Comparative Adverbs | Adverb - EnglishLearningNotes

One of the jobs of an adverb is to modify a verb action, for example:

Joe ran fast.

If we want to compare one verb action with another, we can use a comparative adverb, for example:

Joe ran fast, but Mary came first because she ran faster.

We use comparative adverbs when talking about two actions (not three or more actions). Comparison is always between TWO things.

How do we Make Comparative Adverbs?

There are three basic ways to make or "form" a comparative adverb:

1. One-syllable adverbs: add -er

If an adverb has only one syllable, we usually just add -er to make it comparative: fast → faster. Here are some examples:

adverb	comparative adverb
fast	faster
hard	harder
high	higher
late	later
long	longer
low	lower
wide	wider

Note that most one-syllable adverbs have the same form as their equivalent adjectives . Don't let this confuse you. For example:

	positive	comparative
adjective	a fast car	a faster car
adverb	he drives fast	he drives faster

2. Two-syllable adverbs: use more

When an adverb has two or more syllables (like all -ly adverbs), we can make it comparative by adding more in front: quickly → more quickly. Look at these examples:

adverb	comparative adverb
carefully	more carefully
efficiently	more efficiently
happily	more happily
horribly	more horribly
often	more often
quickly	more quickly
recently	more recently
slowly	more slowly
sadly	more sadly
strangely	more strangely

We can also use less in place of more to suggest a reduction in the action. Look at these examples:

sentence	for example
She visits often.	once a week
Now she visits more often . ↑	once a day
Now she visits less often . ↓	once a month

3. Irregular Adverbs

A few adverbs have irregular form, for example:

adverb	comparative adverb
badly	worse
early	earlier
far	further/farther
little	less
much	more
well	better

Comparative Adverbs with Informal Forms

Note that a few adverbs have a formal ("correct") form with -ly and an informal form without -ly . The same is then true of their comparative forms. Although you may hear some native speakers using the informal form in speech, it is best avoided in formal situations and examinations. The most common examples are:

adverb	comparative adverb
cheap/cheaply	cheaper/more cheaply
loud/loudly	louder/more loudly
quick/quickly	quicker/more quickly
slow/slowly	slower/more slowly

Note that a few adverbs have NO comparative form, for example:
again, first
daily, yesterday
here, there
now, then
never, sometimes

How do we Use Comparative Adverbs?

Now that you know how to make comparative adverbs, let's see how to use them. Look at these examples. Notice that we may use more to suggest an increase in the action and less to suggest a decrease in the action. Notice also that the comparative adverb is often followed by than:

Trains go fast but planes go faster.
Planes go faster than trains.
Trains don't go faster than planes.
Trains go more slowly than planes.
Planes go less slowly than trains.
Joe won because he played better than Jane played.
Joe won because he played better than Jane.
Joe won because he played better.
Did cities grow more quickly after the Industrial Revolution?
He hit the ball more powerfully than his competitor.
As we get older we remember things less easily.
Could you talk a bit more quietly please?
Could you talk a bit less loudly please?
I can't hear you. Please speak louder/ more loudly.

Although we use comparative adverbs when talking about two actions, in fact one or both of the actions may be a group of actions.

The planet Mercury revolves around the sun faster than all the other planets.

Here, we are talking about eight planets, but we are still comparing one action (Mercury's) to one other action (that of all the other planets).

sources : Original Link