Comparison of Degree
Definition
of Comparison of Degree
Degree of comparison is
an adjective form or adverb which states a comparison. There are three degree
of comparison, namely: positive, comparative,
and superlative degree.
contoh kalimat degrees of comparison
The
Types of Comparison of Degrees
Positive
Degree
When used to express
comparisons, a positive degree must be used with correlative conjunction as ...
as. Positive degree is an adjective and adverb standard form without any
changes.
adjective: beautiful, difficult, easy, much, tired
adverb: carefully, fast, gently, much, quickly
Examples
of Positive Degree :
|
1
|
The
task is not as difficult as you imagine.
(Tugas tersebut tidak sesulit yang kamu bayangkan.) |
|
2
|
The
test was as easy as pie.
(Tes tersebut sangat mudah.) as easy as pie = extremely easy |
|
3
|
My
brother drives as carefully as
my father in the residential area.
(Saudara laki-laki saya mengemudi sehati-hati ayahnya di area perumahan.) |
|
4
|
I
hope you enjoy your holiday as much as we
do.
(Saya berharap kamu menikmati liburanmu seperti kami.) |
Comparative
Degree
Comparative degree is
used to compare two people, animals, objects, or things. Most adjective or
adverb which consists of one syllable added -er suffix,
while two syllables or more begin with the word more. Especially for two
adjective syllables with -y ending, the suffix is omitted and then added -ier. When in a sentence, the degree of
comparison is usually followed by the word than.
adjective: cold-colder, patient – more patient, happy-happier
adverb: fast-faster, gently – more gently, slowly – more slowly
Examples
of Comparative Degree
|
1
|
Your
heart is colder than ice.
(Hatimu lebih dingin dari es.) |
|
2
|
The happiest person I know thinks that sometimes
changing up his routine is really important.
(Orang paling berbahagia yang saya kenal berpikir bahwa kadang-kadang mengubah rutinitasnya itu sungguh-sungguh penting.) |
|
3
|
I
ran faster than you did.
(Saya berlari lebih cepat dari kamu.) |
|
4
|
Land
snails move more slowly than starfish.
(Siput darat bergerak lebih lambat dari bintang laut.) |
Superlative
Degree
A
superlative degree serves to compare three or more people, objects, or things.
The majority of one adjective and adverb term is obtained by the superlative
form by adding the suffix -est, while the one with more than one syllable is
added to the word most in front of it. As for the adjective which consists of
two syllables with the suffix -y, the ending is omitted and then added to -iest. When in a sentence, a superlative degree
begins with definite article the.
adjective: cold-coldest, patient – most patient, happy-happiest
adverb: fast-fastest, gently – most gently, slowly – most
slowly
Examples
of Superlative Degree
|
1
|
Your
heart is the coldest of all.
(Hatimu adalah yang terdingin dari semuanya.) |
|
2
|
The happiest person I know thinks that sometimes
changing up his routine is really important.
(Orang paling berbahagia yang saya kenal berpikir bahwa kadang-kadang mengubah rutinitasnya itu sungguh-sungguh penting.) |
|
3
|
I
run the fastest in my class.
(Saya berlari paling cepat di kelas.) |
|
4
|
The
country develops the most slowly.
(Negara tersebut berkembang paling lambat.) |
Klik this link to get more information about Comparison of Degree
Exercises:
1. Which is ……. iron or
lead?
a. heavy c.
heavier
b. more
heavy d.
heaviest
Answer : c
Explanation: The full sentence above that is correct is "Which
is heavier iron or lead?" Why is the answer not (a) because
"heavy" is used for positive sentences that have the expression
"as ...... as" which means the same. Answer (b) is not correct
because the word 'heavy' consists of two syllables with the end of the word 'y'
so the suffix 'y' on the word 'heavy' will change to y = i + er 'heavier' is formed, why is the answer
not (b ) more heavy, for the rules when we use more and suffix -er in words, it depends on the number of
syllables in the word. If the syllables are more than two syllables or more,
then the word 'more' is followed, like a beautiful example so using 'more
beautiful' is not 'beautifuler' and why is the answer not (d) heaviest? because
the heaviest is a superlative degree which means "most". Because the
sentence above has the choice between "iron or lead". So the most
appropriate answer is (c) which means "Which is heavier iron or lead ?.
2. This road is the ………. in the town.
a. more
narrow c. narrower
b.
narrowest d.
narrow
Answer : b
Explanation: The full sentence above that is correct is "This
road is the narrowest in the town". Why is the answer not (a)
because "more narrow" is a comparative degree sentence or comparing
with one another, as well as the answer (c), "narrower" is a kind of
word change for comparative degrees, then the answer (c) is incorrect. Answer
(d) is also incorrect because it is used for the positive degree sentence which
means 'the same'. Then the most appropriate answer is (b) because the main
feature of the superlative degree sentence is having the word 'the' and
followed by 'est' or 'most', but it only determines when we use the suffix
'est' or 'most' on the adjective ( adjective), because the word 'narrow'
consists of one syllable, so just add the 'est' suffix to the word. So the word
"narrow" becomes "narrowest".
