Degrees of comparison of adverbs

Hello! Welcome to Grammar Zone!

Look at the photos. What games are they playing? Which sports do you like to watch? Do you play any sports? Which ones? Why do you like them?

We are keen on basketball. We are going to watch the last game of the season tonight.

Alan: What a game! Harry, have you ever seen two teams play more aggressively?

Harry: No, I haven’t, Alan. It’s halftime, and just listen to that Lions crowd! I think they cheer the loudest of any fans in the game!

Alan: Well, the court really belonged to the Lions for the first few minutes of the game, Harry. But the Comets recovered quickly. They’ve scored almost as frequently as the Lions in the first half. The score is now 28-26, Lions, and no one can predict a winner at this point.

Harry: I heard that Michel Riley, the Comets’ star player, injured his arm yesterday, but you can’t tell from the way he’s playing today. He’s scored the most of his team so far.

Alan: But David Dixon of the Lions isn’t far behind. He’s playing more and more intensely.

Harry: You’re right. The harder he plays, the more he scores.

Alan: The second half is ready to begin. See you again after the game.

Now look at the highlighted words. What part of speech are these words? Adjectives or Adverbs?

These are Adverbs.

·                   We use adjectives to describe nouns (things).

·                   Adverbs help us to describe verbs (actions).

E.g.:

This player is very quick. (WHAT player? – quick – adjective)

The Comets recovered quickly. (They recovered HOW? – quickly – adverb)

·                   Adverbs usually go after the verb.

E.g.:

Both teams played aggressively.

She runs faster and more gracefully than any other runners.

In this video we are going to talk about comparative and superlative degrees of adverbs and other comparative constructions.

·                   Use as + adverb + as to show how actions are the same or equal. Use just to make the comparison stronger.

Riley played just as well as most players. (She and other players played equally well.)

They’ve scored almost as frequently as the Lions in the first half.

Use not as + adverb + as to show how actions are not the same or equal.

Mike didn’t play as aggressively as Pete. (Mike and Pete didn’t play the same. Mike played less aggressively.)

·                   Use comparative adverbs + than to show how the actions of two people or things are different.

The Lions played better than the Comets.

Dixon played more skillfully than Green.

He played less aggressively than Green.

·                   Use superlative adverbs to compare one action with the actions of other people or things in a group.

All the players worked hard, but the Robins worked the hardest.

We often use the superlative with of.

They cheer the loudest of any fans in the game!

There are several ways of forming comparative and superlative adverbs.

Comparative and superlative forms of adverbs

Adverbs that have the same forms as their adjectives add –er to form the comparative form of adverbs.

To form the superlative form, we add -est.

long – longer - the longest

fast - faster – the fastest

hard- harder – the hardest

For long adverbs (two or more syllable or compound adverbs) take more to form the comparative form of adverbs.

*compound adverbs are adjectives +ly, careful - carefully).

To form the superlative form, we add (the) most.

often – more often – the most often

quietly – more quietly – the most quietly

skillfully – more skillfully – the most skillfully

Let’s look at the most common forms of irregular adverbs.

·                   Repeat the comparative adverb to show how something is increasing or decreasing:

comparative adverb + and + comparative adverb

He’s playing more and more intensely this game.

The Cubs play less and less skillfully.

Life is getting harder and harder.

·                   Use two comparative adverbs to show cause and effect:

the + comparative adverb + the + comparative adverb

The harder he plays, the more he scores. (When he plays harder, he gets better.)

The sooner you start, the sooner you’ll finish.

The younger you are, the more freedom you have.

Now it’s time to practice the rule.

Choose the correct answer.

1. Our team didn’t play as well as I expected. I was disappointed.

2. The faster Tom walks, the more tired he gets.

3. Could you talk more quietly? I’m trying to work.

4. Chris is working very hard these days.

5. She jumped the highest in the women’s high jump.

6. Women players play more patiently than men.

7. I passed my driving test. It seemed much easier this time.

That’s all for today! The harder you try, the more you succeed. Join us at our grammar lessons at videouroki.net.