SEBA Class 9 English Grammar: Degree of Comparison
DEGREES OF COMPARISON LIST
DEFINITION
Degrees of comparison are used in grammar to show the degree of a quality or characteristic of a person, thing, or idea. The three degrees of comparison are the positive, comparative, and superlative degrees. Here are some examples of each:
1. Positive degree: The positive degree is the simple form of an adjective or adverb that does not compare one thing to another.
Money is as important as education.
2. Comparative degree: The comparative degree is used to compare two things and is formed by adding -er to the end of the adjective or by using “more” before the adverb.
The sun is hotter than the moon.
3. Superlative degree: The superlative degree is used to compare more than two things and is formed by
adding -est to the end of the adjective or by using “most” before the adverb.
The sun is the hottest star in the sky.
Example- (positive to comparative)
1. Money is as important as education.
Ans- Education is not more important than money.
2. English is as easy as Marathi.
Ans- Marathi is not easier than English.
3. Lata is not as beautiful as Geeta.
Ans- Geeta is more beautiful than Lata
4. I am not as rich as you are.
Ans- You are richer than me.
Example- (Comparative to Positive)
1. Doing something is better than doing nothing.
Ans- Doing nothing is not as good as doing something.
2. Planting is better than fighting.
Ans- Fighting is not as good as planting.
3. E-mail is delivered much faster than the conventional mail.
Ans- The conventional mail is not delivered as fast as e-mail.
4. She is not taller than me.
Ans- I am as tall as her.
5. Gold is more valuable than silver.
Ans- Silver is not as valuable as Gold.
Example- (In case of superlative to P & C)
1. Honesty is the best policy.
Ans- P- No other policy is as good as honesty.
C- Honesty is better than anyother policy.
2. Newton was the greatest scientist.
Ans- P- No other scientist was as great as Newton.
C- Newton was greater than anyother scientist.
3. Mahabharat was the largest epic in the world.
Ans- P- No other epic in the world was as large as Mahabharat.
C- Mahabharat was larger than anyother epic in the world.
4. She was the softest member of the team.
Ans- P- No other member of the team was as soft as her.
C- She was softer than anyother member of the team.
5. India is the largest producer of mangoes in the world.
Ans- P- No other producer of mangoes in the world is as large as India.
C- India is larger than anyother producer of mangoes in the world.
Example- (In case of comparative to P & S)
1. Guwahati is bigger than any other city in India.
Ans- P- No other city in India is as big as Guwahati.
S- Guwahati is the biggest city in India.
2. Ananta is better than all other boys in the class.
Ans- P- No other boy in the class is as good as Ananta.
S- Ananta is the best boy in the class.
Example- (In case of superlative to P & C)
1. It was one of the best decisions I ever made.
Ans- P- Very few decisions I ever made were as good as it was.
C- It was better than most other decisions I ever made.
2. Sanskrit is one of the oldest languages.
Ans- P- Very few languages are as old as Sanskrit.
C- Sanskrit is older than most other languages.
3. This is one of the fastest growing industries.
Ans- P- Very few growing industries are as fast as this is.
C- This is faster than most other growing industries.
4. Amitabh is one of the best actors in India.
Ans- P- Very few actors in India are as good as Amitabh.
C- Amitabh is better than most other actors in India.
Example- (In case of comparative to P & S)
1. Asoka was greater than most other Indian kings.
Ans- P- Very few Indian kings were as great as Ashoka.
S- Ashoka was one of the greatest Indian kings.
2. This is richer than most other countries.
Ans- P- Very few countries are as rich as this.
S- This is one of the richest countries.