Comparative Adjectives

When we talk about two things, we can “compare” them. We can see if they are the same or different. Perhaps they are the same in some ways and different in other ways. We can use comparative adjectives to describe the differences.

Formation of Comparative Adjectives

There are two ways to make or to “form” a comparative adjective:

• short adjectives: add “-er”
• long adjectives: use “more”

Use of Comparative Adjectives

We use comparative adjectives when talking about 2 things (not 3 or 10 or 1,000,000 things, only 2 things).

Often, the comparative adjective is followed by “than”.

Look at these examples:

• John is 1m80. He is tall. But Chris is 1m85. He is taller than John.
• America is big. But Russia is bigger.
• I want to have a more powerful computer.
• Is French more difficult than English?

If we talk about the two planets Earth and Mars, we can compare them as shown in the table below:

What is an Adjective?

An adjective is one of the eight parts of speech.

An adjective is a word that tells us more about a noun. It “describes” or “modifies” a noun (The big dog was hungry). In these examples, the adjective is in bold and the noun that it modifies is in italics.

An adjective often comes BEFORE a noun:

• a green car
• a dark sky
• an interesting story

And sometimes an adjective comes AFTER a verb:

• My car is green.
• The sky became dark.
• His story seemed interesting.

But adjectives can also modify pronouns (She is beautiful). Look at these examples:

• They were empty.
• I thought it seemed strange.
• Those are not expensive.

Note that we can often use two or more adjectives together (a beautiful young French lady / it is black and white).

Adjective Form

Some adjectives have particular endings, for example:

• -able/-ible: washable, credible
• -ish/-like: childish, childlike
• -ful/-less: careful, careless
• -ous: dangerous, harmonious
• -y: dirty, pretty

However, many adjectives have no obvious form.

Comparative, Superlative

Most adjectives can be comparative or superlative, for example:

• big, bigger, biggest
• good, better, best
• beautiful, more beautiful, most beautiful

Adjective Order

There are 2 basic positions for adjectives:

1. before the noun
2. after some verbs (be, become, get, seem, look, feel, sound, smell, taste)

Adjective Before Noun

We often use more than one adjective before the noun:

• I like big black dogs.
• She was wearing a beautiful long red dress.

What is the correct order for two or more adjectives?

1. First of all, the general order is:

opinion, fact

“Opinion” is what you think about something. “Fact” is what is definitely true about something.

• a lovely new dress (not a new lovely dress)
• a boring French film (not a French boring film)

2. The “normal” order for fact adjectives is

size, shape, age, colour / origin / material / purpose

• a small 18th-century French coffee table
• a rectangular black wooden box

3. Determiners usually come first, even though some grammarians regard them as fact adjectives:

• articles (a, the)
• possessives (my, your…)
• demonstratives (this, that…)
• quantifiers (some, any, few, many…)
• numbers (one, two, three)

Note that when we want to use two colour adjectives, we join them with “and”:

• Many newspapers are black and white.
• She was wearing a long, blue and yellow dress.

Here are some examples of adjective order:

Adjective After Verb

An adjective can come after some verbs, such as: be, become, feel, get, look, seem, smell, sound

Even when an adjective comes after the verb and not before a noun, it always refers to and qualifies the subject of the clause, not the verb.

Look at the examples below: subject verb adjective

• Ram is English.
• Because she had to wait, she became impatient.
• Is it getting dark?
• The examination did not seem difficult.
• Your friend looks nice.
• This towel feels damp.
• That new film doesn’t sound very interesting.
• Dinner smells good tonight.
• This milk tastes sour.
• It smells bad.

These verbs are “stative” verbs, which express a state or change of state, not “dynamic” verbs which express an action. Note that some verbs can be stative in one sense (she looks beautiful | it got hot), and dynamic in another (she looked at him | he got the money). The above examples do not include all stative verbs.

Note also that in the above structure (subject verb adjective), the adjective can qualify a pronoun since the subject may be a pronoun.

Superlative Adjectives

A superlative adjective expresses the extreme or highest degree of a quality. We use a superlative adjective to describe the extreme quality of one thing in a group of things.

Formation of Superlative Adjectives

As with comparative adjectives, there are two ways to form a superlative adjective:

• short adjectives: add “-est”
• long adjectives: use “most”

Use of Superlative Adjectives

We use a superlative adjective to describe one thing in a group of three or more things. Look at these examples:

• John is 1m75. David is 1m80. Chris is 1m85. Chris is the tallest.
• Canada, China and Russia are big countries. But Russia is the biggest.
• Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.

If we talk about the three planets Earth, Mars and Jupiter, we can use superlative adjectives as shown in the table below:

Adverbs of Definite Frequency

Examples:

• hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly
• every second, once a minute, twice a year
• once, twice, once or twice, three times

Adverbs of definite frequency, like all adverbs of definite time, typically go in END position. Look at these examples:

• Most companies pay taxes yearly.
• The manager checks the toilets every hour.
• The directors meet weekly to review progress.

