Comparative well. Comparison of adverbs in English
In English, adverbs, like adjectives, form degrees of comparison.
Comparison of English dialects only two: comparative and excellent.
Note: The positive degree represents the initial form of the adverb. Example:
๐ I play volleyball well. - I play volleyball Good.
When is the comparative degree of the adverb used, and when is the superior one?
- The comparative degree is used when comparing objects and subjects:
๐ Tom came home later than Jane. - Tom came home later than Jane.
- Superlative grade notes the highest degree the quality of the action of an object in a group of similar ones:
๐ My brother came to school the latest today. - Today my brother came to school later than all.
Comparison degrees in English are predominantly mode-of-action adverbs. Their education follows the same principle as the degree of comparison of English adjectives. You can find out more about the types of English adverbs.
In addition to the above, I note that they do not have degrees of comparison, for example, adverbs of place ( ๐ inside, ๐ everywhere), time ( ๐ always, ๐ usually), and some adverbs of the mode of action ( ๐ somehow, ๐ optimally).
Methods for the formation of degrees of comparison of English dialects
- To monosyllabic adverbs, which coincide in form with adjectives, is added โEr comparatively and โEst in excellent. Let's look at some examples:
๐ hard- hard , ๐ late- late , ๐ fast- fast , ๐ low- low, ๐ high- high, ๐ deep- deep, ๐ long- for a long time , ๐ near- close , ๐ soon- soon, ๐ straight- straight.
BUT! ๐ early should also be included in this list.
| Positive | Comparative | Excellent |
|---|---|---|
| ๐ late | ๐ lat er | ๐ the lat est |
| ๐ hard | ๐ hard er | ๐ the hard est |
| ๐ near | ๐ near er | ๐ the near est |
| ๐ deep | ๐ deep er | ๐ the deep est |
| ๐ early | ๐ earl ier | ๐ the earl iest |
a) ๐ Usually I go to bed late.
Usually I late I go to bed.
b) ๐ I will answer to this question later.
I will answer this question later.
c) ๐ Julia was embarrassed that she had come to the party the latest.
Julia was embarrassed that she came to the party later than all.
- To polysyllabic adverbs and adverbs formed with a suffix โLy are added ๐ more in comparative and ๐ most superlatively:
| Positive | Comparative | Excellent |
|---|---|---|
| ๐ loudly | ๐ more loudly | ๐ the most loudly |
| ๐ sincerely | ๐ more sincerely | ๐ the most sincerely |
| ๐ luckily | ๐ less luckily | ๐ the least luckily |
| ๐ accurately | ๐ more accurately | ๐ the most accurately |
Sentences with the use of comparative degrees of adverbs with a suffix -ly.
- There are adverbs that form a comparative degree with -er / more and superlative degree with the -est / the most... These are adverbs ๐ quickly- fast , ๐ often- often , ๐ slowly- slowly, etc.
| Positive | Comparative | Excellent |
|---|---|---|
| ๐ often | ๐ often er ๐ more often | ๐
the often est ๐ the most often |
| ๐ slowly | ๐ slow er ๐ more slowly | ๐
the slow est ๐ the most slowly |
| ๐ quickly | ๐ quick er ๐ more quickly | ๐
the quick est ๐ the most quickly |
A couple of examples with adverbs of this type.
a) ๐ She goes to the disco oftener / more often than me.
She goes to discos more often, than me.
b) ๐ He runs the quickest / the most quickly in his class.
He runs the fastest in its class.
- Exceptional adverbs have special ways of forming degrees of comparison (see the table below).
The adverb and the name of the adjective connect a lot. As close relatives, they are similar in many ways, but there are also differences. The formation of degrees of comparison of adjectives and adverbs in English is a vivid example of this.
What are the degrees of comparison?
The adverb and adjective are the closest relatives. They both help to diversify speech, make it more interesting, richer and richer. The only difference is that the first is an adverb, emotionally colors the verb (draw brightly, beautifully), and the second is an adjective, describes a noun and thus serves as the main source of its expressiveness (quiet, foggy morning).
