Degrees of Comparison Quiz | Intermediate Level | 20 Questions & Answers with Explanations

Since "anyone in the office" would include her, "else" must be added after "anyone" to correctly exclude her from the comparison group.

Memory hook: "anyone/anybody/anything" pair with "else," not "other" — anyone else in the office.

Since Sachin himself is a player in India, comparing him to "any player in India" illogically includes himself in the comparison group, so "other" must be added to exclude him.

Memory hook: ask if the subject belongs to the group being compared to — if yes, add "other" — any other player.

"Elder" is reserved for stating family relationships and can never be followed by "than," so a direct comparison requires "older" instead, even when both people are related.

Memory hook: elder = relationship only, no "than"; older = comparison with "than" — older than his friend.

"Latter" refers specifically to the second of two things just mentioned, while "later" relates to time, so "the latter" correctly picks out the second plan here.

Memory hook: latter = second of two mentioned; later = relating to time — of the two, the latter.

"Farther" is used for physical distance, as in the distance to the market here, while "further" is reserved for additional or figurative meaning in standard exam usage.

Memory hook: farther = physical distance; further = additional/figurative — the market is farther.

"Further" is correct here because the sentence refers to additional (figurative) proof, not physical distance, which is the domain reserved for "farther."

Memory hook: additional or figurative meaning always takes "further" — no further proof.

"Between the two sisters" signals exactly two people, so the comparative degree with "the" ("the more intelligent") is required, not the superlative "the most intelligent."

Memory hook: "between the two" always triggers the comparative, never the superlative — the more intelligent.

"As...as" comparisons always require the positive (base) form of the adjective, so "as large as" is correct, not "as larger as," which incorrectly uses the comparative form inside this structure.

Memory hook: "as...as" never allows "-er" or "-est" forms — as large as, never as larger as.

"Every" always takes a singular noun, so "every other student" is correct, not "every other students," even though the overall comparison involves many students collectively.

Memory hook: "every" always pairs with a singular noun — every other student, not students.

The first clause correctly compares iron to "any other metal" (excluding itself), while the second clause compares exactly two metals ("of the two"), which requires the comparative "the more useful," not the superlative.

Memory hook: check each clause separately — any other metal (comparative + other), of the two (comparative, not superlative).

Since Everest is being singled out as the top mountain among all mountains in the world (a group of far more than two), the superlative form with "the" is required, making "the highest" correct.

Memory hook: singling out one from a large group always needs "the" plus the superlative — the highest mountain.

The structure "one of the + superlative + plural noun" requires both "the" before the superlative and a plural noun after it, making "the largest cities" correct rather than the singular "city."

Memory hook: "one of the" always pairs with a superlative and a plural noun — one of the largest cities.

"Elder" correctly states the family relationship ("my elder brother") without "than," while "older than me" correctly uses the comparative form since it's followed directly by "than."

Memory hook: relationship phrase keeps "elder," comparison with "than" switches to "older" — my elder brother is older than me.

In negative "not as...as" comparisons, just like positive "as...as" comparisons, the adjective must remain in its positive (base) form — "cold," not "colder" or "coldest."

Memory hook: negative "as...as" also demands the base form — not as cold as, never not as colder as.

"Of the three sisters" signals a group of three, which requires the superlative degree ("the most intelligent"), not the comparative, which is reserved strictly for groups of exactly two.

Memory hook: three or more always needs the superlative — of the three sisters, the most intelligent.

Since Dhoni is himself a captain in cricket, "any captain in cricket" would illogically include him, so "other" must be added to correctly exclude him from the comparison group.

Memory hook: check if the subject fits the category being compared to — Dhoni is a captain, so any other captain is needed.

"Dangerous" is a longer adjective, so its comparative form correctly uses "more" rather than an "-er" ending, and the comparison must directly follow "than" with a matching noun phrase, not an infinitive structure.

Memory hook: match the structure on both sides of "than" — the road versus the highway, not "to take."

 "Heavy" ends in "-y" preceded by a consonant, so its comparative form changes "y" to "i" and adds "-er," giving "heavier" — combining this with "more" would create an incorrect double comparative.

Memory hook: "-y" adjectives become "-ier," and that's already the full comparative — heavier, not more heavier.

"Happy" forms its comparative by changing "y" to "i" and adding "-er" to give "happier," and adding "more" in front of this already-complete comparative form creates a double comparative error.

Memory hook: "-ier" adjectives don't need "more" in front — happier alone is correct.

"Farthest," relating to physical distance, correctly takes the superlative form here since it singles out one point among all possible points, matching the "farther" (not "further") sense of physical distance.

Memory hook: physical distance uses farther/farthest, not further/furthest — the farthest point.