Sometimes, usually for reasons of emphasis or style, some adverbs of definite frequency may go at the FRONT, for example:

• Every day, more than five thousand people die on our roads.

Adverb Form

We make many adverbs by adding -ly to an adjective, for example:

• quick (adjective) > quickly (adverb)
• careful (adjective) > carefully (adverb)
• beautiful (adjective) > beautifully (adverb)

There are some basic rules about spelling for -ly adverbs. See the table below:

But not all words that end in -ly are adverbs. The following -ly words, for example, are all adjectives:

• friendly, lovely, lonely, neighbourly

And some adverbs have no particular form. Look at these examples:

• well, fast, very, never, always, often, still

Adverbs of Frequency

Adverbs of Frequency are adverbs of time that answer the question “How frequently?” or “How often?”. They tell us how often something happens. Here are some examples:

1. daily, weekly, yearly
2. often, sometimes, rarely

You probably see a difference between a) and b) above. With words like daily we know exactly how often. The words in a) describe definite frequency. On the other hand, words like often give us an idea about frequency but they don’t tell us exactly. The words in b) describe indefinite frequency.

We separate them into two groups because they normally go in different positions in the sentence.

• Adverbs of Definite Frequency
• Adverbs of Indefinite Frequency

Adverbs of Indefinite Frequency

Look at these examples of adverbs of indefinite frequency:

Adverbs of indefinite frequency mainly go in MID position in the sentence. They go before the main verb (except the main verb “to be”):

• We usually go shopping on Saturday.
• I have often done that.
• She is always late.

Occasionally, sometimes, often, frequently and usually can also go at the beginning or end of a sentence:

• Sometimes they come and stay with us.
• I play tennis occasionally.

Rarely and seldom can also go at the end of a sentence (often with “very”):

• We see them rarely.
• John eats meat very seldom.

What is an Adverb?

An adverb is a word that tells us more about a verb. It “qualifies” or “modifies” a verb (The man ran quickly). In the following examples, the adverb is in bold and the verb that it modifies is in italics.

• John speaks loudly. (How does John speak?)
• Afterwards she smoked a cigarette. (When did she smoke?)
• Mary lives locally. (Where does Mary live?)

But adverbs can also modify adjectives (Tara is really beautiful), or even other adverbs (It works very well). Look at these examples:

• Modify an adjective:
  – He is really handsome. (How handsome is he?)
  – That was extremely kind of you.
• Modify another adverb:
  – She drives incredibly slowly. (How slowly does she drive?)
  – He drives extremely fast.

Kinds of Adverbs

Here you can see the basic kinds of adverbs.

Adverbs of Manner

Adverbs of Manner tell us the manner or way in which something happens. They answer the question “how?”. Adverbs of Manner mainly modify verbs.

• He speaks slowly. (How does he speak?)
• They helped us cheerfully. (How did they help us?)
• James Bond drives his cars fast. (How does James Bond drive his cars?)

Adverbs of Place

Adverbs of Place tell us the place where something happens. They answer the question “where?”. Adverbs of Place mainly modify verbs.

• Please sit here. (Where should I sit?)
• They looked everywhere. (Where did they look?)
• Two cars were parked outside. (Where were two cars parked?)

Adverbs of Time

Adverbs of Time tell us something about the time that something happens. Adverbs of Time mainly modify verbs.

They can answer the question “when?”:

• He came yesterday. (When did he come?)
• I want it now. (When do I want it?)

Or they can answer the question “how often?” (frequency):

• They deliver the newspaper daily. (How often do they deliver the newspaper?)
• We sometimes watch a movie. (How often do we watch a movie?)

Adverbs of Degree

Adverbs of Degree tell us the degree or extent to which something happens. They answer the question “how much?” or “to what degree?”. Adverbs of Degree can modify verbs, adjectives and other adverbs.

• She entirely agrees with him. (How much does she agree with him?)
• Mary is very beautiful. (To what degree is Mary beautiful? How beautiful is Mary?)
• He drove quite dangerously. (To what degree did he drive dangerously? How dangerously did he drive?)

Adverb Position

When an adverb modifies a verb, there are usually 3 possible positions within the sentence or clause:

When an adverb modifies an adjective or another adverb, it usually goes in front of the word that it modifies, for example:

The position of an adverb often depends on the kind of adverb (manner, place, time, degree). The following table gives you some guidelines for placement based on the kind of adverb.

Examples

What is Capitalization ?

First Conditional

for real possibility

We are talking about the future. We are thinking about a particular condition or situation in the future, and the result of this condition. There is a real possibility that this condition will happen. For example, it is morning. You are at home. You plan to play tennis this afternoon. But there are some clouds in the sky. Imagine that it rains. What will you do?

