Question

French Tutorial: Comparatives & Superlatives

Answer 1

\({\bf{Comparisons:}}\) are used to describe adjectives, nouns, and verbs where one has more of a certain quality than the other. In general, there are three ways to make a comparison: to say that one is *greater* than the other; that one is *less* than the other; and that both are *equal*.

Adjectives
plus...que: greater than
aussi... que: equal to
moins... que: less than

que (or qu', as appropriate) directly precedes the noun/pronoun being compared.
as usual, the adjective must be changed to match the gender & number of the noun being modified.

examples:
Les corbeaux sont plus intelligents que la plupart des enfants. (Crows are smarter than most children.)
Il est aussi grand qu'un arbre. (He is as tall as a tree.)
Le lac est moins mousseux que la mer. (The lake is less foamy than the sea.)

Answer 2

Nouns
plus de: more
autant de: as many
moins de: fewer

de (or d') directly precedes the noun being used to draw a comparison. note: remember that it is autant de, not aussi de.

examples:
Ils ont plus de vêtements que nous. (They have more clothes than we do.)
Le frère a autant de corvées que la sœur. (The brother has as many chores as the sister.)
Tu as moins de responsabilités que moi. (You have fewer responsibilities than I do.)

Answer 3

Verbs
plus que: more than
autant que: as much as
moins que: less than

the expression directly follows the verb.

J'étudie beaucoup plus que la plupart des gens ici. (I study much more than most people here do.)
Elle peut manger autant que son petit ami. (She can eat as much as her boyfriend can.)
Les parents disciplinent leurs enfants beaucoup moins qu'auparavant. (Parents discipline their children much less than they used to.)

Answer 4

\({\bf{Superlatives:}}\) are used when some subject has the most of a certain quality than any others being compared.

Adjectives
For most adjectives, simply add le/la/les in front of the adjective to change it to the superlative form. There are some exceptions, which will also be covered in this tutorial.

ex:
venteux (windy)
plus venteux que... (windier than)
le plus venteux (the windiest)

Aujourd'hui est venteux. (Today is windy.)
Aujourd'hui est plus venteux qu'hier. (Today is windier than yesterday was.)
Aujourd'hui est le jour le plus venteux que j'ai vu. (Today is the windiest day I have ever seen.)

Answer 5

Nouns
we will focus on "the least" and "the most" with respect to nouns

le plus de (noun): the most
le moins de (noun): the least

Notre groupe a le plus d'invités cette semaine. (Our party has the most guests out of any party this week.)
Les personnes les moins travailleuses reçoivent le plus d'attention. (The least hard-working people receive the most attention.)

Answer 6

Verbs

le plus: the most
le moins: the least

Les personnes travailleurs gagnent le plus. (Hard-working people earn the most.)
Les gens désagréables écoutent le moins. (Obnoxious people listen the least.)

Answer 7

\({\bf{Irregulare~Comparatives~and~Superlatives:}}\)

Irregular Comparatives
Bon/bonne/bons/bonnes: good
Meillur/meillure/meillurs/meillurs: better

Mauvais/mauvaise/mauvaises: bad
plus mauvais *or* pire: worse

Petit/Petite/Petits/Petites: Small
Plus petit: smaller

examples:
Quatre pattes sont bonnes. Deux jambes song meillures. (Four legs are good. Two legs are better.)
Les règles sont mauvaises mais la grossesse est pire. (Periods are bad but pregnancy is worse.)
Elle est petite et sa petite sœur est plus petite. (She is small and her little sister is smaller.)

Superlatives
le/la/les meillure/s etc.: the best
le/la/les mauvais/es *or* pire, etc. : the worst
le/la/les moindre/s: the least

examples:

Les chats de Chantilly sont les meilleurs chats. (Chantilly cats are the best cats.)
Les enfants sont les mauvaises/pires animaux de compagnie. (Children are the worst pets.)
Les gens ici ont la moindre courtoisie que j'ai jamais vue. (People here have the least courtesy I have ever seen.)

Answer 8

\({\bf{References:}}\)

Rochester, Myrna B. Easy French Step-by-Step, United States, McGraw-Hill Education, 2009, 216-221.

https://www.talkinfrench.com/french-comparatives-and-superlatives/

CollinsDictionary for French and English translations

Forvo (https://forvo.com/), a French pronunciation database with samples from native French speakers