They both love and compare. An adjective is a great helper in the case when it is necessary to compare two objects (Comparative degree) or to indicate that some feature is manifested in one object to the greatest or least degree (Superlative degree). The adverb does not lag behind him. It also likes to compare or emphasize superiority, but with the only difference - it is interested in the nature of the course of action:
Tom runs faster, than Jack does - Tom runs faster than Jack (Comparative)
During the meeting Ann spoke loudest - During the meeting, Anna spoke loudest (Superlative)
Monosyllabic adverbs
The comparative and superlative degrees of adverbs in English, which consist of one syllable, are formed using the suffixes -er and -est:
Late - later - latest
High - higher - highest
Adverbs with two or more syllables ending in -ly
English adverbs that consist of two or more syllables and end with the suffix -ly, form degrees of comparison by adding the words more / less (more / less) and most / least (most / least) to them:
TOP-4 articleswho read along with this
Properly - more properly - most properly
Constantly - more constantly - most constantly (constantly - more constantly - most constantly)
Among the huge list of polysyllabic adverbs, a number of words stand out, forming degrees of comparison in two ways: suffixed or using the words more / less (more / less) and most / least (most / least): early (earlier / more early), loudly (louder / more loudly), quickly (quicker / more quickly), slowly (slower / more slowly).
Exceptions
Adjectives and adverbs are similar in another way - in the list of exceptions, which form degrees of comparison in their own unique way. They are presented in the following table โDegrees of comparison of adverbs in Englishโ:
|
Positive degree |
comparative |
Superlative degree |
Translation |
|
Good - Better - Best |
|||
|
Bad - Worst - Worst |
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|
much4.4. Total ratings received: 215. |
An adverb is a part of speech that denotes a sign and most often answers the question "how?" For example: cold, dark, tasty, high, scary, etc.
In English, we use these words all the time in sentences. Therefore, it is necessary to understand this topic well.
Fortunately, this is not difficult at all. In this article, we will analyze all the main points that relate to adverbs in English.
From the article you will learn:
- 5 groups of adverbs in English and their place in a sentence
Formation of adverbs in English
An adverb (adverb) is a part of speech that denotes a sign of action. Speaking in simple words, this is a word that describes an action (verb)... Adverbs answer the following questions:
- How?For example: jumped (how?) High
- Where?For example: saw (where?) There
- When? For example: got up (when?) Early
- In what degree? For example: ate (to what extent?) A little
How are adverbs formed in English?
Adverbs are formed in English very easily. If in Russian we need to add the ending -o to an adjective to make it an adverb:
beautiful - beautiful O
fast - fast O
Then in English, most adverbs are formed by adding an ending -ly.
lone - lone ly
lonely - lonely
slow - slow ly
slow - slow
However, there are some nuances:
1. If the word ends in -y, then we change -y to -i and also add the ending -ly. We end up with an ending -ily.
For example:
eas y-eas ily
light - easy
happ y- happ ily
happy - happy
2. If the word ends with -le then -le is simply replaced with -ly
For example:
simp le- simp ly
simple - simple
ab le- ab ly
skillful - skillfully
3. Words-exceptions to the rules
Of course, there are exception words that don't follow the rules. Usually these are adverbs that answer the questions: "when?", "Where?", "How much?"
For example:
late - late
little - a little
well - good
far - far
fast - fast
Be careful, and if you are in doubt about a word, you can always check yourself by opening the dictionary.
5 groups of adverbs in English and their place in a sentence
Depending on the meaning of the adverb, they can be divided into 5 large groups. Let's take a look at each of them.
1. Adverbs of place - indicate the place of action
List of such adverbs:
Their place in the sentence: The usual place for such adverbs is at the end or at the beginning of a sentence.
2. Adverbs of time - indicate the time of the action
List of adverbs of the time:
now - now
late - late
recently - recently
then - then then
today - today
yesterday - yesterday
tomorrow - tomorrow
before - before
lately - in recent times, recently
yet - yet, already
already - already
still - still
Their place in the sentence: Usually such adverbs are placed at the beginning or at the end of a sentence. Some can also be placed before the main action.
Yesterday we went to the cinema.
We went to the cinema yesterday.
She is sleeping now.
She is sleeping now.
3. Adverbs of frequency - indicate the frequency of the action
For example:
usually - usually
always - always
never - never
seldom - rarely
once - once
ever - ever
twice - twice
sometimes - sometimes
Their place in the sentence: Such adverbs are usually placed before the main action, but after auxiliary verbs (are, is, am, has, have).
They sometimes drive a car.
They sometimes drive.
He is always joking.
He's always joking.
4. Mode of action adverbs- indicate the peculiarities of the action
For example:
well - good
fast - fast
slowly - slowly
quietly - quietly
simply - simply
wisely - wisely
badly - bad
carefully - carefully
easily - easy
Their place in the sentence: Such adverbs are placed before the main action, after an auxiliary verb, or at the end of a sentence.
