Degrees of comparison of adjectives

Put more/most before one syllable adjectives which are past participles, e.g.

tired – more tired – the most tired

lost – more lost – the most lost

Use less or least before any adjective to make it weaker, e.g.

famous – less famous

To talk about a large difference, use a lot or much, e.g.

It’s a lot more expensive than that one.

To talk about a small difference, use a little or not much, e.g.

These shoes are a little cheaper than those ones.

To say there is no difference, use as.........as, e.g.

This blouse is as tight on me as that one.

To make the adjective weaker, use not as.....as, e.g.

The film is not as good as I expected.

Adverbs form degrees of comparison in the same way as adjectives, e.g.

fast – faster – fastest

often – more often -most often

Adverb or adjective

There are three normal positions for adverbs:

* at the beginning of a sentence – Last night I saw them in the park.

* in the mid-position – He has already returned from Poland.

* at the end – He did it very carefully.

Some types of adverbs can go in more than one position. It depends on what the speaker wants to emphasize.

Initial position adverbs: * connecting adverbs * adverbs of time * some adverbs of frequency * some adverbs of certainty *negative adverbials with inversion * adverbs of manner (for emphasis)	however, then last night, tomorrow usually, once a year maybe, perhaps seldom, rarely Seldom have I seen him so happy. carefully Carefully he placed the slide under the microscope.
Mid-position adverbs: * adverbs of certainty *adverbs of indefinite frequency * adverbs of manner * adverbs of completeness * adverbs of degree * focus adverbs	definitely, certainly He will definitely win the cup. often, seldom, rarely She often loses her keys. quickly, slowly nearly completely, quite just, even He didn’t even apologise for forgetting my birthday.
End-position adverbs: * adverbs of manner * adverbs of place * adverbs of time * adverbs of definite frequency	She crossed the lane slowly. She walked into the park. We saw her only last week. I go to the swimming-pool twice a week.

If there are several adverbs in a sentence you must out them in the following order: manner – place – time

In some cases there is a difference in the meaning of an adverb which sometimes uses -ly and sometimes doesn’t. Adverbs that change meaning include: hard (hardly), direct (directly), short (shortly), wide (widely), late (lately), free (freely), wrong (wrongly), right (rightly) etc.

Example: I saw the UFO high over the mountains.

He thinks highly of Aboriginal beliefs.

Let’s practice: