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8B Grammar

Compare friends

Unit 8

I CAN use comparatives
I CAN compare people

Grammar

11 cards

Comparatives — comparing two people

When we want to compare two people or two things, we use comparative adjectives. We always use them with the word than at the end of the sentence. For example, we say "Anna is taller than Mark." We do NOT say "Anna is taller of Mark."

There are three main patterns in English (UK). It is important to learn all of them because we use comparatives every day when we talk about our friends.

Pattern 1: short adjectives (one syllable) — add -er to the end of the word. For example, tall becomes taller, short becomes shorter, old becomes older, and young becomes younger. Adjectives ending in -e only add -r (nice → nicer).

Pattern 2: long adjectives (two syllables or more) — use the word more before the adjective. We do NOT add -er. For example, friendly becomes more friendly, serious becomes more serious, intelligent becomes more intelligent, and hardworking becomes more hardworking.

Pattern 3: irregular adjectives — these are special. We do not follow the rules. The most common are good → better, bad → worse, and far → farther. We need to learn these by heart.

The structure

All three patterns use the same sentence structure: subject + be + comparative + than + noun.

Pattern	Structure	Example
with -er	subject + be + adj-er + than	Anna is taller than me.
with more	subject + be + more + adj + than	Emma is more serious than Tom.
irregular	subject + be + irregular form + than	He is a better friend than Jack.

Spelling notes

Adjectives ending in -y (funny, lazy): change y to i and add -er → funnier, lazier
Adjectives with one vowel + one consonant (big, hot): double the consonant → bigger, hotter
All other short adjectives: just add -er

In this lesson, we will use these three patterns to talk about and compare our friends.

Let's talk about how to compare two people in English. The pattern is simple: you take a short adjective like tall, add -er to make it taller, and then put than at the end. So you say, Anna is taller than Mark. For longer adjectives, you keep the word as it is and put more in front, like more serious or more intelligent. And a few special words like good and bad don't follow either rule at all — good becomes better, and bad becomes worse. In the exercises coming up, you'll be choosing, filling in the blanks, and putting sentences in the right order, so keep an eye on whether the adjective needs an -er, the word more, or the irregular form. Ready? Let's compare some friends.

Anna is taller than Mark.

Notice: 'tall' is a short adjective (one syllable). It becomes 'taller' with -er.

Emma is more serious than Tom, but she is also funnier than Jake.

Notice: 'serious' uses 'more serious' (long adjective). 'Funny' becomes 'funnier' (adjective ending in -y).

Required

Look at the two sentences above. How do we make the comparative of a SHORT adjective like 'tall'?

add -er
add 'more' before the word
add -est

Required

My brother is ___ than me.

Required

Sara is ___ friendly than her sister.

Required

He is a ___ friend than Jack.

Required

Which sentence is correct?

He is more tall than me.
He is taller than me.
He is tallest than me.

Required

Put the words in order to make a sentence.

She
is
funnier
than
Mark

Required

We always use the word 'than' after a comparative adjective.

Required

The adjective 'friendly' becomes 'friendlier' in the comparative.

Listening

5 cards

Comparing two friends

In this conversation, you will hear two friends, Emma and Tom. They are talking about their friends Mark and Jake. Tom and Emma compare how Mark and Jake look and how they act.

Before you read, think about this question: What questions can you ask to compare two people? For example, you can ask "Who is taller?" or "Who is more friendly?"

As you listen, pay attention to the comparative adjectives. You will hear three patterns in this conversation: short adjectives with -er (like taller), long adjectives with more (like more hardworking), and irregular forms (like better). Notice the structure: comparative + than + person.

You will answer three questions after the conversation: one about the general topic, one true/false about a specific detail, and one fill-in-the-blank about who is kinder.

أهلاً بيكم يا جماعة! النهاردة عندنا درس لطيف عن إزاي نقارن بين الناس بالإنجليزي. توم وإيما بيقارنوا بين اتنين من الصحاب، مارك وجيك، وهنشوف مع بعض القواعد اللي استخدموها.

إزاي بنعمل مقارنة في الإنجليزي؟

في اللغة الإنجليزية عندنا تلات طرق أساسية عشان نقارن بين شخصين أو حاجة واتنين:

١. الصفات القصيرة: بنضيف -er في الآخر لو الصفة قصيرة (syllable واحد أو اتنين)، بنضيف -er. خلي بالك لو الصفة بتنتهي بحرف ساكن وبعدها y، الـ y بتتحول لـ i. الأمثلة من الدرس:

tall → taller (أطول)
funny → funnier (أظرف)
kind → kinder (أطيب)
lazy → lazier (أكسل)

٢. الصفات الطويلة: بنحط more قبلها لو الصفة طويلة (تلات syllables أو أكتر)، بنستخدم more قبلها من غير ما نغير الصفة. مثال من الدرس:

hardworking → more hardworking (أجتهد)

٣. الصفات الشاذة (Irregular Comparatives) في صفات معروفة مش بتتبع القواعد دي، زي:

good → better (أحسن)
bad → worse (أسوأ)
far → farther (أبعد)

شكل جملة المقارنة

القاعدة بسيطة جداً: comparative + than + person/thing

Jake is taller than Mark. (جيك أطول من مارك)
Mark is kinder. (مارك أطيب)
Mark is more hardworking than Jake. (مارك أجتهد من جيك)

ولما عايز تسأل عن المقارنة، بتقول: Who is + comparative?