He slowly opened a door.
He slowly opened the door.
Children stroked a dog carefully.
The children stroked the dog carefully.
5. Adverbs of degree and measure- indicate the extent to which the action was performed or how pronounced the sign.
For example:
little - a little
very - very
too - too
much - a lot
just - only
so - very
hardly - hardly, a little
scarcely - barely
nearly - almost, about
almost - almost, almost
enough - enough
Their place in the sentence: Such adverbs can come before an action, another adverb, or an adjective, but after an auxiliary verb.
For example:
He drives a car too fast.
He drives too fast.
She is very pretty.
She is very cute.
Now that we have become acquainted with all groups of adverbs, let's look at how their degrees of comparison are formed.
Comparison of adverbs in English
Depending on what we are comparing, 2 degrees of comparison can be distinguished:
1. Comparative - we compare objects on a common basis.
For example: He jumps higher than his sister.
2. Excellent - we compare objects in order to identify the object with the most pronounced sign.
For example: He jumps the highest.
Let's take a closer look at these two cases.
Comparative degree of adverbs in English
We need it to compare something or someone with each other. For example: He runs faster than me.
Depending on the adverb, 2 forms of the comparative degree are distinguished, which are formed in different ways.
1. Simple comparative form
We add the ending - er to such adverbs:
adverb + ending -er
fast - faster
fast - faster
late - later
late - late
He works harder than you.
He works harder than you.
She got up later than children.
She woke up later than the children.
2. Complicated form of comparative degree- is formed with adverbs that consist of three or more syllables. And adverbs formed with the -ly ending.
We put the word more in front of such adverbs:
more + adverb
wisely - more wisely
wise - wiser / wiser
easily - more easily
easy - easier
You should be more carefully.
You should be more careful.
She speaks English more slowly than her brother.
She speaks English more slowly than her brother.
Excellent adverbial degree in English
We need it to show that the item has the best characteristics. For example: It is easiest to lift this box.
There are also 2 forms stand out here:
1. Idle superlative form- formed with adverbs that consist of one / two syllables.
We add the ending - est to such adverbs:
adverb + ending -est
Fast - fastest
fastest - fastest
late - latest
late is the latest
Thanks for your soonest answer.
Thanks for your early reply.
2. Complex superlative form- is formed with adverbs that consist of three or more syllables. And adverbs that are formed with the ending -ly.
We put the word most in front of such adverbs:
most+ adverb
wisely - most wisely
wise is the wisest
easily - most easily
easy - most easy
They tried to drive mostslowly.
They tried to go as slowly as possible.
3. Exception words
There are words, the degree of comparison of which is not formed according to the rules:
well - better - best
good - better - best
badly - worse - worst
bad - worse - worst
many / much - more - most
a lot - more - the greatest
little - less - least
little - less - least
far - farther / further - farthest / furthest
far - farther - farthest
He drives better than his friend.
He drives better than his friend.
So, we've covered everything about adverbs. Now let's consolidate this knowledge in practice.
Assignment task
Translate the following sentences into English. Leave your answers in the comments below the article.
