Grammar / A2 : Elementary / Comparatives
Comparatives
plus... que, moins... que, aussi... que: making comparisons.
More, less, as much as
Comparison is one of the most frequent structures in everyday French. You use it when describing cities, people, prices, habits, or experiences. The system is consistent: plus, moins and aussi carry the meaning of "more, less, as" and are combined with adjectives, adverbs, nouns, or verbs. Three common words (,bon, bien and mauvais) have irregular comparative forms that do not use plus. These must be learnt as a fixed group.
1. Comparing adjectives
Use plus, moins or aussi before the adjective, followed by que to introduce the second term of the comparison. The adjective always agrees with the noun it describes.
plus + adjective + que (more... than)
moins + adjective + que (less... than)
aussi + adjective + que (as... as)
| Structure | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| plus + adj + que | Paris est plus grande que Lyon. | Paris is bigger than Lyon. |
| moins + adj + que | Lyon est moins chère que Paris. | Lyon is less expensive than Paris. |
| aussi + adj + que | Ce film est aussi intéressant que le premier. | This film is as interesting as the first one. |
Il est plus grand que sa sœur. (He is taller than his sister.)
Elle est moins timide qu'avant. (She is less shy than before.); que → qu' before vowel
Les rues sont aussi animées que je l'espérais. (The streets are as lively as I had hoped.)
Ces chaussures sont plus confortables que les autres. (These shoes are more comfortable than the others.)
💡 The adjective agrees with the noun it modifies, not with the noun in the second term of comparison.
Marie est plus grande que Pierre.; grande agrees with Marie (feminine), not with Pierre.
Ces livres sont plus intéressants que les films.; intéressants agrees with livres (masculine plural).
2. Comparing adverbs
The structure is identical to adjectives. Adverbs do not agree with anything.
| Structure | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| plus + adv + que | Il parle plus vite que moi. | He speaks faster than me. |
| moins + adv + que | Elle travaille moins souvent que lui. | She works less often than him. |
| aussi + adv + que | Je me lève aussi tôt que toi. | I get up as early as you. |
3. Comparing nouns : quantities
When comparing quantities or amounts of something, the structure changes: use plus de, moins de or autant de (not aussi de) before the noun. No article is used after these expressions.
plus de + noun + que (more... than)
moins de + noun + que (less/fewer... than)
autant de + noun + que (as much/many... as)
| Structure | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| plus de + noun + que | Il a plus de temps que moi. | He has more time than me. |
| moins de + noun + que | Elle gagne moins d'argent que lui. | She earns less money than him. |
| autant de + noun + que | Tu as autant de travail que moi. | You have as much work as me. |
⚠ For nouns, the equality form is autant de (not aussi de).
❌ Tu as aussi de travail que moi.
✓ Tu as autant de travail que moi.
4. Comparing verbs : actions
When comparing how much or how often an action is performed, place plus, moins or autant (without de) after the verb and before que.
| Structure | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| verb + plus + que | Il travaille plus que moi. | He works more than me. |
| verb + moins + que | Je dors moins que toi. | I sleep less than you. |
| verb + autant + que | Elle mange autant que lui. | She eats as much as him. |
5. Superlatives
The superlative expresses the highest or lowest degree. Use the definite article (le, la, les) followed by plus or moins before the adjective. The article and adjective both agree with the noun.
le / la / les + plus + adjective: the most...
le / la / les + moins + adjective: the least...
Add de to specify "in / of" a group: le plus grand de la classe
Position : adjectives that come AFTER the noun
Most adjectives follow the noun. In the superlative, the article is repeated: noun + article + plus/moins + adjective.
| Example | English |
|---|---|
| C'est le film le plus intéressant de l'année. | It's the most interesting film of the year. |
| C'est la ville la plus belle du pays. | It's the most beautiful city in the country. |
| Ce sont les étudiants les plus sérieux de la classe. | They are the most serious students in the class. |
| C'est le restaurant le moins cher du quartier. | It's the least expensive restaurant in the area. |
Position : adjectives that come BEFORE the noun
Adjectives that normally precede the noun (grand, petit, bon, mauvais, jeune, vieux, beau...) keep that position in the superlative.
| Example | English |
|---|---|
| C'est la plus grande ville de France. | It's the largest city in France. |
| C'est le plus vieux bâtiment de la région. | It's the oldest building in the region. |
| C'est la plus petite chambre de l'hôtel. | It's the smallest room in the hotel. |
6. Irregular forms : meilleur, mieux, pire
Three very common words have irregular comparative and superlative forms. Using plus bon, plus bien or plus mauvais is either incorrect or much less natural than the irregular alternatives.
| Word | Comparative | Superlative | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| bon / bonne (adjective: good) | meilleur / meilleure | le/la meilleur(e) | Ce restaurant est meilleur que l'autre. C'est le meilleur restaurant de la ville. |
| bien (adverb: well) | mieux | le mieux | Il parle mieux que moi. Il parle le mieux de tous. |
| mauvais / mauvaise (adjective: bad) | pire (or plus mauvais) | le/la pire | Ce film est pire que le précédent. C'est le pire film de l'année. |
⚠ meilleur vs mieux: this is the most frequently confused pair.
meilleur is an adjective (it replaces a noun and agrees with it:)
Ce café est meilleur. (This coffee is better.); describes café
mieux is an adverb (it modifies a verb and never changes form:)
Je parle mieux. (I speak better.): modifies parle
Test: can you replace the word with an adjective like bon? → use meilleur. Can you replace it with an adverb like bien? → use mieux.
Tu vas mieux aujourd'hui ? (Are you feeling better today?): aller bien/mieux
Elle est meilleure en français qu'en anglais. (She is better at French than English.) (adjective)
Il cuisine mieux que sa femme. (He cooks better than his wife.) (adverb)
C'est la meilleure solution. (It's the best solution.): adjective, agrees with solution (fem.)
C'est le pire moment de l'année. (It's the worst time of year.)
7. Useful comparison expressions
| Expression | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| de plus en plus | more and more | Il fait de plus en plus chaud. (It's getting hotter and hotter.) |
| de moins en moins | less and less | Elle sort de moins en moins. (She goes out less and less.) |
| de plus en plus de + noun | more and more... | Il y a de plus en plus de voitures. (There are more and more cars.) |
| le même... que | the same... as | Il a le même âge que moi. (He is the same age as me.) |
| différent de | different from | Ce film est très différent du premier. (This film is very different from the first.) |
| pareil(le) à / que | the same as, identical | C'est pareil qu'avant. (It's the same as before.) |
8. Key points
✓ Adjectives: plus / moins / aussi + adj + que (adjective agrees with its noun)
✓ Adverbs: plus / moins / aussi + adv + que (no agreement)
✓ Nouns: plus de / moins de / autant de + noun + que (not aussi de)
✓ Verbs: verb + plus / moins / autant + que
✓ Superlative: le/la/les + plus/moins + adj (article agrees with noun)
✓ Adjective before noun → stays before: la plus grande ville
✓ Adjective after noun → article repeated: le film le plus intéressant
✓ Irregular: bon → meilleur (adjective) / bien → mieux (adverb) / mauvais → pire
✓ Key expressions: de plus en plus, de moins en moins, le même... que