"Who is taller?" → جيك
"Who is more hardworking?" → مارك

كلمات مهمة من المحادثة

weekend = نهاية الأسبوع
cinema = السينما
personality = الشخصية أو الطباع
a bit = شوية (بتستخدم لما عايز تخفف المقارنة)

نصيحة أخيرة

لاحظ الجملة دي: "Jake is a bit lazier than him." كلمة a bit معناها "شوية" وبتخلي المقارنة ألطف وأقل حدة. لما تقارن صحابك، استخدمها عشان ما تكونش قاسي عليهم! ربنا يوفقكم.

Emma and Tom are talking about their friends Mark and Jake. Listen and notice the comparatives.

E
Emma Hi Tom! How was your weekend?
T
Tom It was great! I went to the cinema with my friend Mark.
E
Emma I remember Mark. He's very tall, isn't he?
T
Tom Yes, he is. But I have a new friend, Jake. Jake is taller than Mark.
E
Emma Really? And what about their personalities?
T
Tom Jake is funnier than Mark, but Mark is kinder.
E
Emma Who is more hardworking?
T
Tom Mark is more hardworking. Jake is a bit lazier than him.
E
Emma Interesting! I want to meet them both.

Required

What is the conversation mainly about?

Emma and Tom are comparing two friends, Mark and Jake.
Emma and Tom are planning a party.
Emma and Tom are talking about a film.

Required

According to Tom, Jake is taller than Mark.

Required

According to the conversation, Mark is ___ than Jake.

Pronunciation

7 cards

The "-er" ending in comparatives

When we say comparatives like taller, funnier, shorter, and kinder, the ending -er is a very quick, weak sound. We write it as /ə/ (the schwa). It is NOT a strong "uh" sound like in the word her /hɜː/. The stress stays on the main part of the word.

How to make the sound

To make a good /ə/ sound, follow these steps:

Open your mouth slightly. Your lips are relaxed.
Put your tongue in the middle of your mouth. Do not touch the top.
Make a very short, quiet sound from your throat.
Do not push air out strongly.
Say the sound quickly at the end of the word. The main part of the word (like TALL-) is louder.

Listen to these examples

Word	IPA	Where is the stress?
tall	/tɔːl/	one syllable
taller	/ˈtɔːlə/	stress on tall, -er is quick
short	/ʃɔːt/	one syllable
shorter	/ˈʃɔːtə/	stress on short, -er is quick
funny	/ˈfʌni/	stress on fun
funnier	/ˈfʌniə/	stress on fun, -er is quick
kind	/kaɪnd/	one syllable
kinder	/ˈkaɪndə/	stress on kin, -er is quick

The "-er" is always quick and quiet at the end. It never takes the stress. If you say it too strongly, the word sounds strange.

صوت الـ Schwa في نهايات المقارنة

لما بتقول كلمات زي taller وshorter وfunnier وkinder، الجزء اللي في الآخر -er ده بيتلفظ بسرعة كبيرة جداً وبشكل خفيف. ده اسمه في اللغة الإنجليزية schwa ورمزه في الـ IPA هو /ə/. وده مش نفس صوت الـ "uh" القوى اللي بنسمعه في كلمة her مثلاً.

إزاي تعمل الصوت ده بفيزيكال؟

عشان تطلع صوت الـ schwa صح، اتبع الخطوات دي:

افتح بقك شوية وخلّي شفايفك في حالة راحة
حط لسانك في نص بقك ومتلمسش سقف حلقك خالص
طلّع صوت قصير وهادي من زورك
متدفعش هوا بقوة — الصوت ده لازم يبقى خفيف
قوله بسرعة في آخر الكلمة، من غير ما تعلّيه

فين الـ stress؟

الـ stress أو النبرة بتفضل دايماً على المقطع الأساسي في الكلمة. يعني في taller، الـ TALL هو اللي عالي والـ -er بييجي بسرعة وهادي وراه. نفس الكلام في باقي الكلمات.

