Comparativas y superlativas

Formas

• adjetivo corto: -er / the -est

  Una sílaba, y los de dos sílabas terminados en -y. Ojo a la ortografía: big → bigger, easy → easier.

  • This flat is cheaper than the one we saw yesterday.
  • It was the hottest day of the year.
• adjetivo largo: more / the most

  La mayoría de los de dos sílabas y todos los de tres o más. Algunos de dos sílabas admiten -er: quieter, narrower, simpler, cleverer.

  • The second exam was more difficult than the first.
• irregulares

  good → better → best; bad → worse → worst; far → further → furthest.

  • My cold is worse today.
  • This is the best pizza I've ever had.
• less / the least

  Lo contrario de more y the most.

  • The coast road is less crowded than the motorway.
• as … as / not as … as

  Igualdad y su negación. En negativa también vale not so … as.

  • The sequel isn't as good as the original.
• the same as / similar to / different from

  Igual, parecido, distinto.

  • Your phone is the same as mine.
• comparativo + and + comparativo

  Algo cambia cada vez más.

  • It's getting colder and colder.
  • Flights are becoming more and more expensive.
• the + comparativo, the + comparativo

  Cuanto más…, más….

  • The more you practise, the easier it gets.
• much / far / a lot / slightly + comparativo; by far + superlativo

  Gradúan la diferencia.

  • The new model is much faster than the old one.
  • She's by far the best player in the team.

Cómo resolverlo

En la parte 4, la frase nueva tiene que decir exactamente lo mismo. Si pasas de more a not as … as, cambia también el orden de las dos cosas que comparas: Ana is older than Luis equivale a Luis is not as old as Ana.

Dónde aparece en el examen

• Parte 2: faltan than, as, the, most, more, much, far o by.
• Parte 4: He's taller than me → I'm not as tall as him; I've never seen such a good film → It's the best film I've ever seen.
• Parte 4: Prices have never been so high → Prices are higher than ever; There were fewer people than I expected → There weren't as many people as I expected.

Trampas típicas

• Detrás de un comparativo va than, no that ni as.
• No dobles el comparativo: easier, no more easier.
• Con superlativo y experiencia, present perfect + ever: the best I've ever had.
• Such va con sustantivo (such a good film); so, con adjetivo solo (so good).
• Fewer va con contables; less, con incontables. Para negar una comparación con fewer o less se usa not as many … as o not as much … as: There weren't as many people as I expected.