more
- 01 A1 Beginner
det.a larger number of people or things, or a larger amount of something.
det.the comparative form of 'much' and 'many', indicating a greater quantity or number of the noun it modifies.
Simple“We need more chairs in the classroom because five new students arrived.”
In context“The researchers requested more funding to complete the second phase of the clinical trials before the end of the fiscal year.”
UsageUsed before both countable and uncountable nouns.
PitfallI have more better ideas. I have better ideas.Do not use 'more' with adjectives that already end in '-er' (like better, faster, or taller).
Synonyms - 02 A1 Beginner
adv.used to show that something has a quality to a higher degree, or happens more often.
adv.used as a modifier to form the comparative degree of adjectives and adverbs, typically those with two or more syllables.
Simple“This book is more interesting than the one I read last week.”
In context“The new software operates more efficiently than the previous version, significantly reducing the time required for data processing.”
UsagePlaced before the adjective or adverb it modifies.
- 03 A2 Elementary
pron.a larger amount or number of something already mentioned.
pron.functions as a substitute for a noun phrase representing a greater or additional quantity.
Simple“I have finished my water; could I please have some more?”
In context“While some participants were satisfied with the initial results, more of them expressed concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of the project.”
UsageOften followed by 'of' before a specific noun or pronoun.
- 04 B1 Intermediate
adv.used in negative sentences to mean that something has stopped happening.
adv.used in negative constructions to indicate the cessation of a state or activity.
Simple“He doesn't live in London any more; he moved to the countryside.”
In context“The old factory is no longer operational, and the local council does not provide maintenance for the site any more.”
UsageUsually appears at the end of a clause in the phrase 'any more'.
From Middle English more, from Old English māra (“more”), from Proto-West Germanic maiʀō, from Proto-Germanic maizô (“more”), from Proto-Indo-European *mē- (“many”). Cognate with Scots mair (“more”), Saterland Frisian moor (“more”), West Frisian mear (“more”), Dutch meer (“more”), Low German mehr (“more”), German mehr (“more”), Danish mere (“more”), Swedish mera (“more”), Norwegian Bokmål mer (“more”), Norwegian Nynorsk meir (“more”), Icelandic meiri, meira (“more”).
From Middle English more, moore (“root”), from Old English more, moru (“carrot, parsnip”) from Proto-West Germanic morhā, from Proto-Germanic murhǭ (“carrot”), from Proto-Indo-European *merk- (“edible herb, tuber”). Akin to Old Saxon moraha (“carrot”), Old High German morha, moraha (“root of a plant or tree”) (German Möhre (“carrot”), Morchel (“mushroom, morel”)). More at morel.
From Middle English moren, from the noun. See above.
Back-formation from mores.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
For Mandarin speakers Mandarin lacks a distinct comparative inflection like the English '-er' suffix, using the adverb 更多 (gèng duō) for all comparisons. Learners often over-rely on 'more' as a universal marker, producing redundant structures such as 'more taller' instead of 'taller'.
The Mandarin verb 增加 (zēngjiā) covers both 'increase' and 'add more'. This leads to the erroneous collocation 'add more weight' or 'add more effort' where Mandarin speakers might translate the concept of 'extra' as a verb-noun pair that feels redundant in English.
For Japanese speakers Japanese phonology lacks the rhotic /ɹ/ and the /ɔː/ vowel, often mapping 'more' to the moraic structure /moa/. This results in a disyllabic pronunciation with a tapped /ɾ/ or a long vowel /moː/, lacking the distinct English post-vocalic R-coloring.
Japanese uses the particle 'yori' (より) to indicate comparison without modifying the adjective itself. Learners often omit 'more' before multi-syllable adjectives because the L1 syntax does not require a comparative marker attached to the quality word.
The Japanese phrase 'motto takusan' (もっとたくさん) combines two markers of quantity. This often results in the redundant English collocation 'more many' or 'more much' instead of simply using 'more' or 'more of'.