أمثلة للتدريب

tall → taller (/ˈtɔːlə/) — النبرة على tall
short → shorter (/ˈʃɔːtə/) — النبرة على short
funny → funnier (/ˈfʌniə/) — النبرة على fun
kind → kinder (/ˈkaɪndə/) — النبرة على kin

أخطاء شائعة لازم تتجنبها

كتير من المتعلمين بيقولوا الـ -er بصوت عالي أو قوى، أو بيفصلوه كأنه مقطع مستقل. ده بيبوظ شكل الكلمة. الـ -er دايماً سريع وهادي وبييجي في الآخر من غير stress خالص. لو قولته صح، الكلام هيبقى طبيعي زي الناطقين الأصليين.

نصيحة للتدريب

اسمع المثال الأول كويس من غير ما تكرره، وبعدين حاول تنطقه بنفسك. ركز على إن الجزء الأول يبقى عالي والجزء التاني يبقى هادي زي الهمس.

The -er ending in comparatives is a quick, weak schwa /ə/. Open your mouth, relax your tongue in the middle, and make a very short sound. Stress stays on the main part of the word: TALL-er, SHORT-er, KIND-er.

Required

Which word did you hear?

tall
taller

Required

Which word did you hear?

short
shorter

Required

Say the word. The stress is on 'tall'. The -er is quick and quiet.

taller

Required

Say the word. The stress is on 'fun'. The -er is quick and quiet.

funnier

Required

Say the word. The stress is on 'kin'. The -er is quick and quiet.

kinder

Speaking

7 cards

Talking about your friends

In this lesson, you compare your friends in a short conversation. Here are useful phrases to help you speak naturally.

Introducing your friend:

"My best friend is [name]." — say the name of your friend.
"I have a good friend called [name]." — another way to introduce.

Describing one person:

"He / She is very [adjective]." — for example, "She is very kind."
"He / She is a bit [adjective]." — for example, "He is a bit lazy."

Comparing two people:

"He / She is [comparative] than [name]." — for example, "Tom is taller than Mark."
"[Name] is more [adjective] than [name]." — for example, "Anna is more friendly than Sara."

Asking questions:

"What is he / she like?" — ask about personality.
"Who is your best friend?" — start a conversation.
"Who is taller / funnier / kinder?" — ask for a comparison.

You can combine these phrases in many ways. For example: "My best friend is Sara. She is taller than me. She is also funnier than my brother."

After the model conversation, you will record two sentences. Then you will talk to a partner in a roleplay about your own friends.

مقارنة الأصحاب بالإنجليزي

في الدرس ده هنتعلم إزاي توصف صاحبك وتعمل مقارنات بين الناس. الشكل ده من الكلام بيساعدك تعمل محادثة طبيعية مع أي حد بيقابله.

تقديم صاحبك

أول خطوة إنك تقول مين صاحبك. فيه طريقتين شائعتين:

My best friend is Sara. — يعني "صاحبي المقرب اسمه سارة".
I have a good friend called Tom. — يعني "عندي صاحب كويس اسمه توم".

النقطة المهمة هنا إن فعل is بييجي مع ضمير المفرد (he / she / it)، فبنقول my best friend is مش are.

وصف الشخص

عشان توصف حد، بنستخدم He is أو She is وبعدها صفة:

She is very kind. — "هي كويسة أوي".
He is a bit lazy. — "هو شوية كسلان".

لاحظ الفرق بين very (للوصف القوي) و a bit (للوصف الخفيف أو المهذب). لما تقول "a bit quiet" إنت بتقول "هادية شوية" مش "هادية خالص".

المقارنة بين اتنين

هنا بيجي الدرس الأساسي: الcomparative أو صيغة المقارنة.

مع الصفات القصيرة (silble واحدة أو اتنين) بنضيف -er:

tall → taller
short → shorter
funny → funnier
kind → kinder

مع الصفات الطويلة بنستخدم more قبل الصفة:

friendly → more friendly
intelligent → more intelligent

وبعدها دايماً بنحط than وبعدين الشخص التاني:

She is taller than me.
Tom is more friendly than Mark.
My best friend is funnier than my brother.

أسئلة تفتح المحادثة

عشان تكمّل الكلام مع حد، استخدم الأسئلة دي:

Who is your best friend?
What is she like? (بتسأل عن الشخصية)
Who is taller, you or your friend?

ملخص سريع

الصيغة الذهبية للمقارنة: Subject + is + comparative + than + person.

جرّب دلوقتي تقول جملة زي: My friend is taller than me, and she is more friendly than her sister. لو حفظت الشكل ده، هتقدر تقارن أي حد في أي موقف.

Watch and listen to this short model conversation. You will have a similar one in the roleplay.

E
Emma Hi! Who is your best friend?
T
Tom My best friend is called Sara. She is very kind.
E
Emma What is she like?
T
Tom She is friendly, but she is a bit quiet.
E
Emma And is she tall?
T
Tom Yes, she is taller than me!

My best friend is taller than me, and she is funnier than my brother.