1. She always helps us.
2. He quickly repaired the car.
3. I will come later than you.
4. She cooks better than her friend.
5. She easily solves such problems.
Adverbs, as well as their corresponding adjectives in English, form degrees of comparison (the Degrees of Comparison)... Consider a few examples in the following table:
|
Jack can run fast. Sam can run faster than Jack. And peter can run the fastest in their class. |
Jack can run fast. Sam can run faster Jack. And Peter can run the fastest. |
|
My brother drives his car quite carefully. My father drives his car more carefully than my brother does. My mother drives her car the most carefully in our family. |
My brother drives his car pretty carefully. My father drives his car more accurate than my brother. My mom drives her car most accurate of all in our family. |
|
Ann plays tennis quite well. Ann's sister plays tennis better than she does. And Ann's brother plays tennis the best in their town. |
Ann plays tennis pretty Good. Sister Anne plays tennis better than she is. And brother Ann plays tennis the best in their family. |
If you are not yet familiar with, we strongly recommend that you first familiarize yourself with that topic and only then proceed to this rule, since the algorithm for forming degrees of comparison for adverbs largely coincides with the rules for forming degrees of comparison for adjectives, but takes into account the specifics of adverbs, namely:
A. All adverbs formed from an adjective by adding a suffix -ly(except adverb and adjective earl y (early / early ) ), as well as adverbs often (often) and seldom (rare) form a comparative and superlative degree analytically, that is, by adding the words mo re for the Comporative Degree and the most for the Superlative Degree:
|
slowly / slowly The tortoise moves slowly. / The turtle moves slowly. |
more slowly / slower The sloth moves even more slowly than the tortoise. / The sloth moves even slower than the turtle. |
the most slowly / slowest But the snail moves the most slowly of all animals. / But the snail moves slower than all animals. |
|
quietly / quiet I speak quietly. / I speak softly. |
more quietly / quieter My mother speaks more quietly than me. / My mom speaks more quietly than me. |
the most quietly And my little sister speaks the most quiet in our family. / And my younger sister speaks quieter than anyone in our family. |
|
heavily / strongly, hard It is raining heavily today. / It is raining heavily today. |
more heavily / stronger, heavier It rained more heavily yesterday. / It rained harder yesterday. |
the most heavily It rained the most heavily last week. / It rained hardest last week. |
|
nervously / nervous Jack behaved nervously during the flight. / Jack acted nervous during the flight. |
more nervously Jack's wife behaved even more nervously than he did. / Jack's wife was even more nervous than he was. |
the most nervously But Jack's son behaved the most nervously during the flight. / But Jack's son was the most nervous of all during the flight. |
|
often / often I often visit my granny. / I often visit my grandmother. |
more often My sister visits our granny more often than I do. / My sister visits my grandmother more often than me. |
the most often Our mother visits the granny the most often of our family. / Our mother visits my grandmother most often in our family. |
|
seldom / rarely We seldom mow the lawn in front of our house. / We rarely mow the lawn in front of our house. |
more seldom / less often Our neighbors mow the lawn even more slowly than we do. / Our neighbors cut their lawn even less often than we do. |
the most seldom / least common My grandparents mow the lawn in front of their house the most seldom. / My grandparents mow the lawn the least often. |
B. There are adverbs that coincide in their form with the corresponding adjectives. Among them, adverbs are worthy of special mention. fast (fast ), hard (hard, hard) , late (late) ... Due to the fact that they consist of one pronounced syllable, their degrees of comparison are formed synthetic way, that is, by adding suffixes, in particular โEr for the Comporative Degree and โEst for the Superlative Degree:
|
fast / fast The green car went fast. |
faster / faster The orange car went faster than the green car did. |
the fastest / fastest But the red car went the fastest and won the race. |
|
hard / persistent, hard I have to work hard. / I have to work hard. |
harder / harder, harder Sam hast o work harder than me to earn enough money for his big family. / Sem has to work harder than me to earn enough money for his large family. |
the hardest / hardest of all, hardest of all Marc has to work the hardest in our factory. / Mark has to work harder than anyone else in our factory. |
|
late / late Tom arrived late at the party. / Tom arrived late at the party. |
later / later Sue and Mary arrived even later than Tom did. / Sue and Mary arrived even after Tom. |
the latest / latest But Andrew arrived at the party the latest of all the guests. / But Andrew arrived at the party later than all the guests. |
The adverb should be separately mentioned here hardly, which only at first glance seems to be a direct derivative of the adjective hard... In fact, it is used in the meaning "Hardly, hardly, hardly" and by virtue of this value it has no degrees of comparison.
C. A number of adverbs form degrees of comparison, which you must try to remember, because they are received supportive way, that is, by attracting additional words that are outwardly different from the original ones. These are in particular adverbs well and badly matching adjectives good (good) and bad and forming degrees of comparison, similar to the degrees of comparison of the corresponding adjectives:
|
well / well Peter plays tennis well. / Peter plays tennis well. |
better / better John plays tennis better that Peter does. / John plays tennis better than Peter. |
the best But Sarah plays tennis the best in our class. / But Sarah plays tennis the best in our class. |
|
badly My brother paints badly. / My brother draws badly. |
worse / worse I paint worse than my brother does. / I draw worse than my brother. |
the worst But I think my friend Daniel paints the worst of all the people I know. / But I think my friend Daniel is the worst painter I know. |
Separately, it is worth noting the adjective and adverb far (far) , having two forms of degrees of comparison, interchangeable if it comes about distance:
However, only the form further there is a value "One more, further, additional" .
This group also includes quantitative pronouns that can also act as adverbs. much (much, much) and little (little):
|
much / much, much Jill likes oranges very much. / Jill is very fond of oranges. |
more / more, stronger Jill likes oranges more than apples. / Jill loves oranges more than apples. |
the most / most, most |
