GMAT Grammar Book: Comparisons

Question

COMPARISONS   yellow/96234 
This post is a part of  GMAT GRAMMAR BOOK ]

created by:   bb 
 edited by:   dzyubam

Comparisons use adjectives and adverbs to indicate degrees of difference, which can be equal or unequal.

Equal Comparisons 
An equal comparison shows that two entities are exactly the same, if positive, or not the same, if negative. The word as is used on either side of the adjective or adverb.

Mary is  as tall as  her sister.  OR  Mary is  not   as tall as  her sister.

Sometimes, the word  so  is used in the first position of a negative comparison.

Mary is  not   so   tall as  her sister.

NOTE : In correct English, a subject pronoun is always used after the comparison phrase. This is often misused in speech.

Mary is as tall as  she . You are not as old as  I .

Examples of equal comparisons:

My brother is as big as an ox. (adjective)
Robert is as intelligent as Jane. (adjective)
That sprinter runs as fast as a cheetah. (adverb)
Our choir sings as well as yours. (adverb)

Sometimes, nouns can be used in comparative phrases of equality by using  the same  in front of it.

My car runs   the same  speed as  yours. My car runs  as fast as  yours.

Their party ran   the same  length as  the concert. Their party ran  as long as  the concert.

NOTE : The opposite of  the same as  is  different from . You should never use  different than .

My ice cream is   different from   yours.
Their uniforms are   different from   ours.

Unequal Comparisons 
Unequal comparatives show that there is a greater or lesser degree of difference.

The word  than  is always used at the end of the comparative, unless the object has already been established and is known.

My brother is  bigger than  your brother. OR My brother is  bigger . (object known)

The following rules generally apply to this type of comparative.
• Add –er to the adjective or adverb base of most one and two syllable words. (fast = faster; tall = taller; smart = smarter)
• When the adjective or adverb has three or more syllables then you add the word  more  without changing the adjective or adverb. (more important; more gorgeous; more intelligent)
• Also, use  more  with words ending in these suffixes: -ed, -ing, -ful, -ous, -ish. (more enraged, more careful, more caring, more porous, more bullish)
• With one-syllable words that end in a single consonant and are preceded by a single vowel, the consonant is doubled before adding –er (with the exception of w, x and z). (hot = hotter; big = bigger; red = redder)
• When a word ends in a consonant +  y , change the  y  to  I  and add  –er . (clumsy = clumsier, funny = funnier, dry = drier)

NOTE : The suffix  –er  means the same as  more . It is incorrect to use them together. You can NOT say:  more nicer, more uglier, more faster

Using  much  or  far  before the unequal comparative intensifies the meaning even more.

Your outfit is   far    more fashionable than  mine.
A jet is   much    faster than  a plane.
Silver is   much    less desirable than  gold.

Nouns can also be used in comparisons, but the correct determiners must be used with countable or uncountable nouns.

Countable nouns use  more ,  fewer ,  less  + noun +  than

He has  more comics than  me.

Non-countable nouns use  many, much, little, less  + noun +  as

They have  as much food as  we.

Examples of countable and non-countable nouns used in comparatives:

Emily has as little money as I. (non-countable)
I have fewer coins than Emily. (countable)
My friend doesn’t have as much work as Sam. (non-countable)
I have more classes than my friend. (countable)

Positives, Comparatives and Superlatives 
Most adjectives have three forms: the positive ( sad ), the comparative ( sadder ) and the superlative ( saddest ).

If the adjective has three or more syllables then it will usually begin with  more  or  less , or  most  or  least , without changing the adjective. Study the following chart.

POSITIVE    COMPARATIVE    SUPERLATIVE     large  larger  largest    pretty  prettier  prettiest    intelligent  less intelligent  least intelligent    beautiful  more beautiful  most beautiful

Adverbs are also sometimes used as comparatives and superlatives. Usually, adverbs have three or more syllables. If so, they are used with  more  or  less  for the comparative and  most  or  least  for the superlative.

She worked  more painstakingly than  Ralph. (comparative)
He behaved  more comically than  all the other clowns. (comparative)
That bull acts  the most chaotic  of all. (superlative)
That kid cries  the most pitifully  of all the rest. (superlative)

The positive doesn’t show any comparison, but simply describes the quality of a person, group, or thing.

The girl is  pretty .
The doctor is  smart .

The comparative shows a greater, or lesser, degree of difference between two people, groups, or things. The word  than  is used if the object of comparison is mentioned. It is not needed if the object of comparison is understood.

His dad is  taller than  yours. OR His dad is  taller .
This disease is  more contagious than  that one. OR This disease is  more contagious .
Martin is  less dynamic than  his brother. OR Martin is  less dynamic .

The superlative compares three or more people, groups, or things and shows which one is superior, or inferior, to the others.

Sally is the  nicest  girl in our class.
Ralph is the  most successful  graduate of our school.
This computer is the  least expensive  of all of them.

The phrase  “one of the”  is commonly used with superlative form to show that one person, group, or thing out of a number of people, groups, or things is the most, or least. When this phrase is used, the “group” noun is plural while the verb is singular.

