Degree of Comparison Rules with Examples: Rohan still remembers that English period clearly. He was standing near the blackboard while the teacher distributed answer sheets of the class test, the classroom was silent. When he got the answer sheet in his hand he saw he got 12 out of 20. It wasn’t a terrible score, yet it felt heavy in his chest. As he scanned the answers, a pattern appeared. Almost every mistake came from one chapter: comparison of degree in adjectives. Rohan felt confused and embarrassed. He knew words like big, bigger, and biggest since childhood, but why did the answers feel so wrong on paper?
That afternoon, instead of running home or playing with his friends, Rohan sat alone on a bench near the school corridor. The teacher’s words echoed in his mind: “Understanding is more important than memorizing.” For the first time, Rohan realized that grammar wasn’t about remembering forms but about seeing relationships—how qualities change when we compare people, things, and situations. That quiet moment of reflection became a turning point. He decided he would not just learn the rules for exams, but truly understand how comparison works in real life.
Table of Contents
Degree of Comparison Rules with Examples
Why This Topic Confuses Students So Much
Most students memorize:
- tall – taller – tallest
- good – better – best
But exams don’t test your memory. They test conversion, identification, and sentence logic.
However Rohan’s mistake wasn’t ignorance — it was half understanding. Therefore let’s fix that completely.
What Is Comparison of Degree in Adjective?
An adjective describes a noun (boy, girl, place, thing).
Comparison of degree tells us how much or to what extent a quality exists.
Think of it like real life:
- One student
- Two students
- Many students
The quality changes based on comparison.
The Three Degrees of Adjective
1. Positive Degree — Just stating a quality
This is the base form.
No comparison. No competition.
Structure:
Subject + is/are + adjective
Examples:
- Rohan is smart.
- This book is useful.
- The road is long.
Life analogy: You’re describing someone — not comparing them with anyone.
2. Comparative Degree — Comparing two
Used when two people or things are compared.
Structure:
Subject + is/are + comparative adjective + than
Examples:
- Rohan is smarter than Arjun.
- This book is more useful than that one.
- Today is hotter than yesterday.
Key idea: If you see “than”, your mind should automatically think comparative degree.
3. Superlative Degree — The highest or lowest among many
Used when comparing more than two.
Structure:
Subject + is/are + the + superlative adjective
Examples:
- Rohan is the smartest boy in the class.
- This is the most useful book.
- Mount Everest is the highest peak.
Emotion behind it: This is the “top position” — no one goes beyond this.
How to Identify Which Degree Is Used (Exam Trick)
Ask yourself three simple questions:
- Is there no comparison? → Positive
- Is there comparison between two (often with than)? → Comparative
- Is there the best / worst / highest among many? → Superlative
Example:
- She is intelligent. → Positive
- She is more intelligent than her sister. → Comparative
- She is the most intelligent in the family. → Superlative
Rules for Forming Degrees (Very Important)
Rule 1: One-syllable adjectives
Add -er / -est
| Positive | Comparative | Superlative |
|---|---|---|
| tall | taller | tallest |
| fast | faster | fastest |
Rule 2: Adjectives ending in -y
Change y → i, then add -er / -est
| happy | happier | happiest |
| lazy | lazier | laziest |
Rule 3: Long adjectives (2 or more syllables)
Use more / most
| useful | more useful | most useful |
| beautiful | more beautiful | most beautiful |
Rule 4: Irregular adjectives (no pattern)
| Positive | Comparative | Superlative |
|---|---|---|
| good | better | best |
| bad | worse | worst |
| little | less | least |
| much | more | most |
Rules, Structure / Formula to Change Degree of Comparison
1. Positive Degree → Comparative Degree
Rule: When two persons or things are compared, change the positive degree into the comparative degree using “-er / more” and add “than”.
Structure / Formula:
- Positive: Subject + verb + as + adjective + as + object
- Comparative: Subject + verb + adjective(-er / more) + than + object
Examples:
- Ram is as tall as Shyam. → Ram is taller than Shyam.
- This book is as interesting as that one. → This book is more interesting than that one.
- Gold is as precious as platinum. → Gold is more precious than platinum.
2. Positive Degree → Superlative Degree
Rule: When more than two persons or things are compared, change positive degree into superlative degree using “the” and “-est / most”.
Structure / Formula:
- Positive: No other + noun + verb + as + adjective + as + subject
- Superlative: Subject + verb + the + adjective(-est / most) + noun
Examples:
- No other boy is as tall as Ram. → Ram is the tallest boy.
- No other city is as large as Delhi. → Delhi is the largest city.
- No other problem is as difficult as this. → This is the most difficult problem.
3. Comparative Degree → Positive Degree
Rule: Replace comparative adjective with positive adjective, remove “than”, use “as…as” and add “not” in the second clause.
