Change the degrees of comparison without

changing the meaning

Change the degrees of comparison without changing the meaning.
An example is given below.

 Mango is the sweetest of all fruits.

 Mango is sweeter than any other fruit.
 No other fruit is as sweet as mango.
1. Wolfram is one of the rarest minerals.

2. Lead is the heaviest of all metals.

3. Samudra Gupta was one of the greatest of all Indian Kings.

4. Janaki is the prettiest girl in my class.

5. Dogs are more faithful than all other animals.

6. Salomi is the richest woman in this town.

7. Greenland is the largest island.

8. James is one of the most industrious boys in the class.

9. Tennyson is one of the greatest poets in English.

Answers
1. Wolfram is one of the rarest minerals. / Few other minerals are as rare as
Wolfram. / Wolfram is rarer than most other minerals.

2. Lead is the heaviest of all metals. / Lead is heavier than any other metal. /
No other metal is as heavy as lead.
3. Samudra Gupta was one of the greatest of all Indian Kings. / Samudra
Gupta was greater than most other Indian Kings. / Few other Indian Kings
were as great as Samudra Gupta.

4. Janaki is the prettiest girl in my class. / Janaki is prettier than any other girl
in my class. / No other girl in my class is as pretty as Janaki.

5. Dogs are more faithful than all other animals. / Dogs are the most faithful of
all animals. / No other animals are as faithful as dogs.

6. Salomi is the richest woman in this town. / Salomi is richer than any other
woman in this town. / No other woman in this town is as rich as Salomi.

7. Greenland is the largest island. / Greenland is larger than any other island. /
No other island is as large as Greenland.

8. James is one of the most industrious boys in the class. / Few other boys in
the class are as industrious as James. / James is more industrious than most
other boys in the class.

9. Tennyson is one of the greatest poets in English. / Few other poets in

English are as great as Tennyson. / Tennyson is greater than most other
poets in English.

Degrees Of Comparison Worksheet

English adjectives and adverbs recognize three degrees – the positive, the
comparative and the superlative. It is usually possible to express the same
idea using any of these forms. Note that the structures are different.
Study the sentence given below.

 Tiruvalluvar is the greatest of Tamil poets.

This sentence uses the superlative adjective greatest. We can express the
same idea using comparative and positive adjectives.
  Tiruvalluvar is greater than any other Tamil poet.
Note the use of the phrase any other. It is very important because the
meaning of the sentence would change drastically if we do not use it. Note
also the use of the singular noun after any other.
Study the sentence given below.

 Tiruvallvar is greater than Tamil poets.

The sentence given above makes a comparison between Tiruvalluvar and
Tamil poets and states that he is greater. Actually Tiruvalluvar is also a Tamil
poet. To express that idea we have to use the phrase any other.
Now let’s try to express the same idea using a positive adjective.

 No other Tamil poet is as great as Tiruvalluvar.

Note the use of the phrase no other.
Another example is given below.

 Kamban is one of the greatest of Tamil poets.

While changing this sentence into other degrees of comparison, you have to
consider the following points.

The sentence given above does not state that Kamban is the greatest Tamil
poet. It merely states that he is one of the greatest. That means some Tamil
poets are just as good as him, while most others are not so good. In this case,
we cannot use the phrase any other. Instead we use the expression most
other.
 Kamban is greater than most other Tamil poets. (Note the use of the
plural noun after most other.)
Now let’s express the same idea using the positive degree.

 Very few Tamil poets are as great as Kamban.

Note the use of the phrase very few. It implies that some poets are just as
great as Kamban but most aren’t.
Another example is given below.

 He is the cleverest boy in the class. (Superlative)

 He is cleverer than any other boy in the class. (Comparative)
 No other boy in the class is as clever as him. (Positive)
Degrees of comparison worksheet
Rewrite the following sentences using the other degrees of comparison.

1. Swimming is the best kind of exercise.

2. Lead is heavier than any other metal.

3. Shakespeare is greater than any other English playwright.

4. China is one of the largest countries in the world.

Answers
1. Swimming is better than any other kind of exercise. / No other kind of
exercise is as good as swimming.
2. Lead is the heaviest of all metals. / No other metal is as heavy as lead.
3. Shakespeare is the greatest of all English playwrights. / No other English
playwright is as great as Shakespeare.
4. China is larger than most other countries in the world. / Very few countries
in the world are as large as China.

Degrees Of Comparison Worksheet For

Class 7
BY MANJUSHA NAMBIAR · APRIL 14, 2020
Read the following sentences.

 Ram is clever. Shyam is cleverer.

We can combine these two sentences using a comparative structure.

 Ram is not as clever as Shyam. (Here we make a comparison between

Ram and Shyam using a positive adjective.)
 Shyam is cleverer than Ram. (Here we make a comparison between
Ram and Shyam using a comparative adjective.)
More examples are given below.
 She is rich. Her friends are richer.
 She is not as rich as her friends. / Her friends are richer than her.
 Apples are sweet. Mangoes are sweeter.
 Apples are not as sweet as mangoes. / Mangoes are sweeter
than apples.
Exercise
Make comparisons using positive and comparative adjectives.

1. Silver is a precious metal. Gold is more precious.

2. The deer can run fast. The cheetah can run faster.

3. Ramya can sing well. Kavya can sing better.

4. Hyderabad is hot. Chennai is hotter.

5. A digital camera is expensive. A DSLR camera is more expensive.

Answers
1. Silver is not as precious as gold. / Gold is more precious than silver.

2. The deer cannot run as fast as the cheetah. The cheetah can run faster
than the deer.

3. Ramya cannot sing as well as Kavya. / Kavya can sing better than Ramya.

4. Hyderabad is not as hot as Chennai. / Chennai is hotter than Hyderabad.

5. A digital camera is not as expensive as a DSLR camera. / A DSLR camera

is more expensive than a digital camera.