Notice that we are thinking about a future condition. It is not raining yet. But the sky is cloudy and you think that it could rain. We use the Present Simple tense to talk about the possible future condition. We use will + base verb to talk about the possible future result. The important thing about the first conditional is that there is a real possibility that the condition will happen.

Here are some more examples (do you remember the two basic structures: [if condition result] and [result if condition]?):

Conditionals

There are several structures in English that are called conditionals or if conditionals.

“Condition” means “situation or circumstance”. If a particular condition is true, then a particular result happens:

• In this lesson we look at four of the most common ways to talk about the future
• if y = 3 then 2y = 6

There are three basic English conditionals that we use very often. There are some more conditionals that we do not use so often.

• First conditional
• Second conditional
• Third conditional
• Zero conditional

Second Conditional

for unreal possibility

The second conditional is like the first conditional. We are still thinking about the future. We are thinking about a particular condition in the future, and the result of this condition. But there is not a real possibility that this condition will happen. For example, you do not have a lottery ticket. Is it possible to win? No! No lottery ticket, no win! But maybe you will buy a lottery ticket in the future. So you can think about winning in the future, like a dream. It’s not very real, but it’s still possible.

Notice that we are thinking about a future condition. We use the Past Simple tense to talk about the future condition. We use would + base verb to talk about the future result. The important thing about the second conditional is that there is an unreal possibility that the condition will happen.

Look at these example sentences:

Third Conditional

for no possibility

The first conditional and second conditionals talk about the future. With the third conditional we talk about the past. We talk about a condition in the past that did not happen. That is why there is no possibility for this condition. The third conditional is also like a dream, but with no possibility of the dream coming true.

Last week you bought a lottery ticket. But you did not win. 🙁

Notice that we are thinking about an impossible past condition. You did not win the lottery. So the condition was not true, and that particular condition can never be true because it is finished. We use the Past Perfect tense to talk about the impossible past condition. We use would have + past participle to talk about the impossible past result. The important thing about the third conditional is that both the condition and result are impossible now.

Look at these example senteces:

Zero Conditional

for certainty

We use the so-called zero conditional when the result of the condition is always true, like a scientific fact.

Take some ice. Put it in a saucepan. Heat the saucepan. What happens? The ice melts (it becomes water). You would be surprised if it did not.

Notice that we are thinking about a result that is always true for this condition. The result of the condition is an absolute certainty. We are not thinking about the future or the past, or even the present. We are thinking about a simple fact. We use the Present Simple tense to talk about the condition. We also use the Present Simple tense to talk about the result. The important thing about the zero conditional is that the condition always has the same result.

Look at these example sentences:

Quantifiers

Quantifiers are determiners that describe quantity in a noun phrase. They answer the question “How many?” or “How much?” on a scale from no (0%) to all (100%).

We use some quantifiers only with countable nouns. We use some other quantifiers only with uncountable nouns. And we use some with countable or uncountable nouns.

The table below shows quantifiers that can indicate quantity from 0% to 100%. Notice which ones can be used with countable, uncountable or both:

Like all determiners, quantifiers come at the beginning of a noun phrase, so they come in front of any adjective(s).

Look at these example sentences:

• I want all the eggs and I want all the red wine.
• Please give me every egg you have.
• Who has the most eggs? Who has the most money?
• We don’t have many eggs. We don’t have much money.
• I have some eggs. I have some money.
• I have a few eggs. I have a little money.
• I don’t have any eggs. I don’t have any money.
• We had no eggs. We had no money.

There are other quantifiers such as enough and several that cannot easily be shown on a scale:

• We have enough eggs for the party. No need to buy any.
• There are several eggs in the fridge but you’d better buy some more.

More information on specific quantifiers:

• Graded Quantifiers
  many/much, more, most
  few, fewer, fewest
  little, less, least
• each, every
• either, neither
• some, any, no

Gerunds

When a verb ends in -ing, it may be a present participle or it may be a gerund. It is important to understand that they are not the same.

When we use a verb in -ing form more like a verb or an adjective, it is usually a present participle:

• Anthony is fishing.
• I have a boring teacher.

When we use a verb in -ing form more like a noun, it is usually a gerund:

• Fishing is fun.

In this lesson, we look at how we use gerunds, followed by a quiz to check your understanding:

• Gerund as Subject, Object or Complement
• Gerund after Preposition
• Gerund after Certain Verbs
• Gerund in Passive Sense

Gerund in Passive Sense

We often use a gerund after the verbs need, require and want.

In this case, the gerund has a passive sense.

