Question

Fill in the blanks with the most appropriate words.
Nancy’s car is _____ than mine, but Ben’s car is ______ car.
a. The most expensive / more expensive
b. More expensive / the most expensive
c. Expensiver / expensivest
d. Most expensive / the more expensive

Answer 1

Hint: Adjectives are the words used to describe a noun. The comparative degree of an adjective draws a comparison between two objects. The superlative degree of an adjective compares an object with a group of other objects.

Complete answer:
From the hint given to us, we understand the meaning of an adjective and its various forms. The comparative degree of an adjective requires the adjective to be preceded by the adverb, ‘more’ and followed by ‘than’. Superlative degree of an adjective requires the adjective to be preceded by the ‘the most’.
We observe that in the first blank comparison is being drawn and hence, it will require a comparative degree form of the adjective. The second blank Ben’s car is being compared to the rest of the cars, and hence, it will require a superlative form of the adjective. Let us analyse the given options to find the correct answer.
In the first option, we observe that both the phrases do not fit the respective blanks correctly. Hence, we can say that option ‘a’ is not the correct answer.
In the second option, we observe that both the phrases correctly fit the context of the given sentence. Hence, we can say that option ‘b’ is the correct answer.
In the third option, we observe that the given words are invalid as they do not exist in the lexicon of the English language. Hence, we can say that option ‘c’ is not the correct answer.
In the third option, we observe that ‘the’ has been incorrectly placed before ‘more’. We also observe that ‘the’ is not placed before ‘most expensive’. Thus, the given phrases are ungrammatical. Hence, option ‘d’ is not the correct answer.
Thus, the correct answer is option ‘b’ - “More expensive / the most expensive”

Note: Certain adjectives are added suffixes to form comparative and superlative degrees. The adjective is suffixed with ‘-er’ to form the comparative degree. The adjective is suffixed with ‘-est’ to form the superlative degree.