Unit 2.

4- Adjectives Part 2

Hello everyone, today we are not having a video since I will be taking a week off from
them and I will upload reading guides for you to keep on working with the topics for this week.

This class we will cover the following contents:

 Gradable and ungradable adjectives (making stronger and weaker meaning).

 Comparatives and superlatives (comparative structures).

Gradable and ungradable adjectives:

Have a look at the following graphic so as to introduce the main concepts:

Gorgeous Fascinating Thrilled

 Very beautiful  Very interesting  Very excited

Beautiful Interesting Excited

 Not very  Not very  Not very excited

beautiful interesting  Not very afraid
 Not very ugly  Not very boring
Afraid
Ugly Boring
 Very afraid
 Very ugly  Very boring

Hideous Terrified
Dull

Adjectives in orange are ungradable adjectives, whereas adjectives in green are gradable
adjectives. The difference between them is that gradable adjectives represent points in a scale,
that is to say, they can be modified and their meaning can be made stronger (using very for
example) or weaker (using not very for example) and ungradable adjectives represent limits in a
scale, that is to say, they have an absolute meaning (You cannot say that an object or person is
more gorgeous or more fascinating than others). They can be modified but not as easily as
gradable adjectives.

When we say that adjectives have “grades” we are basically referring to the fact that they
can be positive, comparative or superlative. Only gradable adjectives can be made into the
comparative and the superlative, ungradable adjectives have neither comparative nor
superlative. E. g.

 That is an interesting book. (Positive adjective, just adding characteristics about a

noun)
 That book is more interesting than the other. (Comparative, showing difference)
not “That book is more fascinating than the other”
 This book is the most interesting one I have ever read! (Superlative, emphasizing
the characteristic above others) not “That book is the most fascinating one I have
ever read”

At this point, please take into account that superlatives are not the same as ungradable
adjectives. The superlative is the degree of an adjective, a form of gradable adjectives, and is
made by adding final “-est” or “most” to the original adjective, which is maintained; e.g. most
interesting, most beautiful, most dangerous. Ungradable adjectives are totally different from the
original adjective and do not have superlative form; e.g. (fascinating =even stronger than most
interesting; beautiful =even stronger than most beautiful, deadly= even stronger than
dangerous).

As we previously mentioned, the meaning of gradable adjectives can be made intensified,

that is to say, they can be made stronger. In order to do so, adjectives need to be combined with
any of the following adverbs:
  Extremely (to the highest degree) e.g. extremely important, extremely useful,
extremely complicated, extremely difficult.
 Terribly (very much) e.g. terribly wrong, terribly interested, terribly important,
terribly confused.
 Really (showing surprise or emphasis) e.g. really fast, really interesting, really shy,
really ugly.
 Rather (introducing criticism or disappointment) e.g. rather complicated, rather
difficult, rather cold, rather boring.
 Very (in a high degree)
 Quite (to some degree) e.g. quite interesting, quite big, quite warm, quite good.
 Pretty (Informal- to some extent) e.g. pretty good, pretty hard, pretty impressive,
pretty hot.

Note: Even though there is not much difference in meaning between them, in this file they are
organized depending on their “strength”. The same has been done for the other expressions;
they are organized depending on their level of “weakness”

In addition, the meaning of gradable adjectives can also be made weaker if we use any of
the following adverbs before them:

 Quite (to some degree)

 Somewhat (to some degree) e.g. somewhat expensive, somewhat surprised,
somewhat mysterious.
 Fairly (not very) e.g. fairly easy, fairly difficult, fairly incomprehensible.
 Slightly (a little) e.g. slightly different, slightly worried, slightly direct.
 Not very e.g.
 A bit (Informal) e.g. a bit tired a bit tight, a bit expensive.
 A little (Informal)

Note: It is not possible to use “absolutely” to modify a gradable adjective. It is used for
ungradable ones only.

The meaning of ungradable adjectives can be also intensified if you add any of the
following adverbs before it:

 Absolutely e.g. absolutely terrified, absolutely furious, absolutely brilliant.

