Degrees of Comparison in French

In this lesson, we will examine different degrees of comparison of nouns in French, indicating their equality, inequality, or the extreme degree of an adjective.

We will study the comparison of equality, the comparison of inequality, and superlatives.

Comparatives of Equality

The most common expressions in this category are:

1. aussi + (adjective/adverb) + que … as (adj./adv.) as …

Cette voiture est aussi chère qu’une maison.	This car is as expensive as a house.
Elle est aussi grande que sa sœur.	She is as tall as her sister.
Il parle aussi clairement qu’un professeur.	He speaks as clearly as a teacher.

2. autant de + (noun) + que … as much/many (noun) as …

Il a autant d’argent qu’un millionnaire.	He has as much* money as amillionaire.*
Il y a autant de monde ici qu’à Londres.	There are as many* people here as in London.*

Comparatives of Inequality

The following formula is used to express inequality when comparing two adjectives, adverbs, or nouns:

plus/moins (de)… que … more/less … than …

For example:

Elle est plus grande que sa sœur.	She is taller than her sister.
Il parle plus clairement qu’un professeur.	He speaks more clearly than a teacher.
Il a plus d’argent que le président.	He has more money than the president.
Nous sommes moins riches que nos parents.	We are less rich than our parents.
Il parle moins clairement qu’un professeur.	He speaks less clearly than a teacher.
Il a moins de patience que mon frère.	He has less patience than my brother.

Notice that “de” is added only when comparing nouns, but not when comparing adjectives or adverbs.

It is also possible to use the above structure to compare an adjective to another adjective of the same noun. For example:

Son discours est plus émotif que précis.	His speech is more* emotional than it is accurate.*
Ils sont plus professionnels qu’expérimentés.	They are more* professional than they are experienced.*

Irregular Forms

Only few adjectives and adverbs have irregular forms, or both regular and irregular forms. Here are the most common irregular adjectives (in the singular masculine form) and adverbs:

bon	good	meilleur	better
mauvais	bad	pire (or) plus mauvais	worse
petit	little	moins	less
bien	well	mieux	better
mal	badly	pire (or) plus mal	worse
peu	little	moins	less

Superlatives

There are two ways to express the large or extreme degrees of an adjective.

1. Relative Superlatives

le/la/les + plus/moins + (adjective)

the + most/least + (adjective)

Here are some examples:

Elle est la plus intelligente de sa classe.	She is the most* intelligent in her class.*
Nous sommes les moins touchés par la crise.	We are the least* affected by the crisis.*
C’est le sujet le plus important du pays.	This is the most* important topic in the country.*
Il est le politicien le moins corrompu du parlement.	He is the least* corrupt politician in the parliament.*
Ce sont les femmes les plus courageuses que j’ai jamais vues.	They are the most* courageous women I have ever seen.*

Irregular Forms

The following adjectives (listed here in their singular masculine form) and adverbs have irregular forms as relative superlatives:

bon	good	le meilleur	best
mauvais	bad	le pire (or) le plus mauvais	worst
petit	little	le moindre	least
bien	well	le mieux	best
mal	badly	le pire (or) le plus mal	worst
peu	little	le moins	least

2. Absolute Superlatives

One can express an absolute superlative by simply preceding the adjective with an adverb such as “très” (very) or “extrêmement” (extremely). For example:

Ce stade est très froid.	This stadium is very* cold.*
Le café est extrêmement chaud.	The coffee is extremely* hot.*

Next: Partitives

Back to: French Lessons

Other lessons in Level IV:

Level IV – Intermediate

1. Degrees of Comparison

2. Partitives

3. Reflexive Pronouns & Verbs

4. Expressions Using “Avoir” & “Faire”

5. Present Subjunctive Tense I

6. Impersonal Verbs & Expressions

7. Future Perfect Tense

8. Interjections