English for 1st Year Students: Geography and Russia (часть 2)

Grammar: Degrees of Comparison

• We use the comparative degree to compare one person with another. We often use THAN after a comparative.
• We use the superlative degree to compare one person or thing with more than one of the same group. We often use OF or IN after a superlative.

Regular Comparative and Superlative Forms

adjectives	positive	comparative	superlative
of one syllable add –(e)r/-(e)st	cold, big, safe	colder than, bigger than, safer than	the coldest (of/in), the biggest (of/in), the safest (of/in)
of two syllables ending in –ly,-y,-w	busy, shallow	busier than, shallower than	the busiest (of/in), the shallowest (of/in)
of two or more syllables take more/most	famous, incredible	more famous than, more incredible than	the most famous (of/in), the most incredible (of/in)

Certain adjectives form their comparative and superlative in both ways: clever, common, cruel, friendly, gentle, narrow, pleasant, polite, shallow, simple, stupid, quiet.

Exceptions

positive	comparative	superlative
good	better	the best
bad	worse	the worst
little	less	the least
many/much	more	the most
far	farther/further	the farthest/furthest

Grammar Exercises

1. In the text (pp. 4-5), underline all the adjectives. Define the degree of comparison.

2. Open the brackets with the suitable degree of comparison.

• a) Greenland is (large) island in the world.
• b) Travelling by plane is (fast) than travelling by train.
• c) Boracay Island in the Philippines has (good) beaches I have ever seen.
• d) Jamaica is (sunny) than Norway.
• e) Fjordland in New Zealand is (wet) place in the world.
• f) Rain in the wet season is (heavy) than during the rest of the year.
• g) Easter Island is (interesting) island I have ever visited.
• h) A holiday in Thailand is (exciting) than a holiday in Spain.
• i) Santa Cruz is the second (large) island in the Galapagos.
• j) The Galapagos are one of (expensive) places in the world to visit.

3. 10 facts about the United States

Fill in the gaps with the adjectives from the box below. Choose the right degree of comparison.

1. It has a (1)_______________ history compared to other world nations.
2. The (2)_______________ state is Rhode Island with an area of just 1,545 square miles (4,002 sq km). By contrast the (3)_______________ state by area is Alaska with 663,268 square miles (1,717,854 sq km).
3. Alaska has the (4)_______________ coastline in the United States at 6,640 miles (10,686 km).
4. Bristlecone pine trees, the world’s (5)_______________ living things, are found in the western United States in California.
5. The west coast has a (6)_______________ climate than the interior because the ocean is near, whereas places like Arizona and Nevada are very hot and dry.
6. Although English is the (7)_______________ language used in the U.S. and is the language used in government, the country has no official language.
7. The (8)_______________ mountain in the world is located in the United States. Mauna Kea, located in Hawaii, is over 32,000 feet (10,000 meters) high, (9)_______________ than Mount Everest (29,028 feet or 8,848 meters).
8. The (10)_______________ temperature ever recorded in the United States was at Prospect Creek, Alaska on January 23, 1971. The temperature was -80°F (-62°C).
9. The (11)_______________ temperature recorded in the United States (and in North America) was in Death Valley, California on July 10, 1913. The temperature measured 134°F (56°C).
10. The (12)_______________ lake in the U.S. is Crater Lake (1,932 feet or 589 m) located in Oregon.

4. Comparative Analysis

Read the fact files of Russia and Chile and write sentences comparing these two countries.

Russian Federation	Republic of Chile
Size: 6,562,115 sq miles	Size: 292,258 sq miles
Population: 141,960,000	Population: 15,980,912
Capital: Moscow	Capital: Santiago
Language: Russian	Language: Spanish
Currency: Russian ruble	Currency: Chilean peso
Religion: Orthodox 70.2%	Religion: Catholic 89%
Literacy: 98%	Literacy: 96.2%
Climate: Freezing winters	Climate: Desert/Mild/Cool