Some things are good and some are bad. But some things are even better than that…and others worse. Then there are the ones that are the best…or the worst. How do we know the difference? We use Comparatives and Superlatives. English has two ways to relate objects, ranking them according to some (often unspecified) scale in quality, quantity, or degree. The Comparative balances one item against only one other. The Superlative evaluates one item against a bunch of others. Remember to use the Comparative if you have only two things to compare.
Two Ways to Form Comparisons
There are two constructions for comparing: Morphological and Syntactic. In the morphological system, we morph (or change) a word. In the Syntactic, we use syntax (the rules of sentence construction) to show the level of comparison. The morphological comparison is usually used with short words of Anglo-Saxon derivation by adding ‘er’ for the comparative and ‘est’ for the superlative, but there are some irregular forms to consider as well. The positive word ‘good’ becomes ‘better’ or ‘best’ and the negative word ‘bad’ becomes ‘worse’ and ‘worst’, so it still seems to follow a pattern.
Using the syntactical technique, we would add words instead of changing them to make the comparison, and the words we usually add are ‘more’ and ‘most’ for an increasing attribute (or ‘less’ and ‘least’ for a decreasing one). This method is often used for longer words, or words of French or Latin origin. For example, when ‘beautiful’ grows, it becomes ‘more beautiful’ and ‘most beautiful’. On the other side, when ‘wide-awake’ is reduced, it becomes ‘less wide-awake’ and ‘least wide-awake’.
Null Comparatives
You’ll sometimes see a Comparative used with only ONE item…often in adverts or political comments. What is being compared isn’t always clear…and that seems to be the intention. Consider these statements:
- Our bread is softer.
- The display is sharper.
- We give you more.
- More doctors recommend it.
The bread is softer than what? A rock? Of course it is, and the display is sharper than what? Last year’s model? Probably. They give you more than…the other guys? Maybe so. It is recommended by more doctors than sewer workers? I would hope so, whatever it is!
These Null Comparatives are intentionally used to convince us that something is better, trying to get us to buy (or buy into) whatever it is that they are selling. Be careful to avoid such empty comparisons in your writing…even if you are writing advert copy.
Comparing Absolutes
Another thing to watch out for is trying to compare absolutes—something that is either all the way on or all the way off. If one of the buckets is full, it can’t be fuller. If another one is empty, it can’t be the emptiest. There is only one unique gem, so there can’t be a more unique gem. And a funny one is trying to consider one lady to be less pregnant than another—it just doesn’t work.