Modifying comparatives

Modifying comparatives

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Use: comparative + and + comparative when you want to highlight an increase in something.Ex. The kid was shouting louder and louder (= Il bambino gridava sempre più forte). Ex. The course is getting more and more interesting (= Il corso sta diventando sempre più interessante).

Use: the + comparative + the + comparative to express the idea that two changes are connected (they are somehow parallel).Ex. The older you get, the wiser you become (= Più invecchi, più diventi saggio). Ex. The older the car, the more expensive it is to maintain it (= Più l'auto è vecchia, più è costoso mantenerla).

Use: less + and + less if something becomes gradually smaller in amount or happens less often.Ex. There were less and less clients in that bar. (= C'erano sempre meno clienti in quel bar). Ex. They spend less and less time together. (= Trascorrono sempre meno tempo insieme).

To emphasise comparatives use:- much - far/way + comparative - a lot Ex. William Shakespeare was much younger than his wife. Ex. Rent is far more expensive than 5 years ago. Ex. A deer is a lot bigger than a fox.

You can also use: - even - rather - any/no to emphasise comparatives. Ex. I think we can do even better. (Penso che possiamo fare ancora meglio) Ex. The problem is rather more complicated than we expected (= Il problema è molto più complesso di quanto ci aspettavamo). Ex. We must know your decision no later than next week. (Dobbiamo sapere la tua decisione non più tardi della prossima settimana).

To highlight a little increase/decrease use: - a bit - slightly - a little Ex. That exercise was a bit easier than the previous one. (Quell'esercizio era un po'' più semplice di quello precedente). Ex. He drove a little less prudently than he usually did. (= Guidava un po' meno prudentemente di ciò che era solito fare). Ex. Melbourne is slightly cheaper than Sydney (= Melbourne è leggermente più economica di Sydney).

To emphasise superlatives use: - by far Ex. She is by far the most talented person I know. (= Lei è di gran lunga la persona più talentuosa che io conosca).

Extra modifiers you can use to modify adjectives or adverbs: - really - completely - absolutely - entirely - extremely - incredibly - fairly - hardly - quite - rather ... ATTENTION! These modifiers are used before the adjective/adverb Ex. The human mind is incredibly powerful. Ex. I can hardly wait to see you.

Linkers of Manners(like/as)

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LIKE --> PREPOSITION (= COME in Italian) - Use this preposition to express similarity between people or objects. Follow this rule: LIKE + NOUN Ex. I would love to visit cold countries, like Canada or Iceland. ATTENTION! Like can also be followed by a pronoun/ - ing form. Ex. I've bought a dress like yours. Ex. It's like talking to a brick wall.

AS --> CONJUNCTION (= COME in Italian) - Use "as" to compare similar situations or actions Ex. He studied English literature as his brother did 5 years ago. - "as" can introduce a clause. Ex. It's not the same as it was. - it can be used when we talk about jobs. Ex. She worked as a nurse. - it can express the function of something/someone (= IN QUALITA' DI in Italian) Ex. She sings as a soprano.

Let's put theory into practice:modifiers of comparatives as/like contrast