Grammar Error: Adjective Forms in Comparisons

The sentence provided is: "Of the three runners, he was the faster."

The task is to identify the grammatical error within this sentence.

Understanding Adjective Comparisons

Adjectives change their form to show comparison. There are two main comparative forms:

• Comparative Form: Used when comparing exactly two items. It usually ends in '-er' or uses the word 'more' before the adjective (e.g., faster, taller, more beautiful).
• Superlative Form: Used when comparing three or more items. It usually ends in '-est' or uses the word 'most' before the adjective (e.g., fastest, tallest, most beautiful).

Analyzing the Sentence

Let's break down the sentence:

• "Of the three runners..." establishes that we are considering a group of three individuals.
• "...he was the faster." attempts to describe one runner ('he') within that group.

Applying the Rule

Since the comparison involves one runner ('he') against a group of three runners, we must use the superlative form of the adjective 'fast'.

• The comparative form is 'faster'.
• The superlative form is 'fastest'.

The sentence incorrectly uses the comparative form ('faster') when the superlative form ('fastest') is required because the comparison is made among more than two runners.

Identifying the Error

Based on the grammar rules:

• The word 'faster' is incorrect in this context.
• The correct word should be 'fastest'.

Therefore, the error lies in the word 'faster'.

Reviewing Options

The options provided were parts of the sentence:

1. $
   was
   $ - This is the correct verb form.
2. $
   three
   $ - This correctly sets the context of the group size.
3. $
   runners
   $ - This correctly identifies the items being compared.
4. $
   faster
   $ - This is the incorrect adjective form for comparing one against three.

The identified error corresponds to option 4.