Pembahasan TOEFL Test Part 8 The Written Expression "Problems With Comparatives And Superlatives"

 Posted by M. Riskiyanto

 

TOEFL PART 8

THE WRITTEN EXPRESSION QUESTION

“PROBLEMS WITH COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES”

 

Kalimat dengan struktur comparative dan superlative yang salah, dapat muncul pada tes TOEFL. Oleh karena itu, perting bagi Anda untuk mengetahui bagaimana melakukan hal berikut: (1) membentuk comparative dan superlative dengan benar; (2) menggunakan comparative dan superlative dengan benar; dan (3) menggunakan the irregular -er, struktur -er seringkali muncul pada tes TOEFL.

 

Sub-skill:

Skill 27 Form Comparatives And Superlatives Correctly (Membentuk Comparative Dan Superlative Dengan Benar)

Permasalahan pada beberapa kalimat comparative dan superlative pada tes TOEFL adalah comparative atau superlative disusun dengan salah. Oleh karena itu, Anda  harus memahami bagaimana menyusun comparative dan superlative menjawab pertanyaan-pertanyaan tersebut dengan benar.

Comparative disusun dengan “-er” atau “more” dan “than”. Pada  comparative, -er digunakan pada adjective yang singkat (1 atau 2 suku kata) seperti tall, dan more digunakan digunakan pada adjective yang lebih panjang (2, 3 atau lebih suku kata) seperti, beautiful.

 

(a) Bob is taller than Ron. (b) Sally is more beautiful than Sharon.

 

Superlative disusun dengan the ... “-est” atau “most” dan kadang-kadang in, of, atau sebuah that clause. Pada  superlative, -est digunakan pada adjective yang singkat (1 atau 2 suku kata) seperti tall, dan most digunakan digunakan pada adjective yang lebih panjang (2, 3 atau lebih suku kata) seperti, beautiful.

 

(a) Bob is the tallest man in the room. (b) Sally is the most beautiful of all the women at the party. (c) The spider over there is the largest one that I have ever seen. (d) The fastest runner wins the race, (tidak ada in, of, atau that).

 

Perlu diingat!!!

THE FORM OF COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE
Comparative	[more (long adjective)] + than [(short adjective)-er] + than
Superlative	The + [most (long adjective)] + in, of, that ... The + [(short adjective)-est] + in, of, that ...

 

Exercise 27: Each of the following sentences contains a comparative or superlative. Underline the comparative or superlative. Then indicate if the sentences are correct (C) or incorrect (I).

1.    Oxygen is abundanter than nitrogen. ( .... )

2.    The directions to the exercise say to choose the most appropriate response. ( .... )

3.    The lesson you are studying now is the most importantest lesson that you will have. ( .... )

4.    Fashions this year are shorter and more colorful than they were last year. ( .... )

5.    The professor indicated that Anthony’s research paper was more long than the other student’s paper. ( .... )

6.    Alaska is the oldest than all the states in the United States. ( .... )

7.    The workers on the day shift are more rested than the workers on the night shift. ( .... )

8.    She was more happier this morning than she had been yesterday. ( .... )

9.    The quarterback on this year’s football team is more versatile than the quarterback on last year’s team. ( .... )

10. She always tries to do the best and most efficient job that she can do. ( .... )

 

Key Answer:

1.    Oxygen is more abundanter than nitrogen. ( I ) -> “abundant” harus diubah menjadi bentuk “more abundant” karena merupakan long adjective.

2.    The directions to the exercise say to choose the most appropriate response. ( C )

3.    The lesson you are studying now is the most importantest lesson that you will have. ( I ) -> “important” tetap tidak perlu ditambahi -est karena merupakan long adjective.

4.    Fashions this year are shorter and more colorful than they were last year. ( C )

5.    The professor indicated that Anthony’s research paper was more longer than the other student’s paper. ( I ) -> “more” perlu dihilangkan, dan “long”  perlu ditambahi -er karena merupakan short adjective.

6.    Alaska is the coldest than of all the states in the United States. ( I ) -> “than” harus dihilangkan, dan dapat diganti dengan “of” karena merupakan superlative.