  Quite e.g. quite amazing, quite correct, quite perfect.
 Totally e.g. totally unacceptable, totally harmless, totally destroyed.
 Utterly e.g. utterly amazed, utterly disappointed, utterly useless.
 Completely e.g. completely destroyed, completely empty, completely
incomprehensible.

In order to make ungradable adjectives weaker, you can add the following adverbs:

 Virtually e.g. virtually impossible, virtually extinct, virtually guilty.

 Practically e.g. practically empty, practically finished, practically worthless.
 Almost e.g. almost ready, almost opposite, almost dead.
 Nearly e.g. nearly empty, nearly full, nearly blind.

Finally, in the PDF reading for this part of our unit, you will find common collocations
between adverbs and adjectives that you can use. It is not compulsory that you know all of
them, but you should bare them in mind for exercises.

Comparatives and superlatives:

As we have previously mentioned, comparative and superlative are “grades” or “degrees”

that adjectives can take. Depending on whether the adjective is short, long or irregular, there are
different forms to make them. They will be summarized in the following charts:

Comparative
Short adjectives (1 syllable) - add final “-er” Short, shorter; easy, easier;
Spelling rules: happy, happier; clear, clearer
*Three letter adjectives
ending in consonant double
the last consonant. E.g.
Big, bigger.
*Adjectives ending in “y”
change it for “-ier”. E.g.
dry, drier.
Long adjectives (2 or more - add more + adjective More/less expensive, more
syllables) (positive meaning) difficult/less, more/less
- add less + adjective beautiful.
(negative meaning)
Irregular adjectives - Follow the rules Good= better; bad=worse;
far=farther/further; old= elder
(when it refers to a person´s
age)

Short adjectives (1 syllable)
Long adjectives (2 or more
syllables)
Irregular adjectives
Superlatives
- add a final the + “-est” Short, the shortest; easy, the
easiest; happy, the happiest;
clear, the clearest.
- add the most + The most expensive, the most
adjective (positive difficult, the most beautiful
meaning)
- add the least + adjective
(negative meaning)
- Follow the rules Good= the best; bad= the
worst; far= the farthest/the
furthest; old= eldest (when it
refers to a person´s age)

In a comparative sentence, two objects, or two people are compared; so we can compare
nouns or pronouns. In order to make a comparative sentence, you need to introduce a clause
starting with “than” which contains the second element.

E.g. my dog/Carlos´ dog (big) = My dog is bigger than Carlos´ (dog)

The odyssey/ The hunger games (interesting) = The odyssey is more interesting than the hunger
games

What happens in case the objects you are comparing are pronouns? There are two options:

a) I/He (short)= I am shorter than him.

b) I/ He (short)= I am shorter than he is.

In option “a” the second pronoun is used in the object form and in option “b” a verb is
added. Remember that this is possible only in the case the objects are personal pronouns.

In addition to this, if there are two adjectives which need “more” because they are in the
comparative, we only use more once and before the first element. E.g. This methodology is
more intuitive and comprehensive for students. This book is more expensive and difficult to
read than the other.

Exceptions:

The following cases are exceptions to the rules mentioned before that you should take
into account for language exercises:

a) Adjectives ending in “-ed” which consist of only one syllable and also, right, wrong and
real form the comparative using “more” and the superlative using “the most”. E.g. bored,
tired =more bored, more tired.
 b) Adjectives ending in “y”, “ly”, “ow”, “r” and “l” which consist of more than one syllable
and also common, handsome, mature, pleasant, polite, simple and stupid can take either
of the forms. E.g. Polite/politer=more polite, politest=the most polite.
c) Adjectives ending in “y” which are made negative still take “er or est”. For example:
happy, unhappy= unhappier, the unhappiest.

Making meaning stronger or weaker:

The meaning of comparatives and superlatives can also be made stronger or weaker if
you add certain expressions before them, have a look at the chart.

