Syllables and degrees of comparision

Asked Apr 15 '20 at 02:23

Active Apr 15 '20 at 19:31

Viewed 28 times

Rule says: In a positive degree if a word ends in a consonant and there's a short vowel before the consonant, then we double the last consonant and add -er or -est.

Example: big -> bigger -> biggest

Why don't we apply this rule to Grey?

Grey -> greyyer -> greyyest

edited Apr 15 '20 at 19:31

Decapitated Soul

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asked Apr 15 '20 at 02:23

user372766

1

Why do you think the "e" in grey is a short vowel? – Peter Shor Apr 15 '20 at 02:29
Also, y in grey is probably a vowel, not a consonant (since the distinction depends on the sound). – Andrew Leach Apr 15 '20 at 19:52
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The doubling rule never applies to the letter y. I think my answer to a related question about the doubling rule (before the suffix -ed) answers your question also: "Focussed" or "focused"? Rules for doubling the last consonant when adding -ed – herisson Apr 15 '20 at 20:06
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@user372766 "Rule says: In a positive degree if a word ends in a consonant" - please understand that, in English, there are no "rules"; there is guidance... some guidance looks like a rule, but is probably not. – Greybeard Apr 20 '20 at 09:15

Syllables and degrees of comparision

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