

- How to use comparative and superlative forms of adjectives like a pro 

- The mistakes to avoid 

- …And some interesting trivia!

Don't forget!

One syllable => tall => is taller than => is the tallest

More than one syllable => beautiful => is more beautiful than => is the most beautiful

Words ending in -y => pretty => is prettier than => is the prettiest

Irregular words => good => is better than => is the best /=> bad => is worse than / => is the worst

Explanations & Examples

Comparatives and Superlatives

=> Are forms of adjectives that we use to look at the differences between two objects, places, or people (comparatives) 

or a whole group of objects, places, or people (superlatives).

=> Jon is older than Jim. = This is a comparative. It takes an adjective about age (old) and gives us the age order of Jon and Jim.

=> Jon is the oldest in his class. = This is a superlative. It takes an adjective about age (old) and tells us the age order of Jon and all the members of a GROUP (his class).

NOTE: We could also say : Jon is older than the rest of his class. = Here, 'the rest of the class' is one thing and not a group of things.

Let's look at the rules for making adjectives into comparatives: 

=> Remember to add is/are before the word. (was/were are also okay!)

=> And the adjective applies to the FIRST noun (person, place, thing, etc.).

For example, if Sam is 10 years old and Tim is 12 years old, the correct order is:

Tim is older thanSam, or

Sam is younger than Tim.

One-syllable words

=> remember, a 'syllable' is a SOUND.

=> for example, tall, green, cheap, nice

=> just add -er than to these words.

Jack is taller than Sam.

NOTE: if the one syllable word has a short sound, like hot, big make sure you double the final letter.

My car is bigger than your car. 

Thailand is hotter than England.

Two or more syllable words

=> for example, beautiful, comfortable, handsome

=> just add more than before the word.

My garden is more beautiful than your garden.

Words ending in -y

=> for example, pretty, ugly, funny

=> change the -y to an -i

=> and add -er than.

Sally is prettier than her sister.

Irregular words

=> good = is better than

=> bad = is worse than

=> far = is further than / is farther than

My new book is better than my last one.

Now, let's look at the rules for making adjectives into superlatives:

=> remember to add is/are before the word (was/were are also okay).

=> and the adjective applies to the FIRST noun (person, place, thing, etc.).

=> don't use than!

One-syllable words

=> remember, a 'syllable' is a SOUND.

=> for example, tall, green, cheap, nice

=> just add the -est to these words.

My building is the tallest in the city.

NOTE: if the one-syllable word has a short sound, like hot, big make sure you double the final letter.

This June is the hottest month on record!

Two or more syllable words

=> for example, beautiful, comfortable, handsome

=>just add the most before the word.

This was the most comfortable sofa in the store.

Words ending in -y

=> for example, pretty, ugly, funny

=> change the -y to an -i

=> and add the -est.

He is the funniest man I ever met.

Irregular words

=> good => is the best

=> bad => is the worst

=> far => is the furthest / is the farthest

This is the best book I've ever read!

Look out!

LOOK OUT! Remember the spelling rules and don't confuse when to double a letter => if the sound is long (like the name of a letter) then don't double it => ee, ea, the 'o' in 'cold' are all long sounds :

green => greener

cheap => cheaper

cold => colder

=> if the sound is short, like the 'a' in 'fat', the 'i' in 'big', or the 'o' in 'hot', double the last letter :

fat => fatter

big => bigger

hot => hotter

Did you know?

Are you looking for a little light reading (something easy to read), well The Blah Story, might not be what you are looking for. Nigel Tomm's novel has a staggering 7,312 pages! Making it the longest novel ever published!

It's about 700,000 words longer than the next record-breaking novel, Marienbad My Love.

War and Peace is a significantly easier read and a LOT shorter!

Good to know...

Do you ever find yourself in a situation where you want to compare things or times?

If you do, are you able to express yourself? 

This is where this flashcard will come in handy!

Today you will learn:

- How to use better for comparisons.

- The mistakes to avoid 

- …and some interesting trivia!

Don't forget!

Better is used to show an improvement on GOOD.

- It always needs to be used to compare two elements (objects, situations, etc).

- We don't always need to name both elements IF they are both understood. Ex: This one is better vs This movie is better. 

Explanations & Examples

Better

Let's start with the meaning!

Better shows improvement. One thing can be described as good, but this is an irregular adjective which changes to better to talk about what is the same or different about things (comparisons). 

Much better

This is used to show an improvement, where the first thing was a problem.

I feel much better now. => I was sick before. Now I am not so sick.

The new menu is much better than the old one! => I didn't really like the old menu. I like this one.

Any better

This is used in questions to ask if something has improved.

Is he any better? => He was sick. How is he now?

Is the weather any better? => The weather was bad. Is it nicer now?

Better and better

This is used to show things keep on improving.

Things just keep getting better and better! => Good things continue to happen.

My dog is getting better and better behaved. => He is listening to me more every day.

The sooner the better

This is used to talk about time and the need to get something done or improved as quickly as possible.

=> It is often used to explain when we need something.

=> There is often no information before or after it because it is a response.

Person 1: When do you need it?

Person 2: The sooner the better!

Person 1: Did you hear? The building work should be finished by the end of the week!

Person 2: The sooner the better! The noise is horrible.

Look out!

LOOK OUT! Better is always used to talk about the difference between two things, situations, or times. 

=> This is much better. (than that) 

=> Are you any better? (than before)

=> The city keeps getting better and better. (It was okay before, but it keeps on improving, month after month)

=> When do you need it? / The sooner the better (don't take your time. I need it now.)

Did you know?

If you want your English to start getting better and better you need to read, listen to, and speak it as much as possible.

For much better English try using Ted Talks at ted.com. It's simple to add subtitles to make it easier too and has HUNDREDS of talks to choose between.

Start it soon. In fact, the sooner the better and even if you think your English cannot get any better, you'll see it can!

Good to know...

Do you ever find yourself in a situation where you want to compare things? 

Do you want to say how two things are the same or how they are different?

If you do, are you able to express yourself? 

This is where this flashcard will come in handy!

Today you will learn:

- About using as…. as and than.

- How we use them.

- The mistakes to avoid 

- …and some interesting trivia!

Don't forget!

=>as…..as => things that are the same.

=>…. than  => things that are not the same.

Explanations & Examples

as…..as / than

=> These are both used to talk about how two things are the same or different.

=> Both are used with adjectives (words used to describe nouns [name words])

Think about four children:

Jon – age 6 / height – 115cm

Julie – age 8 / height – 128cm

Mark – age 10 / height – 138cm

Noura – age 10 / height – 138cm

Now, look at these examples:

Jon is younger than Julie.

Mark is older than Jon.

Mark is as old as Noura.

Jon is shorter than Noura.

Noura is taller than Jon.

Mark is as tall as Noura.

=> My old city is the same size as my new city, but my old city was more beautiful:

My old city was as big as my new city.

My new city is more beautiful than my old city.

Look out!

LOOK OUT! As…as is used to talk about two things, places, or people being the same. It needs an adjective in the middle.

=> She is as pretty as her sister.

… than is used to talk about two things, places, or people being different.

=> She is prettier than her sister.

Did you know?

Three films have won as many awards as each other: Ben-Hur, Titanic, and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King all won 11 Academy Awards. That is one more than West Side Story won.