{"id":117784,"date":"2023-04-03T14:15:40","date_gmt":"2023-04-03T18:15:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/french-comparative-and-superlative\/"},"modified":"2025-02-17T10:09:37","modified_gmt":"2025-02-17T15:09:37","slug":"french-comparative-and-superlative","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/french-comparative-and-superlative\/","title":{"rendered":"French Comparative and Superlative: An Easy Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The <strong>comparative<\/strong> in French is used to describe the differences between items, while the <strong>superlative<\/strong> is used for talking about extremes in comparison. These two <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/french-grammar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">grammatical aspects<\/a> of the French language are fairly straightforward to learn, but they will have a tremendous effect on your ability to communicate.<\/p>\n<p>[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>The French Comparative<\/h2>\n<p><strong>A comparative <\/strong>adjective states how two things relate to each other.<\/p>\n<p>It allows you to say things like &#8220;I am faster than Dominic,&#8221; or &#8220;The black cat is bigger than the gray cat.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>In French, as in English, there are generally three levels of comparison: superior, inferior and equal.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Superior<\/strong> comparative adjectives show that something is <strong>more<\/strong> than something else.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Inferior<\/strong> ones indicate that something is <strong>less<\/strong> than something else.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Equal<\/strong> ones mean that something is\u00a0<strong>equal<\/strong> to something else.<\/p>\n<h3>Forming comparative adjective sentences<\/h3>\n<p>To form regular comparative sentences in French, sandwich your adjectives between the following words:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>plus&#8230;que<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>(more&#8230;than\/___er than) for superior comparisons<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>moins&#8230;que<\/em><\/strong> (less&#8230;than) for inferior comparisons<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>aussi&#8230;que<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>(as&#8230;as) or\u00a0<em><strong>autant que<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>(as much\/many as) for equal comparisons<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These adjectives look a little incomplete on their own, and granted, they are, so let&#8217;s see them in action.<\/p>\n<p>Note that the adjective goes between the comparative adjective <em>(<\/em><strong><em>plus<\/em>,\u00a0<em>moins<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0or<strong>\u00a0<em>aussi<\/em><\/strong><em>)<\/em>\u00a0and the <strong><em>que<\/em><\/strong> (that).<\/p>\n<p>Check out these examples:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Le chat noir est <strong>plus <\/strong>grand<strong> que<\/strong> le chat gris.\u00a0<\/em> <br \/>\n(The black cat is bigger than the gray cat.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Ta maison est <strong>moins <\/strong>ch\u00e8re<strong> que<\/strong> ma maison.\u00a0<\/em> <br \/>\n(Your house is less expensive than my house.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Monique\u00a0est <strong>aussi <\/strong>belle<strong> que<\/strong> Marie. <\/em> <br \/>\n(Monique is as beautiful as Marie.)<\/p>\n<h3>Forming comparative adverb sentences<\/h3>\n<p>Even though we have used adjectives (words that describe a noun) to make comparisons in the above examples, you can also use <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/french-adverbs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">adverbs<\/a> (words that describe a verb) or verbs to make comparisons.<\/p>\n<p>Like this:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Tu marches <strong>plus lentement que<\/strong> moi. <\/em> <br \/>\n(You walk slower than me.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Pi\u00e8rre mange<strong> moins que<\/strong> Giselle.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(Peter eats less than Giselle.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Je lis <strong>autant que<\/strong> Fran\u00e7ois.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(I read as much as Fran\u00e7ois.)<\/p>\n<h3 data-pm-slice=\"1 1 [&quot;list&quot;,{},&quot;list_item&quot;,{&quot;indent&quot;:2,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;bulleted&quot;}]\">Forming comparative noun sentences<\/h3>\n<p>In comparative sentences, speakers must use\u00a0<strong><em>de<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0instead of\u00a0<strong><em>que<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0when the word that follows is a noun or a number.