GRAMMAR BANK
UNIT 6. GRAMMAR A
INTENSIFIERS WITH COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES
Intensifiers with comparatives:

BIG DIFFERENCE: much/ far/ a lot + comparatives This program is far more expensive than the other one. Programs in trade schools are much shorter than four-year colleges. | SMALL DIFFERENCE: slightly/ a bit/ a little + comparatives For me, English is slightly easier than Russian. The course is a bit more difficult than I expected.

as...as

Big difference not nearly + as adjective as Tural isn't nearly as smart as Mira (Big difference: Mira is much smarter than Tural.) There aren't nearly as many people in the conference today as there were yesterday. (There were far more people in the conference yesterday than there are today.) My school doesn't charge nearly as much as yours. (Your school charges much more than mine.) | Small differencee nearly/almost/not quite + as adjective as Our school building is nearly as tall as yours. (Small difference: Your school building is only a little taller than ours.) My school isn't quite as big as Kelly's. (Kelly's school is a little/a bit/ slightly bigger than mine.) The workshop didn't take quite as long as it did last time. (The workshop took a little/a bit/slightly longer last time.) | The same quite/just + as adjective as If we want to emphasise that two things are the same, we can use quite and just Theoretical knowledge is just as important as practical skills. Vocational education is quite as important as a university degree.

Intensifiers with superlatives:
We use easily and by far as intensifiers with superlative adjectives:
easily/by far + superlatives
This chef is easily the greatest instructor of all time.
Web-designing course was by far the most challenging thing I've ever had to do.