Notice the two comparatives in one sentence. Read it aloud to practise the -er ending.

Required

Read this sentence aloud. Remember: the stress is on 'tall' and the -er is quick.

My friend is taller than me.

Required

Read this sentence aloud. Remember: 'more' goes before long adjectives.

She is more friendly than her sister.

Required

You are talking to Emma. Introduce your best friend, describe their personality, and compare them with another person. Use comparatives like 'taller than', 'funnier than', and 'more friendly than'.

Required

I CAN use comparatives (taller, funnier, more serious, better)
I CAN compare people using 'than'
I CAN describe friends' appearance and personality
I CAN ask questions about friends
I CAN say the -er ending in comparatives correctly

Vocabulary

6 cards

Words for comparing friends

In this lesson, we use 8 adjectives to describe our friends and compare them. These words are very common in everyday English (UK) when we talk about people. We will use them in comparative sentences later in the lesson.

There are two kinds of words in this table. Appearance words describe how someone looks. They include tall and short. Personality words describe how someone is inside. They include funny, kind, serious, quiet, friendly, and lazy. When we compare two friends, we often use both kinds together: "Anna is taller than Mark, but she is also kinder."

Look at the table below. Each word has a part of speech, an Arabic meaning, and an example sentence. Read each example carefully and try to imagine a person who matches each description.

Adjective	Type	Example
tall	adjective	My friend Anna is very tall.
short	adjective	His brother is quite short.
funny	adjective	Tom is really funny.
kind	adjective	Emma is very kind to everyone.
serious	adjective	Mark is more serious than Jake.
quiet	adjective	Sara is quieter than her sister.
friendly	adjective	Sam is a friendly person.
lazy	adjective	My brother is a bit lazy.

After you meet these words, you will use them to make comparative sentences about your friends. This helps you talk about personality and appearance together in a natural way.

كلمات وصف أصحابك بالإنجليزي

في الدرس ده هنتعلم ٨ صفات (adjectives) مهمة جداً بنستخدمها في الحياة اليومية لما نتكلم عن أصحابنا أو حد نعرفه. كل الصفات دي مش بتتغير مع المذكر والمؤنث، يعني نفس الشكل مع راجل وست.

نوعين أساسيين من الصفات

الصفات دي بتنقسم لجزئين مهمين:

صفات الشكل (Appearance words) — دي اللي بنوصف بيها شكل الإنسان من بره:

tall يعني طويل — مثلاً My friend Anna is very tall
short يعني قصير — مثلاً His brother is quite short

صفات الشخصية (Personality words) — دي اللي بنوصف بيها طباع الإنسان من جوه:

funny يعني مضحك وخفيف دم
kind يعني لطيف وطيب القلب
serious يعني جاد
quiet يعني هادي وساكت
friendly يعني ودود وبيحب الناس
lazy يعني كسلان ومش بيحب يشتغل

إزاي بنحط الصفات في الجملة

الكلمات دي كلها adjectives، بنحطها قبل الاسم أو بعد فعل to be. يعني:

Sam is a friendly person (سام شخص ودود)
Emma is very kind to everyone (إيما لطيفة جداً مع كل الناس)
My brother is a bit lazy** (أخويا شوية كسلان)

المقارنة بين الأصحاب

الدرس ده بيركز على إننا نقارن بين أصحابنا. لما عايز تقارن بين اتنين، الصفات القصيرة بنزودلها -er في الآخر وبنحط than بعديها. مثلاً:

Tom is taller than me (توم أطول مني)
Sara is quieter than her sister (سارة أهدى من أختها)
My brother is funnier than Tom (أخويا أضحك من توم)

لاحظ إن الصفات الطويلة زي serious بنحط قبلها more بدل ما نضيف -er، يعني Mark is more serious than Jake (مارك أجمد من جيك).

حاول دايماً تربط أكتر من صفة في جملة واحدة عشان كلامك يبقى طبيعي: My best friend is kind and very friendly. (صاحبي الأفضل لطيف وودود جداً).

Meet the 8 adjectives. Tap each word to hear it and see its meaning.

friendly ˈfrendli
A friendly person is kind, warm, and pleasant toward others. Someone who is friendly creates a comfortable and
funny ˈfʌni
Causing laughter or amusement; also means strange or odd.
kind kaɪnd
Friendly, generous, and considerate toward others; showing care and warmth in one's actions toward people or a
lazy ˈleɪ.zi
Not willing to work or make effort; avoiding activity or work.
quiet ˈkwaɪət
Not making any noise or only very little noise; silent or peaceful.
serious ˈsɪəriəs
Describes something that should be taken seriously and not joked about; also means important, severe, or since
short ʃɔːt
small in length , distance , or height : used to say that a name is used as a shorter form of another name : b
tall tɔːl
Having a greater than average height, especially in comparison to the average for humans of the same age or in