<\/p>\n<p>Check out these examples to see what I mean:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Il a <strong>plus de<\/strong> chats que toi.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(He has more cats than you.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Il y a <strong>moins de<\/strong> cent personnes \u00e0 l&#8217;\u00e9cole.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(There are fewer than one hundred people at the school.)<\/p>\n<h2>The French Superlative<\/h2>\n<p><strong>The superlative<\/strong>, on the other hand, is used to communicate an extreme.<\/p>\n<p>It allows you to say, &#8220;I am the fastest,&#8221; or &#8220;My cat is the biggest.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Unlike comparative adjectives in French, the superlative only has two levels of comparison: <strong>superior<\/strong> and<strong> inferior<\/strong>. This is because the superlative\u00a0is\u00a0all about the extreme.<\/p>\n<p>Remember, you can&#8217;t be the absolute best at French grammar if you&#8217;re sharing the title.<\/p>\n<h3>Forming superlative sentences<\/h3>\n<p>While there are irregular forms in the superlative as well, forming regular French superlative sentences is very simple. Just place the superlative adjectives before the word.<\/p>\n<p>Check out these two forms:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em><strong>le\/la\/les plus<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>(the most\/the ___est) for the superior superlative<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>le\/la\/les moins<\/em><\/strong> (the least) for the inferior superlative<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>And now for some examples. Remember, like the comparative, you can use the superlative with adjectives, adverbs and verbs.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Il est <strong>le plus grand<\/strong> gar\u00e7on.<\/em> <br \/>\n(He is the tallest boy.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Nous lisons <strong>le plus lentement<\/strong>.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(We read the slowest.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Louis <strong>parle le moins<\/strong>.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(Louis speaks the least.)<\/p>\n<p>In addition to these forms, you can form the superlative in a different way when speaking.<\/p>\n<p>You can say either <em><strong>&#8220;Il est le plus grand gar\u00e7on,&#8221;<\/strong><\/em><em>\u00a0<\/em>or you can say\u00a0<em><strong>&#8220;Il est le gar\u00e7on le plus grand.&#8221;<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Both of these mean &#8220;He is the tallest boy.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>This is <strong>only<\/strong> appropriate for oral French, not written French.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, you can use the preposition\u00a0<strong><em>de<\/em><\/strong> (of) in order to put your superlative sentence in context.<\/p>\n<p>For example:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Il est <strong>le plus grand <\/strong>gar\u00e7on<strong> de<\/strong> l&#8217;\u00e9cole.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(He is the tallest boy in the school.)<\/p>\n<h2>Irregular Comparative and Superlative Forms<\/h2>\n<p>Lucky for you, there are only a couple mandatory irregular forms for comparative and superlative adjectives, plus a few optional ones.<\/p>\n<p>Check out this list to keep these exceptions clear in your head.<\/p>\n<h3><strong><em>Bon<\/em> (good)<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Just as it&#8217;s not grammatically correct to say &#8220;gooder than&#8221; or &#8220;the goodest&#8221; in English, <strong>you can&#8217;t say<\/strong> <em>plus bon<\/em> or <em>le plus bon<\/em>\u00a0in French.<\/p>\n<p>Instead, use the word <strong><i>meilleur<\/i><\/strong> in the comparative and\u00a0<strong><em>le meilleur<\/em><\/strong> in the superlative.<\/p>\n<p>Be aware, however, that\u00a0<strong><em>bon<\/em><\/strong> is only irregular in the superior form \u2014 you<strong> can<\/strong> say\u00a0<strong><em>moins bon<\/em><\/strong> (less good).<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Mon livre est <strong>meilleur que<\/strong> ton livre. <\/em> <br \/>\n(My book is better than your book.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Mon livre est <strong>le meilleur<\/strong>.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(My book is the best.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><i>Ton livre est <strong>moins bon que<\/strong> mon livre.<\/i>  <br \/>\n(Your book is less good than mine.)<\/p>\n<h3><em><strong>B<\/strong><strong>ien<\/strong><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><strong>(well)<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Sometimes it&#8217;s difficult for learners of French to grasp the difference between <strong><em>bon<\/em><\/strong> and\u00a0<strong><em>bien<\/em><\/strong>. Just remember, <em>bon<\/em> is an <strong>adjective<\/strong> and describes nouns, whereas\u00a0<em>bien<\/em> is an <strong>adverb<\/strong> and describes verbs.