In this lesson, we will examine different degrees of comparison of nouns, indicating their equality, inequality, or the extreme degree of an adjective in Spanish. We will study the comparison of equality, comparison of inequality, and superlatives.
Comparison of Equality
The two most common expressions in this category are:
1. tan + (adjective/adverb) + como … as (adjective/adverb) as …
| Este auto es tan caro como una casa. | This car is as expensive as a house. |
| Ella es tan alta como su hermana. | She is as tall as her sister. |
| Él habla tan claro como un profesor. | He speaks as clearly as a teacher. |
2. tanto/-a + (noun) + como … as much/many (noun) as …
| Él tiene tanto dinero como un millonario. | He has as much money as amillionaire. |
| Hay tanta gente acá como en Londres. | There are as many people here as in London. |
Comparison of Inequality
The following formula is used to express inequality when comparing two adjectives, adverbs, or nouns:
más/menos … que … more/less … than …
For example:
| Ella es más alta que su hermana. | She is taller than her sister. |
| Él habla más claro que un profesor. | He speaks more clearly than a teacher. |
| Él tiene más dinero que el presidente. | He has more money than the president. |
| Somos menos ricos que nuestros padres. | We are less rich than our parents. |
| Él habla menos claro que un profesor. | He speaks less clearly than a teacher. |
| Él tiene menos paciencia que mi hermano. | He has less patience than my brother. |
There are a few exceptions to the above formula:
| bueno | good | mejor | better |
| malo | bad | peor | worse |
| viejo | old | mayor | older |
| joven | young | menor | younger |
| grande | large | mayor | larger |
| pequeño | small | menor | smaller |
It is also common to hear “más grande” and “más pequeño” in a less formal speech, which mean “larger/older” and “smaller/younger,” respectively.
Superlatives
There are two ways to express the large or extreme degrees of an adjective.
Relative Superlatives
| el/la/los/las + más/menos + (adjective) | the + most/least + (adjective) |
Inserting a noun between the definite article “el/la/los/las” and “más/menos” is optional.
| Ella es la más inteligente de su clase. | She is the most intelligent in her class. |
| Somos los menos afectados por la crisis. | We are the least affected by the crisis. |
| Es el tema más importante en el país. | This is the most important topic in the country. |
| Es el político menos corrupto del parlamento. | He is the least corrupt politician in the parliament. |
The same exceptions used in the comparison of inequality still apply here.
| bueno | good | mejor | best |
| mal | bad | peor | worst |
| viejo | old | mayor | oldest |
| joven | young | menor | youngest |
| grande | large | mayor | largest |
| pequeño | small | menor | smallest |
Absolute Superlatives
One can express an absolute superlative by simply preceding the adjective with an adverb such as “muy” (very) or “extremamente/sumamente” (extremely). For example:
| Este estadio está muy frío. | This stadium is very cold. |
| El café está sumamente caliente. | The coffee is extremely hot. |
Another way is to use a prefix like “super-” or “re-,” for example:
| Este estadio está superfrío. | This stadium is super cold. |
| El café está recaliente. | The coffee is super-hot. |
Absolute Superlatives with “-ísimo” Ending
Another common way to express absolute superlatives is by using adjectives ending in “-ísimo” for masculine or “-ísima” for masculine, translated as “very,” “quite,” or “extremely.” It is usually constructed by removing the vowel at the end of the adjective (if it exists) and attaching the suffix “-ísimo.”
| grande | large | grandísimo | extremely large |
| mucho | much/many | muchísimo | too much/many |
| bueno | good | buenísimo | really good |
| pequeño | small | pequeñísimo | tiny |
| caliente | hot | calientísimo [1] | extremely hot |
Adjectives ending with “g,” which sounds like “get,” or “c,” which sounds like “cold,” undergo orthographic change to maintain the same pronunciation.
| amargo | bitter | amarguísimo | extremely bitter |
| fresco | fresh | fresquísimo | extremely fresh |
Adjectives ending with “z” undergo an orthographic change that replaces “z” with “c.”
| feliz | happy | felicísimo | extremely happy |
Adjectives ending with “-ble” must change the suffix to “-bil” before adding “-ísimo.”
| amable | kind | amabilísimo | extremely kind |
| miserable | miserable | miserabilísimo | extremely miserable |
Some adjectives ending with “-n” take the suffix “-císimo” instead of “-ísimo.”
| joven | young | jovencísimo | extremely young |
Many qualitative adjectives ending with “-ro,” “-ra,” or “-re” take the suffix “-érrimo” instead of “-ísimo.”
| íntegro | full whole | integérrimo | extremely full |
| áspero | harsh | aspérrimo | extremely harsh |
| mísero | meager | misérrimo | extremely meager |
| libre | free | libérrimo | extremely free |
| salubre | healthy | salubérrimo | extremely healthy |
Other adjectives are completely irregular.
| amigo | friend | amicísimo [2] | extremely friendly |
| antiguo | ancient | antiquísimo | extremely ancient |
| fiel | faithful | fidelísimo | extremely faithful |
| sabio | wise | sapientísimo | extremely wise |
| sagrado | sacred | sacratísimo | extremely sacred |
| simple | simple | simplicísimo | extremely simple |
[2] A more common alternative form is “amiguísimo.”
Quiz: Degrees of Comparison in Spanish
Next: Past Tense: Preterite & Imperfect
Other lessons in Level IV:
