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B1Self-study or with a tutor

Comparisons 2: Changing Situations and Measured Differences

By the end: I can describe gradual changes and compare amounts or sizes precisely.

Created by Denis M., British English teacher.

I’m studying:

Try the activities, then check your answers.

Playback speed

Choose a short recording.

Before you start

What in your daily life is becoming cheaper, easier or more expensive?

Useful background: Comparative adjectives and as…as; numbers and basic units.

Describe a growing change

Repeat a short comparative with and, or use more and more before a longer adjective. Use less and less for a decreasing quality. This describes a trend, not a comparison with one named object.

The days are getting shorter and shorter.

Online meetings are becoming more and more common.

Compare by a ratio

Twice as…as means two times the amount or degree on the stated scale. Three times as…as means three times. Use half as…as for a half-sized amount. Choose a measurable quality and make the reference clear.

This shelf is twice as long as that one.

The small box is half as heavy as the large one.

The adult man using the approved male reference face compares two uninstalled straight wooden shelves laid parallel on a furniture workshop’s clean display table. Both start at the same aligned edge, with the longer shelf exactly twice the shorter shelf’s length. He indicates the clear two-to-one relationship. No numbers, labels or measurement diagrams. — This shelf is twice as long as that one.Twice as long expresses a two-to-one ratio using a clear reference.

Give the exact difference

Put a measurement before a comparative to say how much two things differ. A difference is not a ratio. If one route is ten kilometres and another is fifteen, the second is five kilometres longer.

My journey is ten minutes longer than yours.

The new desk is twenty centimetres wider.

The same two weights support a ratio and a difference

Stated weightsFirst bag: 6 kilos
Second bag: 3 kilos

The numbers describe weight, rather than the bags’ visible size.

Compare by division6 ÷ 3 = 2

The first bag is twice as heavy as the second.

Compare by subtraction6 − 3 = 3 kilos

The first bag is three kilos heavier than the second.

Twice as heavy expresses a ratio; three kilos heavier expresses a difference. State which bag is the reference. Reversing the ratio makes the second bag half as heavy.

Guided practice

Say or write your answer first. Compare the meaning and form; the model is one possible answer.

1. Complete the trend: The nights are getting long___ and long___.

Compare a model and explanation

longer and longer

Repeat the comparative longer.

2. Complete: The instructions are becoming ___ and ___ complicated.

Compare a model and explanation

more and more

Use more and more with complicated.

3. A bag weighs six kilos and another weighs three. Compare the heavier using twice.

Compare a model and explanation

The first bag is twice as heavy as the second.

Six is twice three on the weight scale.

4. A course lasts four weeks and another lasts eight. Compare the shorter using half.

Compare a model and explanation

The first course is half as long as the second.

Four is half of eight.

5. One room is twelve square metres; another is eighteen. Give the difference.

Compare a model and explanation

The second room is six square metres larger than the first.

Subtract twelve from eighteen.

6. Correct: The days are getting more shorter and shorter.

Compare a model and explanation

The days are getting shorter and shorter.

Shorter already has comparative marking.

7. Explain the difference: twice as long / two metres longer.

Compare a model and explanation

Twice as long gives a ratio; two metres longer gives an added amount.

You need the original length to convert a ratio into a difference.

8. A route takes fifteen minutes; another takes forty-five. Give both a ratio and a difference.

Compare a model and explanation

The second route takes three times as long and is thirty minutes longer.

Forty-five divided by fifteen is three; the difference is thirty.

A short conversation

Listen first if you can, then open the transcript when useful.

Open the conversation transcript

A: Is the new room much larger than this one?

B: It is six square metres larger, but the rent is getting more and more expensive.

A: Is it twice as expensive?

B: No. This room costs four hundred a month and the new one costs five hundred.

Listening checks

Listen to each extract or open its transcript. These three questions have their own score.

1. How do the journey times compare?

Read the listening transcript

The old route took twenty minutes. The new route takes forty, although the scenery is much better.

Both take the same time.The new route takes twice as long.The new route is forty minutes longer.

2. Which comparison is correct?

Read the listening transcript

The small box weighs one kilo. The medium box weighs two kilos. The large box weighs three.

The large box is twice as heavy as the small one.The small box is half as heavy as the large one.The medium box is twice as heavy as the small one.

3. What is being described?

Read the listening transcript

Each month, fewer people use the old booking system. It is becoming less and less popular.

A gradual decreaseOne fixed difference in priceA two-to-one ratio

Answer key

How do the journey times compare?

The new route takes twice as long. Forty is twice twenty.

Which comparison is correct?

The medium box is twice as heavy as the small one. Two kilos is twice one kilo.

What is being described?

A gradual decrease Less and less indicates change over time.

The same adult man compares an old desk and a new desk in a refined office showroom. Their front widths are the same viewing plane and the new desk is modestly wider, by the caption’s twenty centimetres. A real unlettered measuring tape stretches across the new desk, but no readable numerical marks. Focus on the stated difference rather than suggesting twice the width. — The new desk is twenty centimetres wider.Twenty centimetres wider gives a measured difference rather than a ratio.

Use it in your own words

Speaking task 1

Compare two fictional study rooms: A is ten square metres and costs two hundred euros; B is twenty square metres and costs three hundred.

Reveal a possible response

Room B is twice as large as Room A. It is one hundred euros more expensive, but it is not twice as expensive. I would choose it for a group class.

Success check: Keep size and price comparisons on their own scales.

Speaking task 2

Describe two changes in your town or routine. Add one measured difference where you know the numbers.

Reveal a possible response

My schedule is getting busier and busier. Online meetings are becoming more common. My first class now starts thirty minutes earlier than before.

Success check: Separate a trend from a comparison between two known values.

Speaking task 3

Explain why twice as long is not the same as two hours longer. Give a numerical example.

Reveal a possible response

If one task takes three hours, twice as long is six hours. Two hours longer is five hours. The expressions compare the same starting point in different ways.

Success check: State the starting amount and calculate both results accurately.

Take it with you

I can describe gradual changes and compare amounts or sizes precisely.