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In the comparative form,\u00a0<em>bien<\/em> becomes\u00a0<strong><em>mieux<\/em><\/strong> (better).<\/p>\n<p>In the superlative form, it becomes\u00a0<strong><em>le mieux<\/em><\/strong> (the best).<\/p>\n<p>Again,\u00a0<em>mieux<\/em> is only used in the superior form.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Elle parle <strong>mieux<\/strong> fran\u00e7ais.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(She speaks French better.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Elle parle fran\u00e7ais <strong>le mieux<\/strong>. <\/em> <br \/>\n(She speaks French the best.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Elle parle <strong>moins bien<\/strong> fran\u00e7ais. <\/em> <br \/>\n(She speaks French less well.)<\/p>\n<h3><strong><em>Mauvais <\/em>(bad)<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>You can say <strong><em>plus<\/em>\u00a0<em>mauvais&#8230;que<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0in the superior comparative form and\u00a0<em><strong>le mauvais<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>in the superior superlative.<\/p>\n<p>You can also say\u00a0<strong><em>pire<\/em><\/strong> and\u00a0<em><strong>le pire<\/strong>.<\/em> Though these are sometimes\u00a0interchangeable,\u00a0<em>pire<\/em><strong><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>and <i>le pire<\/i> appear more often in books than spoken language, and they are restricted to talking about abstract things.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Ce vin est <strong>plus mauvais<\/strong> <strong>que<\/strong> l&#8217;autre. <\/em> <br \/>\n(This wine is worse than the other.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Son attitude est <strong>pire<\/strong> <strong>que<\/strong> la mienne.<\/em>\u00a0 <br \/>\n(His\/her attitude is worse than mine.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Elle est <strong><strong>la plus mauvaise.<\/strong><\/strong><\/em>  \/ <\/strong><em>Ella <\/em><em>est <\/em><strong><em><strong>la<\/strong><strong> pire<\/strong>. <\/em><\/strong>\u00a0<br \/>\n(She is the worst.)<\/p>\n<h3><strong><em>Petit<\/em> (small)<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>In the superior comparative and superlative forms, you say\u00a0<strong><em>plus petit que<\/em><\/strong> and <strong><i>le plus petit<\/i><\/strong>\u00a0when talking about concrete nouns.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Je suis <strong>plus petit que<\/strong> Renard.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(I am smaller than Renard.)<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Je suis <strong>le plus petit<\/strong>.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(I am the smallest.)<\/p>\n<p>For abstract nouns,\u00a0you use\u00a0<em><strong>moindre que<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em>or\u00a0<strong><em>le moindre<\/em><\/strong>. This almost gives the meaning of &#8220;less.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px\"><em>Ce\u00a0prix est <strong>moindre que<\/strong> le mien.<\/em>  <br \/>\n(That price is less than mine.)<\/p>\n<h2>Practice the Comparative and Superlative<\/h2>\n<p>One great way to practice the comparative and superlative is through French <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/classic-french-movies\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">movies<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/classic-french-books\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">books<\/a>, which can help you see how native speakers actually use the comparative and superlative.<\/p>\n<p>You also could try watching French videos through a more guided learning program, like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/french\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FluentU<\/a>. <p><strong>FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n<p><\/p> \r\n<p>You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download <a href=\"https:\/\/apps.apple.com\/us\/app\/fluentu-learn-language-videos\/id917892175\">the iOS app<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=com.fluentflix.fluentu&amp;hl=en&amp;gl=US\">Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n<p><i><a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a><\/i>\r\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\r\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/NativeAdFrench.jpg\" alt=\"FluentU Ad\" \/>\r\n  <p style=\"text-align: center\">\r\n    <button class=\"btn-blue\" style=\"border: none;font-size: 18px;text-align: center;padding: 0.75rem 1.5rem;cursor: pointer\">\r\n      Try FluentU for FREE!