I am reading higher than normal alcohol levels in your bloodstream, sir. listen to the pronunciation “higher than normal” refers to the alcohol levels in the bloodstream being above the standard or average range. This could be due to recent consumption of alcohol. The exact range for “normal” can vary, but typically, a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08% is considered legally impaired in […]
comparative + THAN + adjective Read More »
In the English Vocabulary Profile at B2: to make matters worse = to make a situation more difficult, unpleasant, etc. If the most common example of to-infinitive + noun + comparative is listed at B2, then it would make sense that other less common should also be considered as B2. The closest form which is clearly
to-infinitive + noun phrase + comparative Read More »
In the English Vocabulary Profile, listed at B1 is: get worse = to become more ill, unpleasant, difficult, severe, etc. than before For example: But if this thing gets worse, we must close. listen There is no English Grammar Profile point that specifically focuses on GET + comparative A search in NOW corpus for: GET _JJR 1 GET WORSE 42282 2 GETTING
Students often ask me “what is the comparative of much?” I am guessing that they want to know about ‘much’ as an adverb meaning ‘nearly’ or ‘approximately’. (It has many forms) In which case, I would say that ‘more’ is the comparative of ‘much’. And for that matter, the superlative is ‘most’. For example: They
comparative of much Read More »
‘Any’ can be used as an adverb to mean ‘at all’ or ‘in some degree’. Here are expert examples: We‘re not gonna discuss it here any further. Keep The Change You‘re not at university any longer. listen How would that end any differently than last time? Captain America In the English Vocabulary Profile, ‘any’ is listed as ADVERB B1 used in questions and negatives to emphasize a comparative adjective or adverb Do you feel any better?
A simple comparison in English is “She is more important than you.” One way to make comparisons more complex is to increase the number of words between ‘more’ and ‘than.’ This could include nouns or adjectives followed by non-finite clauses such as in the following EXPERT EXAMPLES: Today, billions of citizens have more tools, more access to information, more capacity to influence than ever before. TED It‘s harder to compose than to play. TLC native
MORE * THAN (complex comparisions) Read More »
Comparative clauses using ‘be’ + ‘like’ + a noun phrase are used to draw similarities between two things. The structure is typically: subject + be + like + noun/pronoun. For example, in the sentence “John is like a lion”, John is being compared to a lion, suggesting that he has similar qualities or characteristics. This structure can also be used with negation or adverbs followed by an infinitive clause, as in “It would be just like him to forget his keys at home”, indicating that forgetting his keys would be typical behavior for him. The phrase “I was like” is used colloquially to express a reaction or feeling. For instance, “When I saw the test results, I was like, ‘I can’t believe I aced it!’” expresses surprise and disbelief. This structure is common in English and can be found in various forms in different contexts.
BE + like + NOUN PHRASE Read More »
Comparatives adjectives can be used to compare two things. In the English Grammar Profile, A2 point 29 in the category of ADJECTIVES is defined: form comparative adjectives with adjectives of two syllables ending in ‘-y’ by changing the ‘y’ to an ‘i’ and adding ‘-er’ For example: easy → easier I’m asking you to consider making this decision a little easier. listen to
comparative adjective + IER Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 63 in the category of PRONOUNS is defined as: possessive pronouns ‘mine’ and ‘yours’, with singular reference, in comparative clauses after ‘(not) as … as’. *The following example does not have a singular reference, and the use of ‘yours’ is A2 in the English Vocabulary Profile. They‘re not as complicated as
as * as + mine | yours Read More »
CHEAPER THAN BUYING | BETTER THAN GETTING | EASIER THAN TRYING
comparative adjective + THAN + verb-ING Read More »
B1 CLAUSES | comparatives |
‘so’ + adjective + ‘that’ clause.
English Grammar Profile
SO + adjective + THAT clause Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 69 in the category of CLAUSES/comparatives is defined as: ‘(not) as’ + adjective/adverb + ‘as’ to introduce a clause (often with a substitute auxiliary verb) to talk about two things being equal or unequal in some way. *note that the EGP examples also include ‘as much as’ where
as + ADJECTIVE | ADVERB + as + CLAUSE Read More »
B1: CLAUSES | comparatives
In the English Grammar Profile, point 68 is defined as: ‘TOO’ + adjective + ‘to’-infinitive.
(not) too + ADJECTIVE | ADVERB + to INFINITIVE Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 52 in the category of CLAUSES/comparatives is defined as: THE SAME’ (+ NOUN) + ‘AS’ + PRONOUN OR NOUN Here is an example without a noun after ‘the same’: The Mary Lou is actually the same as the Mary Jane. listen A search in iWeb for: the same _N as _N *Note that if there is
B1 = ‘than’ + a finite clause forming the second part of comparison after a comparative adjective
English Grammar Profile, point 56 in the category of CLAUSES.
comparative adjective + THAN + finite clause Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 55 in the category of CLAUSES/comparatives is defined as: linking verbs + ‘like’ or ‘similar to’. EXPERT EXAMPLE: They taste similar to regular bulb onions, but they‘re milder. tastingtable.com PELIC STUDENT EXAMPLE He looks like a cute turtle. Korean, Male, Level 2 A search in iWeb for: look* like * * * 1 LOOKS LIKE THIS: 14720 2 LOOK LIKE
LINKING VERB + like | similar to + NOUN PHRASE Read More »
Point 50 at B1 in the English Grammar Profile in the category of ADJECTIVES is defined as: ‘A (LITTLE) BIT’ to modify comparative adjectives used predicatively after a verb, usually ‘be’ However, ‘a little bit’ is considered as B2 in the EVP. And this B1 point also clashes completely with the C1 grammar point explained
a (little) bit + COMPARATIVE Read More »
In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 47 in Adjectives is defined as: ‘and’ to repeat a comparative adjective to indicate change over time, usually after ‘become’ or ‘get’ However, the English Vocabulary Profile lists ‘worse and worse‘ at B2 used to emphasize how unpleasant, difficult, severe, etc. something is becoming A search in iWeb corpus: _V
comparative AND comparative Read More »
In this post, we explore ‘even + comparative’ which is used to emphasize qualities. In the English Grammar Profile, B1 point 40 in ADJECTIVES is defined as: ‘even’ to modify and intensify comparative adjectives used predicatively after a verb, usually ‘be’ and ‘get’. We did an iWeb search for even _JJ and highlighted the A2 comparative adjectives:
EVEN + comparative adjective Read More »
