COMPARISON

REPEATED COMPARATIVES AND DOUBLE COMPARATIVES

Repeated comparatives describe things that are increasing or decreasing.

The birth-rate is getting lower and lower.

Fewer and fewer children are leaving school.
It’s becoming more and more difficult.
By the end of the century, couples were waiting longer and longer to marry.

FILL THE GAPS ACCORDING TO THE EXAMPLES ABOVE:

1. He gets _______________________ (boring). I can’t listen to him any longer.

2. I didn’t like this book at first, but it’s getting ________________________________(interesting)
3. My daughter’s English results are getting __________________________________(bad)
4. The boss will be angry with you. You arrive _________________________ (late) at work.
5. In spring the weather gets _______________________________________ (warm)
6. It’s time you tidied your room. It’s getting _____________________________ (messy)
7. Food is getting _______________________________ (expensive)
8. I think TV programs are getting ________________________________ (violent)
9. I find it _____________________________________________ (difficult) to see him.
10. She’s getting over her operation. She feels ________________________ (good)

Double comparatives describe a cause-and-effect process.

The more education women get, the later they marry.

The better the quality of health care (is), the higher the life expectancy (is).

What happens when you sunbathe?

The longer you are in the sun, the more tanned you get
The more sensitive your skin is, the more dangerous it is.
The earlier in the morning you sunbathe, the less dangerous it is for your skin.

1.- What happens when you practise sport? 5.- What happens if you drink too much?

2.- What happens when you eat too much? 6.- What happens if you can’t sleep?

3.- What happens when you have exams? 7.- What happens if you’ve got a lot of work?

4.- What happens if you are waiting for somebody? 8.- What happens if it rains?
 Double Comparatives 1

Choose one of the following adjectives and put it into the correct form before placing it in a space in the sentences.

better less
loud happy
hot merry
probable late
small safe
better fast
more cheap
rich more
big hard

1. The __________ you study for these exams, the __________ you will do.

2. She doesn't really like vodka, so the __________ a bottle you find, the __________ it will be for us.

3. My neighbour is driving me mad! It seems that the __________ it is at night, the __________ he plays his music!

4. He spent a year in India and loves spicy food. The __________ the food is, the __________ he likes it.

5. Of course you can come to the party. The __________ the __________.

6. She will be really angry about that vase being broken! The __________ she knows about it, the ___________.

7. He has 6 large dogs to protect his house. The __________ the dog, the __________ he feels.

8. Earning money has always been the thing that pleases him most. The _________ he becomes, the ________ he is.

9. You must drive slower in built up areas. The __________ you drive in the city, the __________ it is that you will
have an accident.

DOUBLE COMPARATIVE 2

As I get older, I become more irritable I usually eat very little and I get fat
THE OLDER I get, THE MORE IRRITABLE I become THE LESS I eat, THE FATTER I get

1.- If a child is well brought up, he will behave well 10.- If the students are clever, they’re easy to teach

2.- If you always drive so fast, you’re likely to have
an accident
3.- If you work so little, you’ll have low marks in your
exams
4.- If you study hard, you’ll find exam quite easy
5.- I waited for him for a long time and I was getting
worried
6.- I practised a lot of sport and I became fit
11.- It’s better if you come back soon
12.- It’ll be worse if you pay him a lot of attention
13.- If you work in a pleasant atmosphere, you won’t
be stressed
14.- If you are careful when driving, you’ll have few
accidents
15.- He earns a lot of money, but his wife is always
complaining

7.- I explained it to him a lot of times and he couldn’t 16.- If you do a lot of exercises, you’ll learn the
understand at all subject well

8.- How cold! I put on a lot of clothes and I’m still 17.- I listened to his story for a long time and I was
cold more and more surprised

9.- I’ve known him for a long time, but I still don’t like 18.- If you live far from your school, you’ll have to get
him up early
 DOUBLE COMPARATIVE 3

I feel better and better when the weather is warm

The warmer the weather, the better I feel

1. I like it more when things are dangerous.

2. As Mark is getting old, he looks more and more like his grandfather.

3. When I met him I didn’t like him at all but I do, now that I know him better.

4. She had to wait for a long time and she got very impatient.

5. If a chicken is old, it’s rather tough.

6. When a student is careful, he makes very few mistakes.

7. A diamond is very expensive if it’s perfect.

8. When the plums are ripen, they are very sweet.

9. If you drink a lot of coffee, you’ll get more and more nervous.

10. When people eat very quickly, there is a high chance of indigestion.

11. Houses close to the centre are very expensive.

12. When people are young, they learn very quickly.

13. If we leave early, the roads will be clear.

14. A big supermarket usually has a very wide choice.

15. when the weather is hot the beaches get crowded.

