Page 50 - New Grammar with a Smile 7
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Degrees of Adjectives

                  You have learnt that there are three degrees of adjectives—positive, comparative
                  and superlative.

                  1.  Positive degree: When we talk about the existence of some quality in a person or
                     a thing, we use the positive degree. For example,

                     y   Sushma is a tall girl.
                     y   Vasanthi is an intelligent girl.
                  2.  Comparative degree: When we compare two people or things, we use the
                     comparative degree. For example,

                     y   Parul is taller than Sushma.
                     y   Jaya is more intelligent than Vasanthi.
                  3.  Superlative degree: When we compare three or more people or things, we use
                     the superlative degree. For example,

                     y   Sukanya is the tallest of all.
                     y   Sonali is the most intelligent of all.
                  Study the table to understand how to form comparatives and superlatives.

                                 Rule                    Positive        Comparative          Superlative

                    Most adjectives form the           great             greater            greatest
                    comparative by adding              clever            cleverer           cleverest
                    er and the superlative by
                    adding est                         kind              kinder             kindest

                                                       young             younger            youngest
                                                       short             shorter            shortest

                                                       tall              taller             tallest

                    Adjectives ending with e           noble             nobler             noblest
                    form the comparative by            wise              wiser              wisest
                    adding r and the superlative
                    by adding st                       able              abler              ablest

                    Adjectives ending with y,          early             earlier            earliest
                    change the y to i and add er       costly            costlier           costliest
                    and est
                                                       heavy             heavier            heaviest

                    Adjectives with CVC                sad               sadder             saddest
                                           *
                    combination, double the last       big               bigger             biggest
                    consonant before adding er
                    and est                            fat               fatter             fattest

                   *consonant-vowel-consonant
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