There are some rules to help you make comparisons in English.
1 If the adjective (describing word) is one syllable, you can add -er.
For example, small – smaller; big – bigger; nice – nicer.
2 If the adjective has two syllables, but ends in -y, you can change the end to -ier.
For example, lucky – luckier; happy – happier.
3 With other English adjectives of two syllables and more, you can't change their endings. Instead, you should use more + adjective.
For example, handsome – more handsome; beautiful – more beautiful and so on.
4 When you compare two things, use 'than'.
"She's younger than me."
"This exercise is more difficult than the last one."
5 When you want to say something is similar, use 'as – as'.
For example, "She's as tall as her brother" or "It's as nice today as it was yesterday."
6 When you want to say one thing is less than another, you can either use 'less than' or 'not as – as'.
For example, "This programme is less interesting than I thought" or "This programme is not as interesting as I thought."
7 Remember that some adjectives are irregular and change form when you make comparisons.
For example, good – better; bad – worse; far – further.
Using qualifying expressions
You can vary the strength of the comparison by using "qualifying" expressions.
1. Comparing two things
You can use "a lot", "much", "a little", "slightly" and "far" before "more / less than":
"She's a lot more intelligent than him."
"This car is much faster than the other one."
"They are much less wealthy than they used to be."
"He's a little taller than his sister."
"She's slightly less interested in football than him.
"We are far more involved in charity than they are."
When you use these qualifying expressions in English, remember the rules about using -er. If the adjective is one syllable, or ends in -y, add -er:
"He's far taller than her." (NOT "He's far more taller…")
"I'm much lazier than you!"
When the adjective is two syllables and more, you need either "more" or "less":
"He's a little more prepared for the exam than she is." (NOT "He's a little prepareder…")
2. Saying how two things are similar
You can use "almost as … as", "not quite as … as", "(not) nearly as … as", "nowhere near as … as", "twice as … as" and "half as … as" to change the extent of the similarity.
"She's almost as good as you!"
"He's not quite as confident as Susie."
"I'm not nearly as intelligent as her!"
"This painting is nowhere near as famous as the first."
"She's twice as old as him!
"He's half as interesting as you!"
54 comments on “How to make comparisons in English”
I want ask your question
how do you know number of syllables in the word?
You need to count the syllables (which are the sound divisions of a word).
For example, "hot" has one syllable, but "hotter" (hot – ter) has two syllables.
Difficult has three syllables (di – ffi – cult) and so on.
To count the syllables in a word you need to see how many vowels this word has.
One syllable consists of one vowel (or a diphthong – like /ie/, /oi/ etc.; or even a triphthong – like /aue/, /aie/ etc.) and one or more consonants.
But we have to be careful and always keep in mind that several (let's say two) letters can make one sound, so here we need to know the basic rules of reading. It may help to consult the dictionary and read the transcription of the word.
We say: easier than, or more easy than?
We say "easier than".
We say : lesser intelligent than me ,or much less intelligent than me ???
Thank you for your help
You can say "less intelligent than me" or "much / a little less intelligent than me".
If we have this sentance :
It's a long journey by train, it's much quickly by road.
Is quickly correct here???
No. It should be "it's much quicker by road."
When we make comparison,we are comparing with subject or object?
He is taller than me ?
He is taller than I (am)?
Are both sentences correct?
I presume they are right though people claim the first one to be informally right and the second one is traditionally right.
You are right. I prefer the first for both informal and for written situations. If you have a verb form (such as "am"), then you need the subject pronoun, rather than the object pronoun.
Michael is the smartest of any boy in class.
Would this sentence need the word other after any?
No, the sentence is fine as it is. You could also say "Michael is the smartest boy in the class".
I like this class..you explain the things very easy
Can you say: "She is taller than me"
or does it have to be: "She is taller than I"
"She is taller than me" or "She is taller than I am".
What about the comparative using less in the sentence Peter is less taller than John?; Is this sentence incorrect?
No. It's correct to say "Peter is less tall than John" or "Peter isn't as tall as John".
You can say George Clooney is less hotter than Brad Pitt so what´s the difference?
No, you can't. This sentence isn't correct.
No Carla , you can say "She is taller than me" but not "She is taller than I"
Than, as used in comparatives, has traditionally been considered a conjunction; as such, if you're comparing subjects, the pronouns after than should take the "subjective case." In other words, "He's taller than I," not "He's taller than me"; "She's smarter than he," not "She's smarter than him." If, on the other hand, you're comparing direct or indirect objects, the pronouns should be objective: "I've never worked with a more difficult client than him."
There are some advantages to this traditional state of affairs. If you observe this distinction, you can be more precise in some comparisons. Consider these two sentences:
* He has more friends than I. (His total number of friends is higher than my total number of friends.)
* He has more friends than me. (I'm not his only friend; he has others.)
The problem, though, is that in all but the most formal contexts, "than I" sounds stuffy, even unidiomatic. Most people, in most contexts, treat than as a preposition, and put all following pronouns in the objective case, whether the things being compared are subjects or objects. "He's taller than me" sounds more natural to most native English speakers.
can we say: He's richer than me???
Yes.
could you please me i would like to know, which one is correct ?
she is the most quiet person I know. or
she is the quietest person I know.
