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Comparison of adjectives and adverbs 1. Comparatives and superlatives We form comparatives and superlatives by adding -er and -est to one-syllable adjectives. When the adjective is vowel consonant (big), add an extra consonant (big+ger): When Trevor bought a big car Brian went out and bought a bigger one. Brian’s car was the biggest. We use ‘more’ and ‘most’ for adjectives with 2 or more syllables: Trevor decided to buy an expensive computer. So Brian had to go out and buy a more expensive computer. A few adjectives have irregular comparatives and superlatives: Mike had the best house in Charm Street. 1-syllable adverbs use -er and -est to form comparatives and superlatives: Brian and Trevor worked in the same office and Brian worked much harder than Trevor. ‘Well’ and ‘badly’ have irregular comparatives and superlatives: They both got on well with the boss, although Brian got on better… All other adverbs use ‘more’ and ‘most’: The boss also preferred Brian because he worked more efficiently. 2. ‘As… as …’ You can also make comparisons using ‘as + adjective / adverb + as…: Unfortunately, although Brian was as clever as Trevor, he was not as lucky as Trevor and as a result, he was not so happy as Trevor. On the other hand, Brian earned twice as much as Trevor.