Using the suffixes -er and -est - Free Printable

It looks like you've uploaded a worksheet titled "Learning About Suffixes: 'er' and 'est'". The task is to choose the correct word (either with the suffix "-er" or "-est") to complete each sentence.

Let's go through each sentence one by one, determine which form ("-er" or "-est") fits best based on context, and explain why.

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1. Chris is the ______ player on the team.

- Options: faster, fastest
- Answer: *fastest*
- Explanation: "The" before the blank indicates we're talking about the superlative (comparing more than two). So, we use -est.

✔ Chris is the fastest player on the team.

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2. I have four cats and Marge is the ______ of them.

- Options: smarter, smartest
- Answer: *smartest*
- Explanation: Again, "the" + comparison among multiple cats → superlative. Use -est.

✔ Marge is the smartest of them.

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3. Sharks in the tenth grade, and I am ______ than Oak.

- Options: older, oldest
- Answer: *older*
- Explanation: "Than" signals a comparative (two people being compared). So, use -er.

✔ I am older than Oak.

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4. Mrs. Thyrre is a ______ teacher in our school.

- Options: sicer, nicer, nice — Wait! There’s a typo.
- Likely meant to be: nicer, nicest
- But it says: sicer — probably a typo for nicer?
- Assuming it's supposed to be nicer or nicest.
- Since it says "a ______ teacher", not "the", it's not necessarily superlative.
- But “a” can be used with comparatives in informal speech, but here it seems like a positive or comparative form.
- However, "a nicer teacher" makes sense if comparing to others.
- But the sentence is incomplete: *"Mrs. Thyrre is a ______ teacher in our school."*

Wait — this might be missing context. But likely intended to be:
> Mrs. Thyrre is a nicer teacher than some others.

But as written, without a comparison, it could be either.

However, since it says "in our school", that suggests she's being ranked among all teachers → superlative.

So, even though it says "a", the phrase "in our school" implies a top-ranking.

So better choice: nicest

✔ Mrs. Thyrre is a nicest teacher in our school. → Actually, grammatically incorrect.

We say: "the nicest teacher", not "a nicest".

So unless it's a typo, this is problematic.

But the options are: sicer (likely typo), nicer, nicest

Given the context, likely intended to be:

> Mrs. Thyrre is the nicest teacher in our school.

But the blank is after "a", so maybe it's:

> Mrs. Thyrre is a nicer teacher than most.

But the sentence ends at "in our school."

Possibly a typo in the worksheet.

Assuming the intended sentence is:
> Mrs. Thyrre is the ______ teacher in our school.

Then answer: nicest

But as printed: "a ______ teacher in our school" — then "nicer" would work if comparing to others, but "nicest" requires "the".

So "nicer" is safer if we assume the sentence is:
> Mrs. Thyrre is a nicer teacher than most.

But since no comparison is made, perhaps it's just a mistake.

Alternatively, maybe it's meant to be "the nicest", and "a" is a typo.

But since we must choose from given words, and "sicer" is clearly wrong (typo), likely choices are nicer or nicest.

Best fit: nicer — because "a nicer teacher" is acceptable in comparative contexts.

✔ Mrs. Thyrre is a nicer teacher in our school. — awkward, but possible.

Wait — let's recheck:
"Mrs. Thyrre is a ______ teacher in our school."

This is poorly constructed. If it's saying she is one of the best, it should be:
> Mrs. Thyrre is one of the nicest teachers...

But as written, "nicer" is the only logical choice if it's comparative.

But no "than" clause.

So likely, the intended answer is nicer, assuming it's part of a larger comparison.

But this is ambiguous.

Wait — looking back at the original image:
> 4. Mrs. Thyrre is a ______ teacher in our school.

And options: sicer, nicer, nicest

Clearly "sicer" is a typo — should be nicer or nicest?

Probably: nicer — but still odd.

Alternatively, maybe it's:
> Mrs. Thyrre is a nicer teacher than the others.

But again, not stated.

Perhaps it's a typo, and should be "the nicest".

