Skill 28: USE COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES CORRECTLY
Another problem with the comparative and superlative on the TOEFL test is that they can be used incorrectly. The comparative and superlative have different uses, and you should understand these different uses to answer such questions correctly. The comparative is used to compare two equal things.
• The history class is larger than the math class.
• Mary is more intelligent than Sue.
In the first example “the history class” is being compared with “the math class”. In the second example, “Mary” is being compared with “Sue”.
The superlative is used when there are more than items to compare and you want to show the one that is the best, the biggest, or in some way the most outstanding.
• The history class is the largest in the school.
• Mary is the most intelligent of all the students in the class.
In the first example “the history class” is compared with "all the other classes in the school, and the history class is larger than each of the other classes. In the second example, “Mary” is compared with all the other students in the class, and “Mary” is more intelligent than each of the other students.
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