3 Types of Degrees of Comparison - Basic Concept for Beginners

What are Degrees of Comparison?

  • Degrees of Comparison are adjectives that change form and are used to compare one thing or person to another.

  • They are applicable to adjectives and adverbs and not to nouns and verbs.

3 Types of Degrees of Comparison?

Degrees of Comparison are of three types.

1. Positive Degree

  • The positive degree of an adjective in comparison is the adjective in its simple form. 

  • It is used to denote the existing state of a person or thing and is used when no comparison is made.

2. Comparative Degree

  • The comparative degree of an adjective in Degrees of Comparison denotes the higher degree of the quality than the positive.

  • It is used when two things or two sets of things are compared.

3. Superlative Degree

  • The superlative degree conveys the highest quality of a person or a thing. 

  • It is used when more than two people or things are compared.  

    Some Commonly Used Degrees of Comparison are given below :










Note : 

In most of the cases

  • Comparative Degree is formed by simply adding ' -ed' at the end of the verb.
  • Superlative Degree is formed by simply adding ' -est' at the end of the verb.

some other examples of the three types of Degrees of Comparison

Positive Comparative Superlative
high higher highest
fast faster fastest
strong stronger strongest
bright brighter brighter
black blacker blackest
bold bolder boldest
clever cleverer cleverest
cold colder coldest
great greater greatest
kind kinder kindest
long longer longest
small smaller smallest
sweet sweeter sweetest
tall taller tallest
fast faster fastest
young younger youngest

Practice Exercise

Fill in the blanks with appropriate option from the brackets.

1. There are very few places as _________________ as Paris.
(Option : pretty / prettier / prettiest)

2. Of the two, who is __________________ ?
(Option : tall / taller / tallest)

3. This is the _________________ house in the neighbourhood.
(Option : big / bigger / biggest)

4. There is nothing ___________________ than a glass of water.
(Option : good / better / best)

5. There is nothing as ___________________ as a glass of water.
(Option : good / better / best)