\r\n    <\/button>\r\n  <\/p>\r\n<\/a><\/p>\n<p>You can also complete exercises about comparative adjectives at <a href=\"https:\/\/francais.lingolia.com\/en\/grammar\/adjectives\/comparative\/exercises\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Lingolia<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>You can practice both comparative and superlative adjectives at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.laits.utexas.edu\/tex\/gr\/adv4.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">University of Texas<\/a>\u00a0website.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>I better hear you comparing good movies to bad movies, good French books to bad French books, apples to oranges!<\/p>\n<p>Once you have, it&#8217;s on to the next French <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/french-grammar-lessons\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">grammar lesson<\/a>!<\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h2>And one more thing...<\/h2>\r\n<p>\r\nIf you like learning French on your own time and from the comfort of your smart device, then I'd be remiss to not <strong><a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"> tell you about FluentU<\/a>.<\/strong>\r\n<p>\r\nFluentU has a wide variety of great content, like interviews, documentary excerpts and web series, as you can see here:\r\n<\/p>\r\n<a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-2097\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/french-5.png\" alt=\"learn-french-with-videos\" width=\"307\" height=\"546\" \/><\/a>\r\n<p>\r\n<strong>FluentU brings native French videos with reach.<\/strong> With interactive captions, you can tap on any word to see an image, definition and useful examples.\r\n<\/p>\r\n<a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-2099\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/French-2.png\" alt=\"learn-french-with-movies\" width=\"307\" height=\"546\" \/><\/a>\r\n<p>\r\nFor example, if you tap on the word <strong><em>\"crois,\"<\/em><\/strong> you'll see this:\r\n<\/p>\r\n<a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-2100\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/French-6.png\" alt=\"practice-french-with-subtitled-videos\" width=\"307\" height=\"546\" \/><\/a>\r\n<p>\r\nPractice and reinforce all the vocabulary you've learned in a given video with <strong>learn mode. <\/strong>Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word you\u2019re learning, and play the mini-games found in our dynamic flashcards, like \"fill in the blank.\"\r\n<\/p>\r\n<a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-2102\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/3\/French-7.png\" alt=\"practice-french-with-adaptive-quizzes\" width=\"307\" height=\"546\" \/><\/a>\r\n<p>\r\nAll throughout, FluentU tracks the vocabulary that you\u2019re learning and uses this information to give you a totally personalized experience. It gives you extra practice with difficult words\u2014and reminds you when it\u2019s time to review what you\u2019ve learned. \r\n<\/p>\r\n<p>\r\nStart using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. <a data-bid=\"1\" data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/try\/april-sale-3331\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a>\r\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The comparative in French is used to describe the differences between items, while the superlative is used for talking about extremes in comparison. These two grammatical aspects of the French&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":236,"featured_media":224544,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"slim_seo":{"title":"French Comparative and Superlative: An Easy Guide | FluentU French Blog","description":"The French comparative and superlative are easy to learn and let you talk about the differences between things and extremes in comparison. These important grammar points and vocabulary terms will let you better describe and compare things in French. We'll cover comparative and superlative adjectives with plenty of examples."},"footnotes":""},"categories":[570,577],"tags":[],"coauthors":[176],"class_list":["post-117784","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-french","category-french-grammar"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117784","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/236"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=117784"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117784\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":250871,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117784\/revisions\/250871"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/224544"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=117784"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=117784"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=117784"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=117784"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}