7.    The workers on the day shift are more rested than the workers on the night shift. ( C )

8.    She was more happier this morning than she had been yesterday. ( I ) “more” perlu dihilangkan karena “happier” merupakan short adjective dan sudah bentuk comparative.

9.    The quarterback on this year’s football team is more versatile than the quarterback on last year’s team. ( C )

10. She always tries to do the best and most efficient job that she can do. ( C )

 

 

Sub-skill:

Skill 28 Use Comparatives And Superlatives Correctly (Menggunakan Comparative Dan Superlative Dengan Benar)

 

Permasalahan lainnya pada comparative dan superlative pada tes TOEFL bahwa mereka dapat digunakan dengan salah. Comparative dan superlative memiliki penggunaan yang berbeda, dan Anda harus memahami perbedaan-perbedaan penggunaan tersebut untuk menjawab pertanyaan tersebut dengan benar. Comparative digunakan untuk membandingkan 2 hal yang sama.

 

(a) The history class is larger than the math class. (b) Mary is more intelligent than Sue.

 

Pada contoh ke-1, “the history class” dibandingkan dengan “the math class”. Pada contoh ke-2, “Mary” dibandingkan dengan “Sue”.

Superlative digunakan ketika ada lebih dari 2 benda yang dibandingkan dan Anda ingin menunjukkan salah satu yang terbaik, terbesar, atau yang paling hebat.

 

(a) The history class is the largest in the school. (b) Mary is the most intelligent of all the students in the class.

 

Pada contoh ke-1, history class dibandingkan dengan semua kelas lainnya di sekolah, dan the history class lebih besar dibandingkan dengan kelas-kelas lainnya. Pada contoh ke-2, Mary dibandingkan dengan semua siswa di kelas, dan Mary lebih pandai dibandingkan dengan siswa-siswa lainnya.

 

Perlu diingat!!!

THE USES OF COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE

Comparative digunakan untuk membandingkan 2 hal yang sama.

Superlative digunakan untuk menunjukkan salah satu dari banyak hal yang paling unggul, luar biasa, besar, dll.

 

Exercise 28: Each of the following sentences contains a comparative or superlative. Underline the comparative or superlative. Then indicate if the sentences are correct (C) or incorrect (I).

1.    Harvard is probably the most prestigious university in the United States. ( .... )

2.    Rhonda is more hard working of the class. ( .... )

3.    The engineers hired this year have more experience than those hired last year. ( .... )

4.    The graduate assistant informed us that the first exam is the most difficult of the two. ( .... )

5.    He bought the more powerful stereo speakers that he could find. ( .... )

6.    The afternoon seminar was much more interesting than the morning lecture. ( .... )

7.    The food in this restaurant is the best of the restaurant we visited last week. ( .... )

8.    The plants that have been sitting in the sunny window are far healthier than the other plants. ( .... )

9.    The photocopies are the darkest that they have ever been. ( .... )

10. The first journal article is the longest of the second article. ( .... )

 

Key Answer:

1.    Harvard is probably the most prestigious university in the United States. ( C )

2.    Rhonda is more hard working of the class. ( I ) -> “more hard working” harus diubah menjadi “the hardest worker” agar menjadi kalimat superlative yang benar.

3.    The engineers hired this year have more experience than those hired last year. ( C )

4.    The graduate assistant informed us that the first exam is the most difficult of the two. ( C )

5.    He bought the more powerful stereo speakers that he could find. ( I ) -> “more” harus diganti menjadi “most” agar menjadi kalimat superlative”

6.    The afternoon seminar was much more interesting than the morning lecture. ( C )

7.    The food in this restaurant is the best of the food in the restaurant we visited last week. ( I ) -> kalimat di atas harus diubah menjadi kalimat comparative sehingga “the best of” diubah menjadi “better than”

8.    The plants that have been sitting in the sunny window are far healthier than the other plants. ( C )

9.    The photocopies are the darkest that they have ever been. ( C )

10. The first journal article is the longest of the second article. ( I ) -> kalimat di atas harus diubah menjadi kalimat comparative sehingga “the longest of” diubah menjadi “longer than”

 

 

Sub-skill:

Skill 29 Use The Irregular –Er,-Er Structure Correctly (Menggunakan Irregular -Er, Struktur –Er Dengan Benar)

 

Struktur irregular comparative structure seringkali muncul pada tes TOEFL yang tersusun atas 2 parallel comparatives yang ditunjukkan dengan “the” (di awal klausa).