Structure / Formula:
- Comparative: Subject + verb + adjective(-er / more) + than + object
- Positive: Object + verb + not + as + adjective + as + subject
Examples:
- Ram is taller than Shyam. → Shyam is not as tall as Ram.
- This road is longer than that one. → That road is not as long as this.
- English is more useful than History. → History is not as useful as English.
4. Comparative Degree → Superlative Degree
Rule: When one is compared with all others, change “-er / more” into “-est / most” and remove “than”.
Structure / Formula:
- Comparative: Subject + verb + adjective(-er / more) + than any other + noun
- Superlative: Subject + verb + the + adjective(-est / most) + noun
Examples:
- Ram is taller than any other boy. → Ram is the tallest boy.
- This book is more interesting than any other book. → This is the most interesting book.
- Everest is higher than any other mountain. → Everest is the highest mountain.
5. Superlative Degree → Positive Degree
Rule: Use “No other” and replace superlative adjective with positive adjective using “as…as”.
Structure / Formula:
- Superlative: Subject + verb + the + adjective(-est / most) + noun
- Positive: No other + noun + verb + as + adjective + as + subject
Examples:
- Ram is the tallest boy. → No other boy is as tall as Ram.
- This is the best solution. → No other solution is as good as this.
- She is the most intelligent student. → No other student is as intelligent as she.
6. Superlative Degree → Comparative Degree
Rule: Replace “-est / most” with “-er / more” and add “than any other”.
Structure / Formula:
- Superlative: Subject + verb + the + adjective(-est / most) + noun
- Comparative: Subject + verb + adjective(-er / more) + than any other + noun
Examples:
- Ram is the tallest boy. → Ram is taller than any other boy.
- This is the most useful tool. → This is more useful than any other tool.
- She is the fastest runner. → She is faster than any other runner.
Exam Shortcut:
- as…as → Positive Degree
- than → Comparative Degree
- the + -est / most → Superlative Degree
Common Mistakes I Personally Made
- Using double comparison like more better
- Forgetting “the” before superlative
- Comparing more than two using comparative
Final Words
If you’re struggling with comparison of degree, don’t blame yourself. Most students were never taught how to think — only what to memorize.
Therefore take it slow. Practice conversions. Ask why, not just what. Just like Rohan, once this chapter clicks, it becomes one of the easiest scoring topics in English grammar.
Exercise 1: Fill in the Blanks (Degrees of Adjective)
- Rohan is ______ than his younger brother. (tall)
Answer: taller — Comparative Degree - This is the ______ movie I have ever watched. (interesting)
Answer: most interesting — Superlative Degree - My house is as ______ as yours. (big)
Answer: big — Positive Degree - Today is ______ than yesterday. (cold)
Answer: colder — Comparative Degree - Rohan is the ______ student in his class. (intelligent)
Answer: most intelligent — Superlative Degree - This road is ______ than that one. (wide)
Answer: wider — Comparative Degree - She is as ______ as her sister. (beautiful)
Answer: beautiful — Positive Degree - Mount Everest is the ______ mountain in the world. (high)
Answer: highest — Superlative Degree - English is ______ than mathematics for Rohan. (easy)
Answer: easier — Comparative Degree - This is the ______ dress in the shop. (cheap)
Answer: cheapest — Superlative Degree - My bag is as ______ as yours. (heavy)
Answer: heavy — Positive Degree - Summer is ______ than winter in this city. (hot)
Answer: hotter — Comparative Degree - She solved the problem in the ______ way. (simple)
Answer: simplest — Superlative Degree - Rohan’s handwriting is ______ than before. (neat)
Answer: neater — Comparative Degree - This is the ______ day of my life. (happy)
Answer: happiest — Superlative Degree
Exercise 2: Sentence Conversion (Comparison of Degree)
- Rohan is as strong as Arjun. (Convert into Comparative Degree)
Answer: Arjun is not stronger than Rohan. - This is the most useful book in the library. (Convert into Comparative Degree)
Answer: This book is more useful than any other book in the library. - No other city is as clean as this city. (Convert into Comparative Degree)
Answer: This city is cleaner than any other city. - She is happier than her sister. (Convert into Positive Degree)
Answer: Her sister is not as happy as she is. - Rohan is the tallest boy in the class. (Convert into Comparative Degree)
Answer: Rohan is taller than any other boy in the class. - This question is easier than the previous one. (Convert into Superlative Degree)
Answer: This is the easiest question among them. - No other player is as skilled as Meera. (Convert into Superlative Degree)
Answer: Meera is the most skilled player. - Today is hotter than yesterday. (Convert into Positive Degree)
Answer: Yesterday was not as hot as today. - This is the worst mistake of my life. (Convert into Comparative Degree)
Answer: This mistake is worse than any other mistake of my life. - English is more interesting than history for Rohan. (Convert into Superlative Degree)
Answer: English is the most interesting subject for Rohan.