3. Last night my
brother told me the …….. story that i have ever heard.
a. most
interesting c.
more interesting
b.
interesting d.
interested
Answer : a
Explanation: The sentence above is complete is "The
last night my brother told me the most interesting story that I have ever
heard". Why is the answer not (b) because for adjectives that
do not change, this is included in the positive comparison category which has
the characteristic "as ...as" which means comparing but the same. For
example ‘Jessy is as tall as Marine 'meaning' She is as tall as Marine '.
Answer (c) is an answer to compare one story with another story. While the
example questions above do not have a comparison of stories with other stories,
the most interesting stories can be concluded. So the most appropriate answer
is (a) most interesting.
4. We
don’t like James. He is as …… as his brother.
a. naughthiest c. naugthier
b. naugthy d. most naughty
b. naugthy d. most naughty
Answer : b
Explanation: The sentence above has a
complete "We don't like James. He is as naughty as his brother”.
He is just as naughty as his sister. " Because the sentence above uses the
marker "as ... ..as", the most appropriate answer is b (naughty).
5. She wants a
……… string than this to tie the parcel.
a. longest c.
longer
b.
long d.
more long
Answer : c
Explanation: The full sentence is "She wants a
longer string than this to tie the parcel". To find out when we
should use positive, comparative and superlative degrees, we can see the type
of sentence. Suppose for positive sentences there is a sign "as ...
..as". For comparative degree there is a marker "than" in the
sentence, while superlative degree is a marker of "the" in a sentence
that means specific or "most" among the others. So, the most
appropriate answer is (c) because it has a "than" marker
6. Today’s work isn’t as ……. as it was yesterday.
a. harder c.
hardest
b.
hard d. hardly
Answer : b
Explanation: The full sentence above is "Today's
work is not as hard as it was yesterday". Because the
sentence above uses the marker "as ... ..as", the most appropriate
answer is b (hard).
7. Who is …….
he or his brother?
a. lazy c.
laziest
b. more
lazy d. lazier
Answer : d
Explanation: The full sentence above is right "Who
is lazier he or his brother?" Why is the answer not (b) more
lazy? Because the word lazy consists of two syllables and ends with the word
"y", the suffix "y" will change to y = i + er and form 'lazier', if a word has two
or more syllables and the word does not end with a suffix 'y' then the word
added 'more' like the word 'handsome' and formed 'more handsome'. The answer
(c) is not appropriate because the sentence does not contain the meaning
"most", because the sentence has the meaning "Who is more lazy?
He or her sister? There is the word "or" so that the sentence is
included in the "comparative degree" category.
8. Paul is eight years old, Tom is nine, and John is ten.
John is the…..
a. oldest c.
old
b. older d. more old
b. older d. more old
Answer : a
Explanation: The right sentence is "Paul is
eight years old, Tom is nine, and John is the”. John is the oldest
". So who is the oldest between Paul, Tom and John? the answer is John,
then the oldest / oldest John. So, the most appropriate answer is (a) oldest,
not using the words ‘older, old or more old’ because the sentence above belongs
to the category of "superlative degree" and the characteristic of the
sentence "superlative degree" is to use "the".
9. An apple is as ….. as an orange.
a. big c.
more big
b.
bigger d. the biggest
Answer : a
Explanation: The full sentence above is "An
apple is as big as an orange". Including which type of sentence is
the sentence? Comparative degree? If a comparative degree does not compare
words like "than or or", the sentence will be incorrect. If the
"superlative degree", the sentence does not contain the
"most" element so it is not appropriate for the "biggest"
use. Then the most appropriate answer is (a) big which means "Apples are
as large as oranges". The sentence belongs to the positive degree "by
having the characteristic" as ... ..as "sentence.
10. I enjoy every minute of the match. I should say
the winning team is the
a. good c.
best
b. gooder d. better
Answer : c
Explanation: The sentence above is right "I
enjoy every minute of the match. I should say the winning team is the best
". Judging from the meaning of the sentence, we can already guess
that the right answer is (c). The word 'best' changes from the word 'good-better-best'
why not become 'the goodest' or 'the most good'? Not only verbs have word
changes or are known as "irregular verb", but in adjectives also have
word changes. Another example is "bad-worse-worst".
References:
1. Adjectives. http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/adjectives.htm. Accessed on April 25, 2019
2. Using the Correct Form of Adjective for Degree of
Comparisons. http://www.uhv.edu/ac/newsletters/writing/grammartip2009.06.09.htm. Accessed on April 25, 2019
3. Comparatives and Superlatives. http://www.cws.illinois.edu/workshop/writers/comparatives/.
Accessed on April 26, 2019
4. Comparative/Superlative. http://esl.fis.edu/grammar/rules/comp.htm. Accessed on April 27, 2019.