 

(a) The harder he tried, the further he fell behind. (b) The older the children are, the more their parents expect from them.

 

Pada contoh ke-1 terdiri dari 2 parallel comparatives yaitu “the harder” dan “the further”.  Pada contoh ke-2 juga terdiri dari 2 parallel comparatives yaitu “the older” dan “the more”.

Pada tipe-tipe kalimat di bawah ini, the dan the comparison dapat diikuti oleh banyak struktur yang berbeda (noun, phrase, atau clause).

 

(a) The more children you have, the bigger the house you need. (phrase) (b) The harder you work, the more you accomplish. (clause) (c) The greater the experience, the higher the salary. (phrase)

 

Pada contoh ke-1, the more diikuti oleh noun “children” dan subject + verb “you have”, sementara itu the bigger diikuti oleh noun “the house” dan subject + verb “you need”. Pada contoh ke-2, the harder diikuti oleh subject + verb “you work”, sementara itu the more diikuti oleh subject + verb “you accomplish”. Pada contoh ke-3, the greater diikuti hanya oleh noun “the experience”, sementara itu the higher hanya diikuti  oleh noun “the salary”. Anda harus perhatikan bahwa contoh ke-3 bahkan tidak memiliki verb, namun kalimat tersebut merupakan struktur yang benar dalam bahasa Inggirs.

 

Perlu diingat!!!

 

THE –ER, -ER STRUCTURE
The [-er/more] + same structure,	The [-er/more] + same structure
Tipe kalimat ini mungkin atau (tidak) menyertakan verb.

 

Exercise 28: Each of the following sentences contains the irregular –er, -er structure. Bold the comparison with the. Then indicate if the sentences are correct (C) or incorrect (I).

1.    The hotter the food is, harder it is to eat. (....)

2.    The warmer the weather, the greater the attendance at the outdoor concert. (....)

3.    The more you say, the worst the situation will be. (....)

4.    The more time they have to play, the happier the children are. (....)

5.    The thicker the walls, the noise that comes through is less. (....)

6.    If you run faster, the earlier you’ll arrive. (....)

7.    The more you use the phone, the higher the bill will be. (....)

8.    The harder you serve, the easier it is to win the point. (....)

9.    The earliest you send in your tax forms, the sooner you will receive your refund. (....)

10.  The more people there are at the party, you’ll have a good time. (....)

 

Key Answer:

1.    The hotter the food is, the harder it is to eat. ( I ) -> tambahkan “the” sebelum “harder”.

2.    The warmer the weather, the greater the attendance at the outdoor concert. ( C )

3.    The more you say, the worst the situation will be. ( I ) -> untuk membentuk kalimat comparative, “worst” harus diubah menjadi “worse”.

4.    The more time they have to play, the happier the children are. ( C )

5.    The thicker the walls, the lesser the noise that comes through is less. ( I ) -> “is less” harus dihilangkan, dan tempatkan “the lesser” di depan.

6.    The faster If you run faster, the earlier you’ll arrive. ( I ) -> “faster” harus dipindah tempatkan di depan dan di awali dengan “the”.

7.    The more you use the phone, the higher the bill will be. ( C )

8.    The harder you serve, the easier it is to win the point. ( C )

9.    The earliest you send in your tax forms, the sooner you will receive your refund. ( I ) ->  untuk membentuk kalimat comparative, “earliest” harus diubah menjadi “earlier”.

10.  The more people there are at the party, the more you’ll have a good time. ( I ) -> untuk membentuk kalimat comparative, tambahkan “the more” pada same structure yang ke-2.

 

 

EXERCISE (Skills 27-29): Underline the comparatives and superlatives in the following sentences. Then, indicate if the sentences are correct (C) or incorrect (I).

