You will need to know the rules for using comparative adjectives before you look at this lesson. After you have looked at this lesson, you can test yourself on as ... as with these practice exercises.

Using (not) as ... as

Julie isn't as tall as Maria.The four sentences below all describe the picture here:

  • Julie is shorter than Maria.
  • Maria isn't as short as Julie.
  • Maria is taller than Julie.
  • Julie isn't as tall as Maria.

We use not as + adjective + as to mean less ... than.

Expressing big and small differences 

We can use as ... as with other expressions to say there is no difference, a small difference or a big difference.

She's as old as Tom. = the same age

She's not quite as old as Tom. = a little younger

She's not as old as Tom. = younger

She's not nearly as old as Tom. = a lot younger 


Advanced points

You can also use (not) as ... as with an adjective + noun, but be careful with the word order:

She's a better student than I am.

I'm not as good a student as she is.

The sentences above have the same meaning. However, we put a after the adjective when we use as.


Now try these practice exercises to make comparisons using (not) as ... as.