Mastering Spanish - Online Spanish LessonsComparatives Part I
General Rules Comparatives, as the name suggests, draw a comparison between two people, items, situations, etc. If I compare myself to my sister, I could say that I am older than my sister, that my sister is taller than me, that I have darker hair, etc. Older, taller and darker are all comparative adjectives. As you can see, many comparative constructions in English are formed by adding –er to the end of an adjective. Others, like beautiful, use the words more or less to draw a comparison:
She says roses are more beautiful than daisies. Cooking at home is less expensive than eating in restaurants.
Notice that, in all cases, than follows the comparative construction. Most Spanish comparatives use a construction very similar to the more… than construction—the más… que construction. Observe the translations of the sentences about my sister:
Mi hermana es más alta que yo. Mi pelo es más oscuro que el suyo.
Note that the adjective still agrees with the noun—in “My sister is more tall than me,” the adjective tall is in a feminine singular form. The más… que construction may also be used with nouns and adverbs, as below:
To express less… than in Spanish, use menos… que:
Él gana menos dinero que yo.
He earns less money than I. Note that there is also an exception for numbers. When a comparative is followed by a number, use más… de:
Negative Comparisons When the meaning of the sentence is negative, use no… más… que. Do NOT use de if the sentence is negative!
Irregular Comparatives The following adjectives have irregular comparative forms. Both English and Spanish forms are included:
Note that irregular comparatives are also followed by que:
Practice
Fill in the blanks with the missing words:
1) Nueva York es _____________ grande _____________ Pittsburgh. 2) Es una ciudad con _____________ _____________ ocho millones de habitantes. 3) Hay _____________ personas en el centro _____________ en las afueras. 4) Hay _____________ personas en la ciudad de Nueva York _____________ en muchos estados.
Form sentences according to the model:
OR Ella es menor que yo.
5) Elena es muy alta. Carlos es mediano. 6) El gato es gordo. El perro no es muy gordo. 7) 85% es bueno. 95% es muy bueno. 8) 60% es malo. 45% es muy malo.
For extra credit, translate the exercises to English.
Answers 1) Nueva York es más grande que Pittsburgh. 2) Es una ciudad con más de ocho millones de habitantes. 3) Hay más personas en el centro que en las afueras. 4) Hay más personas en la ciudad de Nueva York que en muchos estados. 5) Elena es más alta que Carlos. OR Carlos es más bajo que Elena. 6) El gato es más gordo que el perro. 7) 95% es mejor que 85%. OR 85% es peor que 95%. 8) 45% es peor que 60%. OR 60% es mejor que 45%.
Translation 1) New York is larger than Pittsburgh. 2) It is a city with more than 8 million inhabitants. 3) There are more people in the main city (downtown) than in the outskirts (suburbs). 4) There are more people in New York City than in many states. 5) Elena is taller than Carlos. OR Carlos is shorter than Elena. 6) The cat is heavier (fatter) than the dog. 7) 95% is better than 85%. OR 85% is worse than 95%. 8) 45% is worse than 60%. OR 60% is better than 45%.
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[1] A strict English grammarian will argue that this sentence should read “He works faster than she” because it is a shortened form of “He works faster than she works.” Since this is a grammar lesson, I couldn’t bring myself to write the common usage, “He works faster than her.” An intriguing defense of the common usage is offered in an Oxford University Press publication, Explaining English Grammar, p. 4. http://www.oup.com/pdf/elt/catalogue/0-19-437172-7-a.pdf [2] The comparative form más grande is also acceptable to denote “larger.” Click here to go to Archives of Spanish Grammar topics
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