16. I’m trying to work this out, but I’m more and more confused.
 REVIEW ON ALL COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES

1.- Oil and water don’t mix very easily because water isn’t ..............……………................ oil.
(thick)

2.- Everyone enjoys listening to him. He tells ............………..................... stories you’ve ever
heard. (amusing)

3.- Health is a question of diet. ......................…............ food you eat, .................…...........

you are. (good/healthy)

4.- Nobody wants to go out with him. He’s ...............……............................ person I’ve ever
known. (boring)

5.- You should talk to him .................…............ possible. ..................……............ you wait,
.................................... (soon/long/bad)

6.- The exam turned out to be ....................…………………………................ we had thought.

(easy)

7.- He’s an experienced climber. He’s climbed some of ............……….....................mountains

in the world. (high)

8.- I don’t know what he does. ..............…................ he gets, ..............……….....................

he looks. (old/young)

9.- If you do ...........................………...... exercise, you’ll get ....………………..........................

(much/fit)

10.- A - I won’t invite ........…….................... people, otherwise there won’t be enough room
in the dining-room. (many)
B - Yes, but you must take into account that ..............................………....... people you
invite, ...................…………….............. presents you will get. (many/many)

11.- You haven’t done this exam ...........………...................... you usually do. I think you must
study ................................………......... next time.
(well/hard)

12.- He never stops. He’s ............................………............ person in the office.

(hard-working)

13.- Minor roads have ..........................………........ traffic but they are ..........…...................
and ..................................………........... motorways.
(little/slow/dangerous)

14.- ................................ I think about the problem, ...................………................ it seems

to me to solve. (much/difficult)

15.- Excuse me, can you tell me where ..........……………..................... post office is?
(near)

16.- His new car is ............……................ and ..............……............... his old one. Obviously,
it is .......................……………...... . It is ...................……….............. model in the market.
(large/fast/expensive/new)
PAGE 1
REPEATED COMPARATIVES
1. more and more boring
2. more and more interesting
3. worse and worse
4. later and later
5. warmer and warmer
6. messier and messier
7. more and more expensive
8. more and more violent
9. more and more difficult
10. better and better

DOUBLE COMPARATIVES
(IDEAS)

1. the more sport you practise, the fitter you get

2. the more you eat, the fatter you get
3. the more I study, the better marks I’ll get in the exam
4. the longer I wait, the more impatient I get
5. the more I drink, the less self-control I have
6. the less I sleep, the more tired I am the following day
7. the more work I have, the longer I have to work
8. the more it rains, the better crops they get

PAGE 2
DOUBLE COMPARATIVES 1
1. harder - better
2. smaller - cheaper
3. later - louder
4. hotter - more
5. more - merrier
6. less - better
7. bigger - safer
8. richer - happier
9. faster - more probable

DOUBLE COMPARATIVES 2

1. The better a child is brought up, the better he behaves

2. The faster you drive, the more likely you are to have an accident
3. The less you work, the lower marks you’ll have in your exam
4. The harder you study, the easier you’ll find exams
5. The longer I waited for him, the more worried I got
6. The more sport I practised, the fitter I got
7. The more I explained it to him, the less he understood
8. The more clothes I put on, the colder I am
9. The longer I know him, the less I like hium
10. The cleverer the students are, the easier it is to teach them
11. The sooner you come, the better
12. The more attention you pay to him, the worse
13. The more pleasant atmosphere you work in, the less stressed you’ll be
14. The more careful you are when driving, the fewer accidents you’ll have
15. The more money he earns, the more his wife complains
16. The more exercises you do, the better you’ll learn the subject
17. The longer I listened to his story, the more surprise I was
18. The farther from your school you live, the earlier you-ll have to get
PAGE 3

DOUBLE COMPARATIVES 3
1. The more dangerous things are, the more I like it
2. The older Mark gets, the more he looks like his grandfather
3. The more I get to know him, the more I like him
4. The longer she waited, the more impatient she got
5. The older a chicken is, the tougher
6. The more careful a student is, the fewer mistakes he makes
7. The more perfect a diamond is, the more expensive
8. the more ripen plums are, the sweeter
9. The more coffee you drink, the more nervous you get
10. The more quickly people eat, the higher chance of indigestion they have
11. the closer to the centre a house is, the more expensive
12. The younger people are, the more quickly they learn
13. The earlier we leave, the clearer the roads will be
14. ´The bigger a supermarket, the wider choice it has
15. The hotter the weather is, the more crowded the beaches get
16. The more I try to work this out, the more confused I get

PAGE 4

REVIEW ON ALL COMPARATIVES

1. as thick as
2. the most amusing
3. the better the healthier
4. the most boring
5. as soon as the longer the worse
6. easier than
7. the highest
8. the older the younger
9. more fitter
10. more the more the more
11. as well as harder
12. the most hardworking
13. less slower more dangerous
14. the more the more difficult
15. the nearest
16. larger faster than more expensive the newest