Comparative Superlative
Stronger Weaker Stronger Weaker
-Even -a little -by far -one of
-Very much -slightly -easily -some of
-Far -a bit
-A lot -somewhat
-Considerably
Examples Examples
Stonger Weaker Stronger Weaker
This is even more Fuel is slightly This is by far the This is one of the
difficult than the cheaper than in largest unit in the most experienced
previous topic. previous months. syllabus. writers (there may be
more)
This is far easier to This book is a bit This is easily the
understand. more interesting than worst sanitary crisis These are some of the
the previous one. in history. best books for the
Cars are considerably course (there may be
more expensive than more)
in the past.

Comparative structures:

There are a number of grammar structures that you can employ in writing to show
contrast or equality. All of them have a specific form, so please, take notes of each of them
carefully and also their specific names.

a) Combined comparison: It shows how one situation depends or will be transformed by

another one. In this case the definite article “the” has to be added before the comparative.
e.g. The longer you stay the more difficult it will be to escape. (= if you stay more, it will
be more difficult)
The easier the exam is the less demanding correction will be for the teacher. (= if the
exam is easy, it is less demanding to correct)
 The more sophisticated the object the more expensive it is. (=if it is sophisticated, it is
also more expensive)
b) Progressive comparison: It shows how a situation increases or decreases by repeating the
comparative.
e.g. As the exam was close the students got more and more anxious.
The sound became louder and louder.
Every year, the price of fuel is becoming more and more expensive.
*Note that in case the adjective is long we repeat only “more”.
c) Contrastive comparison: It shows how two related characteristics are contrasted. There
are two possible patterns for this structure.
 Use more + adjective+ than + adjective
 Use adjective+ rather than+ adjective
e.g. I am more sad than disappointed (=I am not disappointed, I am sad)
I am sad rather than disappointed
You are more cheesy than romantic. (= You are not romantic, you are cheesy)
You are cheesy rather than romantic.

There is no difference in meaning between one structure and the other. Remember that even if
the adjective is short, you need to use “more” before it.

d) Similes: It describes something by comparing it to a similar object. It is possible to use

either “as” or “like” to show this.
e.g. She is beautiful like a flower.
He is tender as a lamb.
e) Negative comparison: It is formed with not+ as/so+ adjective+ as.
e.g. These exercises are not as/so difficult as the previous ones. (=they are easier)
This book is not as/so interesting as the other one. (=it is boring)
My computer is not as/so fast as yesterday (=it is slower than yesterday)

It is also possible to:

a) Show results: In order to show results, it is possible to use several structures with no
difference in meaning but on form.
 So+ adjective+ that+ clause
E.g. The traffic was so heavy that I arrived late.
The music was so loud that I could not hear anything.
The exam was so difficult that I couldn’t solve it.
 Too+ adjective+ for someone (to do something)
E.g. The exam was too difficult for me (to do.)
The song was too difficult for children (to understand.)
 The class was too boring for the students (to stay awake)
 Too+ adjective + to do something
E.g. I could not see because it was too dark to find my glasses!
I didn’t enter because it was too late.
I didn’t rest because it was too noisy to sleep.
 (not)+ adjective+ enough + for someone (to do something)
E.g. The explanations were not clear enough for students to do the activities.
The activities were not simple enough for students.
The class was not attractive enough for students to participate.
 (not) + adjective + enough + to do something
E.g. The explanations were not clear enough to do the activities.
The activities were not simple enough to be understood.
The class was not attractive enough to participate.
b) Show equality: This can be made using the structure as+ adjective + as
E.g. This is as simple as the previous unit.
This book is as complex as the other one.

It can be made stronger using “just”.

E.g. This is just as expensive as before.

The book is just as complex as the other one.

It can be made weaker using just about, almost, nearly.

E.g. this is just about as expensive as before.

The book is almost as complex as the other one.

c) Usin “such”: They can be used to show equality or result using any of this pattern
 Such+ a+ adjective+ noun+ as or that clause

E.g. It was such a difficult exam that almost no one passed. (=showing result)

It was such noisy class as a group of young children (comparing)

That is everything for today, post your questions in the forum and have a nice day!