Degrees of Comparison

Read the following sentences:

1. John is tall.
2. Peter is taller than John.
3. Harry is the tallest of the three.
In sentence 1, the adjective tall merely says something about Johns height. It doesnt state how tall John is. In
sentence 2, the adjective taller is used to compare Johns height with Peters height.
In sentence 3, the adjective tallest is used to compare Harrys height with the height of John and Peter.
We have thus seen that adjectives change in form to show comparison. These different forms of the adjective
are called the degrees of comparison.
In the examples given above, the adjective tall is said to be in the positive degree. The adjective taller is said
to be in the comparative degree and the adjective tallest is said to be in the superlative degree.
The positive degree of an adjective is the adjective in its simple form. It is used to denote the mere existence of
some quality. Adjectives in the positive degree are used when no comparison is made.
The comparative degree of an adjective shows a higher degree of the quality than that is present in the positive
degree. It is used when two things or two sets of things are compared.

Peter is smarter than John.

Which of the two sisters is the prettier?
Apples are dearer than oranges.

The superlative degree of an adjective denotes the highest degree of the quality. It is used when more than two
things or sets of things are compared.

Peter is the smartest boy in the class.

Iron is the most useful of all metals.
Alice is the prettiest girl in the neighborhood.

Degrees of Comparison
Sebagaian besar kata sifat diskriptif (descriptive adjectives) dan kata sifat kuantitatif (quantitative adjective)
memiliki
tingkat-tingkat
perbandingan
yang
menerangkan
kata
benda.
Dalam bahasa Inggris tingkat-tingkat perbandingan pada kata sifat disebut the degrees of comparison (tingkat
perbandingan)
The degrees of comparison (tingkat perbandingan) berjumlah tiga tingkat, yaitu :
1. The positive degree (tingkat biasa)
2. The comparative (tingkat lebih/perbandingan)
3. The superlative (tingkat paling)

Bentuk perbandingan dibuat dari bentuk positive yang ditambah dengan akhiran er atau r dan awalan
more. Sedangkan bentuk superlative dibentuk dari bentuk positive yang ditambah dengan akhiran est atau st
dan awalan most.

Positive Comparative Superlative

Good
Better
Best
Beautiful More Beautiful Most Beautiful
Big

Bigger

Biggest

Tall

Taller

Tallest

Sincere

More Sincere

Most Sincere

Small

Smaller

Smallest

1. The positive degree (tingkat biasa)

She is an attractive girl

When we speak about only one person or thing,We use the Positive degree.
example :
This house is big.
In this sentence only one noun The house is talked about.
He is a tall student.
He is an intelligent boy.
Each sentence mentioned above talks about only one noun.
2. The comparative (tingkat lebih/perbandingan)

Pada umumnya bentuk tingkat lebih ini digunakan untuk membandingkan dua benda atau orang yang
berbeda. Atau dengan kata lain digunakan untuk menyatakan bahwa susuatu benda atau orang itu mempunyai
sifat lebih dibandingkan yang lain.
My car is faster than his car
When we compare two persons or two things with each other,We use both the Positive degree and Comparative
degree.
example:
A. This house is bigger than that one. (Comparative degree)
This house is not as big as that one. (Positive degree)
The term bigger is comparative version of the term big.
Both these sentences convey the same meaning.
B. This flower is more beautiful than that. (Comparative)
This flower is not as beautiful as that. (Positive)
The term more beautiful is comparative version of the term beautiful.
Both these sentences convey the same meaning.
C He is more intelligent than this boy. (Comparative)
He is not as intelligent as this boy. (Positive)
The term more intelligent is comparative version of the term intelligent.
Both these sentences convey the same meaning.
3. The superlative (tingkat paling)

Bentuk ini digunakan untuk menyatakan bahwa sesuatu itu mempunyai sifat paling ...... dibandingkan yang
lainnya. Pada umumnya digunakan untuk membandingkan tiga benda atau lebih.
This is the fastest car in the rally.
Elvis Presley is the greatest musician in the world
When we compare more than two persons or things with one another,We use all the three
Positive, Comparative and Superlative degrees.
example :

A. This is the biggest house in this street. (Superlative)

This house is bigger than any other house in this street. (Comparative)
No other house in this street is as big as this one. (Positive)
The term biggest is the superlative version of the term big.
All the three sentences mean the same meaning.

