The water of this well is ____________ sweet.

[jjoyjoyjoy]

Hello there! I would like to know which degree of the adjective "sweet" is appropriate to use in the following sentence:
"The water of this well is ________ (sweet)."

As there is no use of comparative words like "the" or "than" before the blank, I believe it is more appropriate to use the positive degree of the adjective:
"The water of this well is sweet"

However, I am curious to know if it is possible to use the superlative or comparative degrees of "sweet" in this sentence.

 

[probus]

Hello @jjoyjoyjoy and welcome to the forum. As always, the answer depends on context. All three of sweet, sweeter, and sweetest may be the correct choice. We need more context in order to help you.

 

[jjoyjoyjoy]

Thank you! This statement is taken directly from an English grammar book. We were instructed to fill in the blanks with appropriate degrees of adjectives, and this was one of the sentences provided to us. I was able to solve the other questions but got quite confused over this one. I can provide you with an image of the worksheet if that is okay.

 

[Rover_KE]

Sorry, @jjoyjoyjoy, but we don‘t help students with their homework.

 

[jjoyjoyjoy]

Sorry, @jjoyjoyjoy, but we don‘t help students with their homework.

Apologies for the confusion, but this is not my homework. I am preparing for my upcoming English exam and was solving exercises from an English grammar book to strengthen my knowledge. I don't have any other resources to ask for help.

 

[SoothingDave]

"Sweet water" is a term used to denote fresh water, versus salty or brackish water.

It's binary. Water is either sweet or not. It's not like you're having iced tea which may be sweet, sweeter, or sweetest compared to other teas, based on sugar content.

 

[emsr2d2]

This statement is taken directly from an English grammar book.

... solving exercises from an English grammar book to strengthen my knowledge.

It is a rule of this forum that you must cite your source whenever you quote someone else's words. Please provide the title of the grammar book and the name(s) of the author(s).

 

[stanislaw.masny]

NOT A TEACHER

SoothingDave suggests that water may or may not be sweet, (meaning fresh}. It could be salty but not, so I guess it must be sweet water. But I do not know of this.

 

[Tarheel]

@stanislaw.masny It's regional, I think. And, as @SoothingDave explained, it only means fresh water, not salty water.