Comparing Things or Persons

Hello, in this meeting, we are going to discuss how to compare things or persons. If we are comparing things or persons, we usually use adjectives. But before we disscus it further, first we are going to discuss how we show something or someone has the same quality as something or someone else. Look at the folowing example:

My jacket is as cheap as your jacket.

The word cheap is an adjective. So if we want to say that my jacket has the same quality as your jacket. We can add AS both in front of the adjective and the end of adjective, so

Cheap ---- as cheap as

Another example:

My sister is as pretty as my mother.

Meanwhile, if want to say something or someone don’t have the same quality as someone or someone else, we just add not to the AS +adjective + AS
My jacket is not as cheap as your jacket.


OK, Now we are discussing how to compare two things or persons.
Example:

Budi is taller than Andy.

The word tall is an adjective. If we want to compare two things or persons, we just add er to the end of the word tall, which is a one sylable adjective. Other examples of one syllable adjectives following this rule are :

Small
Old etc.

So, small - smaller , old – older.

How about one syllable adjectives consisting of consonant, vowel, and consonant, such as :

Big, Hot

Basically it’s the same when we are using the word tall or small, but we need to doublize the end letter of the word big and hot, so

Big – Bigger

Hot –Hotter,

Let’s see the examples :

Jakarta is bigger than Medan

It is hotter than yesterday.

Next, how about the adjectives with two syllables ending with -ly, such as pretty or crazy. Basically it’s also the same when we use the word tall or small, but it’s little bit different. Instead of writing prettyer or lazyer, we write:

Pretty ----prettier

crazy-----crazier

for instance:

My mother is prettier than I

My cat is crazier than yours.

OK. So far we are discusing the adjectives with one and two syllables. How about comparing two things or persons, using more than two syllables adjectives, such one the word expensive or beatiful?
In this case, we use more instead of the er, with the adjective.
Look at the exampales :

Television is more expensive than radio.

My sister is more beautiful than I.

So, the adjectivs with more than two syllables, we add more in front of the adjective,

Expensive ---- more expensive

Beatiful ---- more beautiful.

Just for review, we use er at the end of the adjective with one syllable or two syllbles, and we use more in front of the adjectives with more than two syllables.
OK, So far we are comparing two things or persons,, how about comparing something or someone with other things or persons? In this case,we use the term “ superlatives”.
Well, instead of using er or more, we use est or most with the article the in front of the adjective For instance,

Tall ----tallest expensive ---- most expensive
Old ---- oldest beatiful -----most beatiful

Let’s see the examples:

I am the tallest student in my class.

She is the most beautiful girl in my village

OK, as I have explained before, we add er to the end of the adjectives with two syllbles ending with ly, such as pretty and crazy, how about the adjectives with two syllables like modest, stupid, famous, and useful.

Well, relating with two syllable adjectives with the stress in the first syllable, we use the same rules as the use of the comparison of two things or persons using the word more in front of the adjectives. So we add the word more in front of the adjectives modest, stupid, famous, and useful. So

Modest ----- most modest
Stupid ----- most stupid
Famous ---- most famous
Useful ------ most useful
For examples :

Rima is the modest among her friends.

Agnes Monica is the famous singer in Indonesia.

So, we conclude that if we want to compare things or persons we:
• add er or est to the end of the adjective with one syllable, or two syllables ending with -ly
• add more /most in front of the adjetive with more than two syllables. Meanwhile, we
• add more /most to the two syllbles adjectives with the stress in the first syllable.

Check this video for Comparative Adjectives: