Transformation of degrees of comparison

We can express the same idea using different degrees of comparison. Study the sentences given below.
John is as tall as Mike.
Tall is an adjective in the positive degree. Here we are comparing the height of two people with a positive adjective.
If John and Mike are of the same height, Mike is not taller than John.
See how the same idea is expressed using both positive and comparative adjectives.
John is as tall as Mike. = Mike is not taller than John.
Another example is given below

Very few countries in the world are as large as China. (Positive)

China is larger than most other countries in the world. (Comparative)
China is one of the largest countries in the world. (Superlative)

No other man was as strong as Hercules. (Positive)

Hercules was stronger than any other man. (Comparative)
Hercules was the strongest man in the world. (Superlative)

No other boy in the class is as intelligent as James. (Positive)

James is more intelligent than any other boy in the class. (Comparative)
James is the most intelligent boy in the class. (Superlative)

Very few Indian saints were as popular as Vivekananda. (Positive)

Vivekananda was more popular than most other Indian saints. (Comparative)
Vivekananda was one of the most popular Indian saints. (Superlative)

Maria is not as intelligent as Sonia. (Positive)

Sonia is more intelligent than Maria. (Comparative)

When a comparison is made between two individuals we do not normally use the superlative.
Alice is the prettier of the two sisters. (More natural than Alice is the prettiest of the two sisters.)

Change the degree of comparison without changing the meaning.

1. Malacca is the oldest town in Malaysia.
2. Peter is cleverer than any other boy in the class.
3. Jupiter is the biggest of all planets.
4. Very few boys are as industrious as John.
5. India is the largest democracy in the world.
6. Shakespeare was greater than any other playwright.
7. Asoka was one of the greatest Indian kings.
8. Greenland is the largest island in the world.
9. Lead is heavier than any other metal.
10. Very few animals are as useful as the cow.
1. No other town in Malaysia is as old as Malacca.
(Positive)
Malacca is older than any other town in Malaysia.
(Comparative)
2. No other boy in the class is as clever as Peter.
(Positive)
Peter is the cleverest boy in the class. (Superlative)
3. Jupiter is bigger than any other planet. (Comparative)
No other planet is as big as Jupiter. (Positive)
4. John is more industrious than most other boys.
(Comparative)
John is one of the most industrious boys. (Superlative)
5. India is larger than any other democracy in the world.
(Comparative)
No other democracy in the world is as large as India.
(Positive)
6. No other playwright is as great as Shakespeare.
(Positive)
Shakespeare is the greatest of all playwrights. (Superlative)
7. Very few Indian kings were as great as Asoka.
(Positive)
Asoka was greater than most other Indian kings.
(Comparative)
8. No other island in the world is as large as Greenland.
(Positive)
Greenland is larger than any other island in the world.
(Comparative)
9. No other metal is as heavy as lead. (Positive)
Lead is the heaviest of all metals. (Superlative)
 10. The cow is more useful than most other animals.
(Comparative)
The cow is one of the most useful animals. (Superlative)

Consider the sentence given below.

A dog is more faithful than a cat.
In this sentence we make a comparison between a dog and a cat using the comparative adjective more faithful. We can express the
same idea using a positive adjective.
A cat is not as faithful as a dog.

Note that it is not possible to transform every degree into every other degree.

For example, the sentence A dog is more faithful than a cat cannot be transformed into the superlative degree because superlative
degree requires more than two persons or objects for comparison.

Now consider the following sentence.

Bombay is the best sea-port city in India.

This sentence uses an adjective in the superlative degree. We can rewrite it using the other two degrees positive and comparative.
No other sea-port in India is as good as Bombay.
Here we make a comparison using the positive adjective good. Comparisons using the positive adjective are made using the
structure asas.
Bombay is better than any other sea-port in India.

Here we make a comparison using the comparative adjective better.

Another example is given below.

There are few countries as large as China. (Comparison using the positive adjective large)
China is larger than most other countries. (Comparison using the comparative adjective larger. Note the use of most other in this
sentence.)
China is one of the largest countries in the world. (Comparison using the superlative adjective largest.)