B. This flower is the most beautiful one in this garden. (Superlative)

This flower is more beautiful than any other flower in this garden. (Comparative)
No other flower in this garden is as beautiful as this one. (Comparative)
The term most beautiful is the superlative version of the term beautiful.
All the three sentences mean the same meaning.
C. He is the most intelligent in this class. (Superlative)
He is more intelligent than other boys in the class. (Comparative)
No other boy is as intelligent as this boy. (Positive)
The term most intelligent is superlative version of the term intelligent.
Both these sentences convey the same meaning.
D. He is the tallest student in this class. (Superlative)
He is taller than other students in this class. (Comparative)
No other student is as tall as this student. (Positive)
The term tallest is superlative version of the term tall.
Both these sentences convey the same meaning.

What is a Degree of Comparison?

We use degrees of comparison to compare one person or one thing with another.
Classification of Degrees of Comparison
Degrees of comparison can be classified as
Positive Degree
Comparative Degree
Superlative Degree

Example:
1. Positive Degree
John is tall.
Here tall is the positive Degree of Adjective.
2. Comparative Degree
John is taller than Ram.
Here taller is the comparative Degree of Adjective
3. Superlative Degree:
John is the tallest.
Here tallest is the superlative Degree of Adjective.

Positive Degree
A degree of comparison which does not denote any comparison is called the positive degree. When we talk
about only one person or one thing, we use the positive degree of comparison.
Example:
The honey is sweet.
In this sentence no comparison is made. It just tells about the sweetness of honey. Thus sweet is in positive
degree of comparison.

Comparative Degree
Comparative Degree of Adjective is used at the time of comparison between two persons or two things.
Example:
Rams cat is sweeter than Haris cat.
In the above sentence, the sweetness of both the cats is compared. So whenever there is a comparison between
two things or two persons, we use the comparative degree of comparison.
Superlative Degree
The highest degree of quality is the superlative Degree of Comparison. Whenever comparison is made between
more than two things or persons, we use the superlative degree of adjective.
Example:
This is the biggest bottle of all.
In the above sentence, biggest shows the highest degree of quality and hence it is the superlative degree of
comparison.

Rules of Degrees of Comparison

RULE 1: Add er or est to one syllabic words.
Example:
POSITIVE

COMPARATIVE

SUPERLATIVE

Small

Smaller

Smallest

Short

Shorter

Shortest

Rule 2: When an adjective ends in y, drop the y and change it to i and add er or est.
Example:
POSITIVE

COMPARATIVE

SUPERLATIVE

Busy

Busier

Busiest

Crazy

Crazier

Craziest

Rule 3:When an adjective ends in e, remove the e and add er or est in its place.
Example:
POSITIVE
Cute

COMPARATIVE
Cuter

SUPERLATIVE
Cutest

Nice

Nicer

Nicest

Rule 4: For adjectives ending in -ful, -less, -ing use more or most before the word. For two syllabic adjective
also use more and most.
Example:
POSITIVE
Beautiful

COMPARATIVE
More beautiful

SUPERLATIVE
Most Beautiful

Pleasant

More pleasant

Most pleasant

Rule 5:There are some adjective which are known as irregular adjectives as they dont follow any rules.
Example:
POSITIVE
Good

COMPARATIVE
Better

SUPERLATIVE
Best

Little

Less

Least

Use of the Degrees of Comparison

Example:
Sarah is as beautiful as Samantha.
By using as.as we can show positive degree.
Example:
Raja is taller than Rahim.
By using than we can show comparative degree of adjective.
Example:
He is the nicest boy in the class.
With the use of the the superlative comparison can be denoted.