The second one is correct.
I'm taller than him.
Which one is correct? He is taller to me or He is taller than me.
Nitin » "He is taller than me" is correct.
One of my grammar teachers explained very clearly that you have to 'complete the comparison'. That is to say "He is taller than I [am]." When seen as such, it's just a natural short cut to drop the verb that actually completes the expression. Therefore, I believe the sentence, "He is taller than me," is incorrect…though most commonly used as has been pointed out. Is there some rule or construct that helps explain otherwise?
Most butterflies don't live quite as long as bees.
Does this sentence mean the same as 'Most butterflies live nearly as long as bees' ? If so, it's quite confusing, isn't it?
Can you explain this?
eddie » It means that the difference isn't so great – bees live a little longer than butterflies.
THIS INFORMATION IS WRONG!!!! When you compare two people, you MUST use the proper pronoun!!! And this clearly does not! For instance, you would say, "She is taller than HE or I" NOT HIM or ME!!! The trick is to pretend that the sentence continues. Here's what I mean: Would you say, "She is taller than HIM IS" or would you say, "She is taller than HE IS"? There's how you can tell which pronoun to use. If you want to get technical, the comparison is talking about two SUBJECTS!! The pronouns used here are ONE SUBJECT and ONE OBJECT which is WRONG!!!!
Just use the trick to help you to determine which one to use. It never fails!!
Here's another one, just in case: Margret is smarter than HER/SHE (is).
Which one makes sense if you were to complete the sentence with a verb?
There's your answer!!
Cynthia Capaccio » I'm sorry Cynthia, but you are wrong. Here's the explanation from "Practical English Usage" (Michael Swan, OUP):
Which is correct: older than I or older than me?
In informal English, we often use the object pronouns (me, him, her, us, them) after than. In a more formal style, subject pronouns (I, he, etc) are considered more "correct".
She's older than me. (informal)
She's older than I (am). (formal)
When the pronoun is used with a verb, only subject pronouns are possible.
Lion is more dangerous than a dog
Binta is not as tall as Ami
"She is more fat than her".
Is it a right sentence?? Fat is a single sylable word that's why I am confused.
It should be "She is fatter than her."
In the last instruct instead of she is twice as old as him can i say "she is twice older than him.
No!
i have a question. is this sentence correct?
i am older than her, but guess what?! she is taller than I.
or,
i am older than her, but guess what?! she is taller than me.
please fast, i need this soon!!
Either "…. she is taller than me" or "… she is taller than I am".
Can i say this:
Please fix the tool in the same way as we did for other tool.
Yes, though I'd change the end of the sentence to "…. as we did for the other tools."
Hi, got a doubt:
If we say The latest series of Friends is nowhere near as good as the earlier ones, are we saying that the latest series are worse than the earlier ones or viceversa or that the two seasons are equally good??
The first series was a lot better than the second series.
hi Clare,
can we use the the words "by your own" as in did you try the steps by your own?. i felt "did you try the steps by your self?" is correct. please tell me which one is correct.
please send the answer to my email address
Thank you sooo much.
Either "by yourself" or "on your own".
I don't send answers by email – I think questions and answers can benefit everyone, which is why they stay on the page.
Hi Clare,
Is it correct to say "This supermarket is MUCH MORE LESS expensive than this one".
I know you can say A LOT/MUCH LESS EXPENSIVE but not sure about the first sentence.
Cheers!
Either "much more expensive" or "much less expensive".
Hi, Clare I have found this web by chance. I like your comments a lot.
just to be sure. Are the next setences both corrects?
Abraham is taller than she. or…
Abraham is taller than her.
reagards
The second one is correct.
I've got a question actually.
Please I need some explanation on as….as and than.
When do use the comparative as….as and than?
When you want to say two things are the same, use "as…as" but not "than".
Life in London is as expensive as life in New York.
Use "than" to say one thing is more or less than another.
"She is taller than her brother."
In the last comment would it be correct to say:
Life in London is as expensive as life in New York is?
It sounds better if you delete the final "is".
Many thanks Clare and I am wondering if it is correct from grammar point of view?
I don't think it's incorrect, but it's clumsy and unnecessary.
Hi Clare, please help clarify.
I have not worked with a more difficult client than him.
or
I have not worked with a more difficult client than he.
Please explain your answer. Thanks.
The second one is correct. Use the object pronoun after "than" – not the subject pronoun.
can i say – I would hear the sound of the whiteboard pen with which the teacher is writing a more difficult classwork than the last one.
The sentence is a bit long and confusing. You could say "The teacher is giving us more difficult classwork than the last time.
Is this sentence correct?
"The faster you are, the most options you have to win"
Which is the structure for these kind of senteces?
I'd say "the faster you are, the more options you have" to keep both parts of the sentence in a comparative (rather than superlative) form.
You can form this type of comparative sentence with the + comparative, the + comparative:
the easier it is, the quicker you learn
the more difficult the exercise, the greater your chances of making a mistake
we say my mather as worryed as my father or my father less worry than my mother or my mather more worry than my father
My mother is more worried than my father.
My father worries less than my mother.
My mother worries more than my father.
This is the best site I have ever learned.
The more we learn, the more we get knowledge.
Clare's writing is better than others'.