Look at these example sentences. Notice that this construction can be in any tense:

• I have three shirts that need washing. (need to be washed)
• I sent it back to the shop because it needed fixing. (needed to be fixed)
• This letter requires signing. (needs to be signed)
• The contract will require signing tomorrow. (will need to be signed)
• The house wants repainting. (needs to be repainted)
• Your hair’s wanted cutting for weeks. (has needed to be cut)

Gerund after Preposition

Here is a good rule. It has no exceptions:

Prepositions are always followed by a noun-phrase.

If we want to use a verb after a preposition, it must be a gerund (which functions as a noun). It is impossible to use an infinitive after a preposition. So, for example, we say:

• I will call you after arriving at the office.
  not I will call after to arrive at the office.
• Please have a drink before leaving.
• I am looking forward to meeting you.
• Do you object to working late?
• Tara always dreams about going on holiday.

Notice that you could replace all the above gerunds with “real” nouns:

• I will call you after my arrival at the office.
• Please have a drink before your departure.
• I am looking forward to our lunch.
• Do you object to this job?
• Tara always dreams about holidays.

Gerund as Subject, Object or Complement

Try to think of a gerund as a noun in verb form.

Like nouns, gerunds can be the subject, object or complement of a sentence:

• Smoking costs a lot of money.
• I don’t like writing.
• My favourite occupation is reading.

But, like verbs, a gerund can also have an object itself. In this case, the whole expression (gerund + object) can be the subject, object or complement of the sentence.

• Smoking cigarettes costs a lot of money.
• I don’t like writing letters.
• My favourite occupation is reading detective stories.

Like nouns, we can use gerunds with adjectives (including articles and other determiners):

• pointless questioning
• a settling of debts
• the making of this film
• his drinking of alcohol

When we use a gerund with an article, it does not usually take a direct object:

• a settling of debts (not a settling debts)
• Making this film was expensive.
• The making of this film was expensive.

Gerund after Certain Verbs

We sometimes use one verb after another verb. Often the second verb is in the to-infinitive form, for example:

• I want to eat.

But sometimes the second verb must be in gerund form, for example:

• I dislike eating.

This depends on the first verb. Here is a list of verbs that are usually followed by a verb in gerund form:

• admit, appreciate, avoid, carry on, consider, defer, delay, deny, detest, dislike, endure, enjoy, escape, excuse, face, feel like, finish, forgive, give up, can’t help, imagine, involve, leave off, mention, mind, miss, postpone, practise, put off, report, resent, risk, can’t stand, suggest, understand

Look at these examples:

• She is considering having a holiday.
  not She is considering to have a holiday.
• Do you feel like going out?
• I can’t help falling in love with you.
• I can’t stand not seeing you.

Going to

Going to is not a tense. It is a special structure that we use to talk about the future.

The structure of going to is:

The verb be is conjugated. Look at these examples:

How do we use going to?

going to for intention

We use going to when we have the intention to do something before we speak. We have already made a decision before speaking. Look at these examples:

• Jo has won the lottery. He says he‘s going to buy a Porsche.
• We‘re not going to paint our bedroom tomorrow.
• When are you going to go on holiday?

In these examples, we had an intention or plan before speaking. The decision was made before speaking.

going to for prediction

We often use going to to make a prediction about the future. Our prediction is based on present evidence. We are saying what we think will happen. Here are some examples:

• The sky is very black. It‘s going to snow.
• It’s 8.30! You‘re going to miss your train!
• I crashed the company car. My boss isn’t going to be very happy!

In these examples, the present situation (black sky, the time, damaged car) gives us a good idea of what is going to happen.

Dependent Clauses

Infinitive or -ing?

Sometimes we need to decide whether to use a verb in its:

to-infinitive form: to do, to sing

or in its

-ing form: doing, singing

For example, only one of the following sentences is correct:

Use infinitive…

after adjectives, for example:

• disappointed, glad, happy, pleased, relieved, sad, surprised

This includes “too + adjective” and “adjective + enough”. Look at these example sentences:

• I was happy to help them.
• She will be delighted to see you.
• The water was too cold to swim in.
• Is your coffee too hot to drink?
• He was strong enough to lift it.
• She is rich enough to buy two.

after certain verbs, for example:

• forget, help, learn, teach, train
• choose, expect, hope, need, offer, want, would like
• agree, encourage, pretend, promise
• allow, can/can’t afford, decide, manage, mean, refuse

Look at these example sentences:

• I forgot to close the window.
• Mary needs to leave early.
• Why are they encouraged to learn English?
• We can’t afford to take a long holiday.

Use -ing…

when the word is the subject of a clause:

• Swimming is good exercise.
• Doctors say that smoking is bad for you.

after a preposition:

• I look forward to meeting you.
• They left without saying goodbye.

after certain verbs:

• avoid, dislike, enjoy, finish, give up, mind/not mind, practise

Look at these example sentences:

• I dislike getting up early.
• Would you mind opening the window?