Morals and Life Lessons
Senior 4 · English (Languages)
Morals and Life Lessons
Lesson 3 of 5
40 min
Let's begin
A moral story lives in its details: not just what a character did, but how (reluctantly, honestly), how much more than before (more bravely than anyone expected), how it felt (ashamed, relieved) and how two choices were balanced (either … or, not only … but also). This lesson gathers four groups of words that do this work: adverbs, comparative and superlative forms, adjectives for feelings, and correlative conjunctions. All four appear in the model text.
A diary entry written by Ganzaa; the writer, Habimana, and the match are imagined.
I have never felt both so proud and so embarrassed in one afternoon. We were losing 1–0 in the inter-school final when the ball came across fast and low. I jumped higher than the defender, but it hit my hand, not my head, and went in. The referee, who was badly placed behind a player, gave the goal. Our supporters went wild.
I should have been thrilled. Instead I felt sick. Neither the noise nor my teammates' hugs could change what I knew. I had a choice: either I kept quiet or I told the truth. I walked slowly to the referee and told him quietly what had happened. He looked surprised, then disallowed the goal.
We lost 1–0. My captain was furious, and the walk back to the bus was the most embarrassing ten minutes of my life. Not only did the other team's coach shake my hand, but he also asked my name. Tonight I am less disappointed than I expected. I played worse than usual today, but I think I behaved better than I have ever behaved.
| Type | Answers the question | Examples | Usual position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manner | How? | slowly, quietly, honestly, well, fast | after the verb or its object: He told him quietly. |
| Degree | How much? | very, extremely, quite, rather, too, enough, almost | before the adjective or adverb: extremely proud; enough comes after: brave enough |
| Frequency | How often? | always, usually, often, sometimes, never | before the main verb, after be: I have never felt…; He is always late. |
| Time and place | When? Where? | today, already, soon; here, nearby | usually at the end: We lost today. |
| Comment (sentence) | What does the speaker think? | fortunately, honestly, clearly, sadly | at the start, with a comma: Fortunately, the referee listened. |
Forming adverbs of manner: add -ly (quiet → quietly); -y → -ily (happy → happily); -le → -ly (gentle → gently); -ic → -ically (tragic → tragically). Irregular: good → well; fast, hard, late, early keep the same form. Beware: hardly means "almost not" (I could hardly breathe), and lately means "recently".
| Kind | Comparative | Superlative |
|---|---|---|
| Same form as the adjective: fast, hard, high, late | faster, harder, higher, later | (the) fastest, hardest, highest, latest |
| Adverbs in -ly | more slowly, more honestly | (the) most slowly, most honestly |
| Irregular | well → better; badly → worse; far → farther / further; little → less; much → more | best; worst; farthest / furthest; least; most |
| Feeling adjectives in -ed | more embarrassed, less disappointed | the most embarrassed |
Equality and inequality: He played as well as his captain. He did not play as (or so) well as usual. Lower degree: I am less disappointed than I expected.
Definition
Key terms
Many feeling adjectives come in pairs. The -ed form describes how a person feels; the -ing form describes the thing or person that causes the feeling.
| How you feel (-ed) | What causes it (-ing) | Example |
|---|---|---|
| embarrassed | embarrassing | The walk to the bus was embarrassing; I was embarrassed. |
| disappointed | disappointing | The result was disappointing, but I was less disappointed than I expected. |
| frustrated | frustrating | It is frustrating to lose a final; the captain was frustrated. |
| surprised | surprising | His honesty was surprising; the referee looked surprised. |
| thrilled | thrilling | It was a thrilling match; the fans were thrilled. |
Other feeling adjectives take fixed prepositions: ashamed of, proud of, guilty about, anxious about, angry with someone / about something, grateful to someone for something, jealous of, disappointed in or with someone. Strong (non-gradable) adjectives such as furious, delighted, terrified, exhausted take absolutely or really, not very: very furious → absolutely furious.
| Pair | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| both … and | the two together | I felt both proud and embarrassed. |
| either … or | one of two choices | Either I kept quiet or I told the truth. |
| neither … nor | not one and not the other | Neither the noise nor the hugs could change it. |
| not only … but also | this, and something more surprising | He not only shook my hand but also asked my name. |
| whether … or | it does not matter which | Whether we win or lose, we play fairly. |
Agreement: with either … or and neither … nor, the verb agrees with the nearer subject: Neither the captain nor the players were pleased. Neither the players nor the captain was pleased. With both … and, the verb is plural. Inversion: when Not only starts a sentence, invert the subject and auxiliary: Not only did the coach shake my hand, but he also asked my name.
Worked example 1: fixing a broken correlative
Faulty: He was not only honest but also he apologised.
Worked example 2: choosing the form from the meaning
Complete: The coach spoke ___ (calm) to the ___ (disappoint) players. He told them that he was ___ (proud) of their honesty than of any trophy.
Warning
Common errors
Tip
Feel it or cause it? Ask: is this word about the person inside the feeling, or about the thing outside that produced it? Inside → -ed (I'm confused). Outside → -ing (the rules are confusing). A person can be both: He is bored (he feels it) or He is boring (he makes others feel it); choose carefully!
Grammar Challenge: -ed and -ing adjectives, BBC Learning English (about 6 minutes). Listen to the grammar explanation, then try the challenge yourself before the learner answers.
Practice
Key points
Sources and credits
Quick check
Choose the correct sentence.
