Rewrite the sentences using the opposite meanings of the adjectives.
Example: Belgium is smaller than Switzerland.
- The Nile is a longer river than the Amazon.
- Dublin is a lot cheaper than London.
- Syria was much safer than most countries 10 years ago.
- England is a crowded country, but China is more crowded.
- She had better grades than all of us.
- The climate of your city is much cooler than ours.
Comparative Adjectives and Antonyms in Sentence Transformation
KEY FORMULA / RULE: To rewrite a comparative sentence using the opposite adjective while maintaining the original factual meaning, swap the two subjects being compared and replace the comparative adjective with its antonym:
\text{Noun B} + \text{verb} + \text{opposite comparative adjective} + \text{than} + \text{Noun A}
SOLUTION STEPS
As shown in the example (“Belgium is smaller than Switzerland. \rightarrow Switzerland is bigger than Belgium.”), the subjects are inverted to keep the true comparative relationship using opposite adjectives.
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1. The Nile is a longer river than the Amazon.
- Opposite adjective: \text{long} \leftrightarrow \text{short} (\text{longer} \rightarrow \text{shorter})
- Rewritten sentence: The Amazon is a shorter river than the Nile.
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2. Dublin is a lot cheaper than London.
- Opposite adjective: \text{cheap} \leftrightarrow \text{expensive} (\text{cheaper} \rightarrow \text{more expensive})
- Rewritten sentence: London is a lot more expensive than Dublin.
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3. Syria was much safer than most countries 10 years ago.
- Opposite adjective: \text{safe} \leftrightarrow \text{dangerous} (\text{safer} \rightarrow \text{more dangerous})
- Rewritten sentence: Most countries were much more dangerous than Syria 10 years ago.
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4. England is a crowded country, but China is more crowded.
- Opposite adjective: \text{more crowded} \leftrightarrow \text{less crowded}
- Rewritten sentence: China is a crowded country, but England is less crowded. (or: England is less crowded than China.)
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5. She had better grades than all of us.
- Opposite adjective: \text{good/better} \leftrightarrow \text{bad/worse} (\text{better} \rightarrow \text{worse})
- Rewritten sentence: All of us had worse grades than her (or: than she did).
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6. The climate of your city is much cooler than ours.
- Opposite adjective: \text{cool} \leftrightarrow \text{warm} (\text{cooler} \rightarrow \text{warmer} / \text{hotter})
- Rewritten sentence: The climate of our city (Ours) is much warmer than yours.
FINAL ANSWER:
- The Amazon is a shorter river than the Nile.
- London is a lot more expensive than Dublin.
- Most countries were much more dangerous than Syria 10 years ago.
- China is a crowded country, but England is less crowded.
- All of us had worse grades than her (she had).
- The climate of our city (Ours) is much warmer than yours.
EXAM INSIGHT / PITFALL: Pay attention to irregular comparatives such as good \rightarrow better (opposite: bad \rightarrow worse) and long adjectives that require more / less (e.g., more expensive, less crowded) rather than -er suffixes.