1.    The coffee is more stronger today than it was yesterday. (....)

2.    The tree that was struck by lightning had been the tallest of the two trees we had in the yard. (....)

3.    He will buy the most fuel-efficient car that he can afford. (....)

4.    The closest it gets to summer, the longer the days are. (....)

5.    The business department is bigger of the departments in the university. (....)

6.    I really do not want to live in the Southeast because it is one of the most hot areas in the U.S. (....)

7.    It is preferable to use the most efficient and most effective method that you can. (....)

8.    Tonight’s dinner was more filling than last night’s. (....)

9.    The sooner the exam is scheduled, the less time you have to prepare. (....)

10. The house is now the cleanest that it has ever been. (....)

 

Key Answer:

1.    The coffee is more stronger today than it was yesterday. ( I ) -> “more” harus dihilangkan karena “stronger” sudah menjadi comparative (short adjective).

2.    The tree that was struck by lightning had been the tallest of the two trees we had in the yard. ( C )

3.    He will buy the most fuel-efficient car that he can afford. ( C )

4.    The closest it gets to summer, the longer the days are. ( I ) -> “closest” harus diganti menjadi “closer” agar paralel dengan “longer”.

5.    The business department is bigger of the departments in the university. ( I ) -> “bigger” harus diganti dengan “the biggest” karena merupakan struktur superlative.

6.    I really do not want to live in the Southeast because it is one of the most hot areas in the U.S. ( I ) -> “most” harus dihilangkan, dan “hot” menjadi “hottest” karena merupakan struktur superlative.

7.    It is preferable to use the most efficient and most effective method that you can. ( C )

8.    Tonight’s dinner was more filling than last night’s. ( C )

9.    The sooner the exam is scheduled, the less time you have to prepare. ( I ) -> “less” harus diganti menjadi “lesser” agar paralel dengan sooner.

10. The house is now the cleanest that it has ever been. ( C )

 

 

TOEFL EXERCISE (Skills 27-29): Choose the letter of the word or group of words that best completes the sentence.

1. The speed of light is____the speed of sound.

(A) faster

(B) much faster than

(C) the fastest

(D) as fast

2. The use of detail is ____ method of developing a controlling idea, and almost all students employ this method.

(A) more common

(B) common

(C) most common

(D) the most common

3. ____ in Stevenson’s landscapes, the more vitality and character the paintings seem to possess.

(A) The brushwork is loose

(B) The looser brushwork

(C) The loose brushwork is

(D) The looser the brushwork is

 

Choose the letter of the underlined word or group of words that is not correct.

4. (A) Certain types of snakes (B) have been known to survive (C) fasts more (D) as a year long.

 

5. The grizzly bear, (A) which can grow (B) up to eight feet tall, has (C) been called (D) a more dangerous animal of North America.

 

6. Climate, soil type, and (A) availability of water (B) are the most critical factors (C) than selecting (D) the best type of grass for a lawn.

 

7. Peter Abelard, (A) a logician and theologian, was (B) the (C) controversialest teacher (D) of his age.

 

8. Protein molecules (A) are (B) the most complex (C) than the (D) molecules of carbohydrates.

 

9. The (A) leek, a member of the lily family, has a (B) mildest taste (C) than the (D) onion.

 

10. (A) The widely (B) used natural (C) fiber of all (D) is cotton.

 

Key answer:

 

1.    B 2.    D 3.    D 4.    C 5.    D

6.    C 7.    C 8.    B 9.    B 10.       A

 

 

Source: Longman Preparation Course for the TOEFL Test

See also:

1.    Part of Speech: Noun

2.    Part of Speech: Verb

3.    Part of Speech: Conjunction

4.    Degree of Comparison

5.    TOEFL Part 6 The Structure Questions

6.    TOEFL Part 7 The Structure Questions

7.    TOEFL Part 8 The Structure Questions

8.    TOEFL Part 9 The Structure Questions

9.    TOEFL Part 10 The Structure Questions

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Demikian tadi sekilas Penjelasan TOEFL Test Part 8 terkait Structure & Written Expression “Problems With Comparatives And Superlatives”. Semoga bermanfaat dan dapat menambah wawasan baru bagi kita dalam mempelajari bahasa Inggris; serta, terutama bagi kalian yang ingin atau akan mengikuti tes TOEFL. Terima kasih...