A more than

Question

The fury of a demon instantly possessed me. I knew myself no longer. My original soul seemed, at once, to take its flight from my body; and a more than fiendish malevolence, gin-nurtured, thrilled every fibre of my frame.
<Source: The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe http://poestories.com/read/blackcat>

I think "more" is a determiner because a pronoun can't be modified by "a."
So I'd like to know what word is omitted after "more."

Thank you in advance for your help.

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

park sang joonI'd like to know what word is omitted after "more."

You persist in thinking that anything you don't understand is missing words!

Here's the grouping. It's not a common construction. It's mostly literary.

a ...... [more than fiendish] .... malevolence

This is even worse (more fiendish) than "a fiendish malevolence". It's a malevolence that is more fiendish than a fiendish malevolence.
________

Compare:

a more than doubtful character
a more than ordinary beauty
a more than blissful happiness
________

In this construction, 'more than' acts as 'very' or 'extremely'.

A fit and strong Torres, in mind and body, is a more than welcome sign for Spain.
In that case, homemade coconut ice cream is a more than acceptable substitute.
Complemented by a more than adequate wine list, this tapas menu is a beauty.

Does that help?

CJ

Park sang joon · Answer

Thank you, Mr.Jim, for your very helpful answer.

You persist in thinking that anything you don't understand is missing words!

I'm so sorry

This is even worse (more fiendish) than "a fiendish malevolence". It's a malevolence that is more fiendish than a fiendish malevolence.

Then, can I think "malevolence" is omitted?
But I know the order of the words should be changed as the following so that I could insert the word "malevolence."
: "and more worse a malevolence than fiendish malevolence"

CalifJim · Answer

park sang joonThen, can I think "malevolence" is omitted?

If you really like to think of it like that, then please do.

park sang joonBut I know the order of the words should be changed as the following so that I ~~could~~ can insert the word "malevolence."

Exactly.

park sang joonand ~~more worse~~ a worse malevolence than fiendish malevolence

You can't have 'more worse' in English.

'worse' = 'more bad', so 'more worse' = 'more more bad'. It doesn't work to say the same thing twice.

CJ

Park sang joon · Answer

Thank you Mr.Jim for your very very helpful answer and correction.

You can't have 'more worse' in English.

I'm such a fool that I'm very grieved.

A more than

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