- profound,
- sublime,
- unkind.
Note. The adverbs less and least may be used with an adjective, if one wishes to run down the scale of comparison: as,—terrible, less terrible, least terrible. This idiom, however, should not be regarded as comparison of the adjective. “Superlative” means “in the highest degree,” and is not applicable to least terrible, which means “terrible in the lowest degree.”
IRREGULAR COMPARISON
185. Several adjectives have irregular comparison.[23]
| Positive | Comparative | Superlative |
|---|---|---|
| bad (evil, ill) | worse | worst |
| far | farther | farthest |
| —— | further | furthest |
| good | better | best |
| late | later, latter | latest, last |
| well (in health) | better | —— |
| little | less, lesser | least |
| much, many | more | most |
Old has comparative older or elder, superlative oldest or eldest. Elder or eldest may be used with certain nouns of relationship, or in the phrases the elder and the eldest.
| This is my elder brother. | My brother is older than yours. |
| Jane was the eldest of six children. | I shall wear my oldest clothes. |
Elder is also used as a noun: as,—“You should respect your elders.”
Next is a superlative of nigh. It is used only in the sense of “the very nearest.”
- I live in the next street.
- The next time he comes, I shall refuse to see him.