But since the instruction says "choose the correct word", and the options are listed as:
sicer, nicer, nicest — and "sicer" is nonsense, so likely the student is to pick between nicer and nicest.

Given the structure "a ______ teacher in our school", it's more natural to say:

> Mrs. Thyrre is a nicer teacher than many others.

But without "than", it's weak.

Alternatively, maybe it's meant to be:

> Mrs. Thyrre is the nicest teacher in our school.

But it says "a", not "the".

So this may be an error in the worksheet.

But in standard grammar, "the nicest" is required for superlative.

Therefore, "nicer" is the only viable option.

✔ Answer: nicer

(Though grammatically awkward, likely intended.)

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5. My poem was ______ longer than Betty's poem.

- Options: longer, longest
- Answer: *longer*
- Explanation: "Than" indicates comparative → use -er

✔ My poem was longer than Betty's poem.

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6. Kim is ______ tallest than Lacey.

- Options: taller, tallest
- Answer: *taller*
- Explanation: "Than" → comparative → use -er

Note: "tallest" cannot be used with "than"

✔ Kim is taller than Lacey.

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7. Joe's mother was the ______ at us for what we did.

- Options: madder, maddest
- Answer: *maddest* — but wait, "mad" doesn't take "-er"/"-est" naturally.

Actually, "mad" is irregular. The correct forms are:
- madder, maddest — but these are archaic or dialectal.
- Standard modern English uses angrier, angriest

But the worksheet gives madder and maddest — so likely accepting those.

Also, "the" before blank → superlative → use -est

✔ Joe's mother was the maddest at us...

But better: angriest — but since the worksheet offers maddest, we go with it.

✔ maddest

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8. Snow is ______ than HR.

- Options: smaller, smallest
- Answer: *smaller*
- Explanation: "Than" → comparative → -er

✔ Snow is smaller than HR.

(Note: "HR" might be a typo? Possibly "her"? Or "him"? But assumed as is.)

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9. Harry's book is ______ than mine.

- Options: shorter, shortest
- Answer: *shorter*
- Explanation: "Than" → comparative

✔ Harry's book is shorter than mine.

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10. That was the ______ movie I have ever seen.

- Options: scareder, scariest
- Answer: *scariest*
- Explanation: "The" + "I have ever seen" → superlative → -est

Note: "scareder" is not a word; correct form is scariest

✔ That was the scariest movie I have ever seen.

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11. Matt's cupcake is ______ than mine.

- Options: bigger, biggest
- Answer: *bigger*
- Explanation: "Than" → comparative

✔ Matt's cupcake is bigger than mine.

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12. Louis has the ______ desk in our room.

- Options: smaller, smallest
- Answer: *smallest*
- Explanation: "The" + "in our room" → superlative → -est

✔ Louis has the smallest desk in our room.

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13. We played the drums the ______ in the parade.

- Options: louder, loudest
- Answer: *loudest*
- Explanation: "The" → superlative → -est

✔ We played the drums the loudest in the parade.

(Note: "the loudest" is correct; "the louder" would be incorrect here.)

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14. Mike has the ______ baby brother.

- Options: cuter, cutest
- Answer: *cutest*
- Explanation: "The" → superlative → -est

✔ Mike has the cutest baby brother.

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✔ Final Answers:

| # | Answer |
|---|------------|
| 1 | fastest |
| 2 | smartest |
| 3 | older |
| 4 | nicer |
| 5 | longer |
| 6 | taller |
| 7 | maddest |
| 8 | smaller |
| 9 | shorter |
|10 | scariest |
|11 | bigger |
|12 | smallest |
|13 | loudest |
|14 | cutest |

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🔍 Summary of Rules:

- Use -er when comparing two things (e.g., "than").
- Use -est when comparing three or more (usually with "the").

> Example:
> - She is taller than me. ✔ (comparative)
> - She is the tallest in the class. ✔ (superlative)

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Let me know if you'd like this turned into a printable answer key or need help explaining it to a student!