One of the fastest  planes  in the world  is  the Concord.
Mohammad Ali  is  one of the greatest  boxers  in the world.

Irregular Comparatives and Superlatives 
A few adjectives and superlatives used in comparative and superlative phrases are irregular. 
Study the examples in the chart below.

ADJECTIVE OR ADVERB    COMPARATIVE    SUPERLATIVE     Far  farther  OR  further  farthest  OR  furthest    Little  less  least    Much or many  more  most    Good or well  better  best    Bad or badly  worse  worst

Examples of irregular comparatives and superlatives:

Sally’s cooking is  much better than  Mary’s.
My car is running  worse  now  than  it did yesterday.
I live  farther  away  than  you.
Why do these shoes cost  less than  those?

Numbered Comparatives 
Numbered comparatives can include such words or phrases as:  half, twice, three times, four times , etc. The phrase  as much as  is used for non-countable nouns and  as many as  is used for countable nouns. The phrase  more than  is NOT used with numbered comparatives. It is incorrect to say  four times more than , etc.

This rock weighs  twice as much  as   that one.
Ronald has  four times as much money  as   Paul.
The cat had  half as many  kittens   as   before.

Double Comparatives 
When a sentence begins with a comparative structure then the second clause must also begin with a comparative.

The harder  you study,  the easier  the class will be.
 The sooner  you get to work,  the earlier  you can go home.
 The more  you resist,  the harder  it will be.
 The more  he studied,  the better  he got at Math.

No Sooner 
If the phrase  no sooner  begins a sentence, the word  than  must begin the second clause. Also, notice that the auxiliary verb is placed before the subject in this sentence structure.

No sooner  had Lisa hung out the laundry  than  it began to rain.
 No sooner  will I receive my check  than  it will all be spent on bills.
 No sooner  had he began the competition  than  he felt a tear in his leg muscle.

Exercise 21: Using Comparisons 
Fill in the blank with the correct form of the adjectives and adverbs in parentheses. Supply any other words that may be necessary. Pay attention to the words  as  and  than  for guidance.

1. This bowl of soup is __________________ (hot) than the last bowl.
2. She acts ___________________ (well) as Sandra Bullock.
3. Jerry’s pet is ____________________ (exotic) than Sue’s.
4. Your graduation gift is ____________________ (good) than mine.
5. My job is ______________________ (serious) as yours.
6. He was ______________________ (determined) than Joe to win the race.
7. Charlie has grown __________________________ (tall) as his brother.
8. She was ________________________ (shock) as I to see the test results.
9. Johnny was ________________________ (truthful) than before in telling his story.
10. I feel _________________________(bad) today than yesterday.

Exercise 22: Using Comparisons: Than, As, From 
Fill in the blank with the correct comparative word of  than, as,  or  from .

1. A cat is much quicker ______________ a mouse.
2. The dolphins swam as fast _______________ our boat.
3. Jennifer was much more certain of the answer ______________ Julie.
4. My twin cousin is indistinguishable ______________ the other.
5. Unmanned rockets can now travel much further _____________ the moon.
6. John’s speech was much different _______________ mine.
7. The ball game continued much longer ______________ expected.
8. Our cheerleaders were as good _______________ theirs.
9. Nathan was stronger ______________ Michael, so he won the match.
10. I think crumpets are much tastier ______________ crepes.

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kissthegmat · Answer

Exercise 22: Using Comparisons: Than, As, From

Answers:
1 than
2 as
3 than
4 from
5 than (not sure!)
6 from
7 than
8 as
9 than
10 than

ravsg · Answer

Question on usage of pronouns.

1) He has more comics than me.
Here - Subject - He
 Object - me (objective case)

2) They have as much food as we.
Here - Subject - They
 Object - we (nominative case??)

Why is the case of the object different in the above two sentences?

Is it because "as" gives an answer to same or not same while "than" shows a greater or lesser degree?

Please help. I am really confused about this one.

ravsg · Answer

Is the correct answer to # 6 "from"(per the above post) or "than"(per the pdf).
6. John’s speech was much different __than__ mine.

Also, can someone please explain which of the two, from or than is correct and why.

mohammadalsheikh · Answer

hello guys,

Non-countable nouns use many, much, little, less + noun + as

is " many " an exception of the rule ? because many used for countable things.

testpv · Answer

Could someone explain the difference in use of object pronouns in the following sentences:

1. Everybody works faster than I

2. He has more comics than me.

He is a subject pronoun in the 2nd sentence, yet is used with an object pronoun me?

Posted from my mobile device

VerbalBot · Answer

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GMAT Grammar Book: Comparisons

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POSITIVE	COMPARATIVE	SUPERLATIVE
large	larger	largest
pretty	prettier	prettiest
intelligent	less intelligent	least intelligent
beautiful	more beautiful	most beautiful

ADJECTIVE OR ADVERB	COMPARATIVE	SUPERLATIVE
Far	farther OR further	farthest OR furthest
Little	less	least
Much or many	more	most
Good or well	better	best
Bad or badly	worse	worst