B2 First · Grammar · Pattern 9 of 10

Comparatives and superlatives

Not as … as, the more … the more, such a … , 'no other student is as tall' — comparison hidden inside a negative.

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Key words to expect: AS, THAN, MORE, LESS, SUCH, NEARLY, THE, MOST

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Freya is a better swimmer than her brother.

WELL

Freya's brother doesn't swim she does.

What the item is really checking

Comparison items are about saying the same thing from the other end. 'Freya is a better swimmer than her brother' and 'Freya's brother doesn't swim as well as she does' compare the same two people; the second is negative and uses 'as … as' instead of a comparative. Part 4 tests whether you can move between the comparative, the 'as … as' form and the superlative without losing the direction of the comparison.

It also tests the change of word class that often comes with it — 'a better swimmer' (adjective with a noun) to 'swim as well as' (adverb with a verb) — and the superlative hiding in a negative: 'no other student is as tall as Callum' means 'Callum is the tallest'.

Where the marks go

Strength. 'Much easier than' is 'not nearly as difficult as'; 'slightly easier than' would be 'not quite as difficult as'. The intensifier changes with the structure, and 'far bigger' becomes 'not nearly as big'. Leaving the intensifier out is accepted in some items and not in others — the drill shows which.

'Such' against 'so'. 'So boring' takes no noun; 'such a boring film' takes one, and the article goes after 'such'. 'The most boring film I have ever seen' becomes 'I have never seen such a boring film' — superlative plus 'ever' turning into 'never … such'.

How to work it out under time

Keep the direction. Write down who is bigger, better or faster before you touch the grammar; then check the answer says the same thing. Half the errors in this pattern are grammatically perfect sentences that compare in the wrong direction.

Match the structure to the key word. AS wants 'as … as'; THAN wants a comparative; THE at the start of a sentence wants the double comparative 'the more …, the easier …'; SUCH wants 'such (a) + adjective + noun'; MOST or an -EST word wants a superlative with 'ever' or 'in the class' after it.