Comparative & Superlative Adjectives
French: AQA A Level, topic 12.2.5
Comparing Adjectives
To compare adjectives in French, rather than say 'small', 'smaller', 'smallest, you say 'more', 'less' or 'as'.
Plus - more
- Alex est plus grande que Sam.
- Alex is taller than Sam.
- Nick est plus rapide que lui.
- Theo is quicker than him.
- Flora est plus intelligente que Samantha.
- Flora is more intelligent than Samantha.
Moins - less
- Theo est moins rapide que moi.
- Theo is less quick than me.
- Mon frère est moins grande que moi.
- My brother is less tall than me.
- Je suis moins intelligent que lui.
- I am less intelligent than him.
Aussi - as
- Bella est aussi belle que Lucy.
- Bella is as beautiful as Lucy.
- Je suis aussi intelligent que toi.
- I am as intelligent as you.
- Tu es aussi vite que lui.
- You are as quick as him.
Superlative Adjectives
When talking about 'the best' or the 'worst', in French you need to use 'le', 'la', or 'les' before 'plus' or 'moins'. The adjectives still have to agree.
'Le, la, les plus'
- C'est le plus grand de la famille.
- He is the tallest in the family.
- J'ai acheté la maison la plus chère.
- I bought the most expensive house.
- Sam est le plus bizarre.
- Sam is the weirdest.
'Le, la, les moins'
- J'ai acheté la maison la moins chère.
- I bought the cheapest house.
- Toby est le moins fort.
- Toby is the weakest.
- C'est la moins sportive.
- She is the least sporty.
Good, Better, Best
To say 'good', 'better', 'best' in French, you can't use 'plus' or 'moins'. They have their own words.
Good, better, best
- Bon(ne)(s) → meilleur(e)(s) - Good → better.
- Meilleur(e)(s) → Le/la/les meilleur(e)(s) - Better → best.
- Ce film est meilleur que le dernier.
- This film is better than the last one.
Bad, worse, worst
- Mauvais(e)(s) → pire(s) - Bad → worse.
- Pire(s) → Le/la/les pire(s) - Worse → worst.
- C'était le pire livre que j'aie jamais lu.
- It was the worst book that I ever read.
Test yourself on Comparative & Superlative Adjectives
How do you say 'She is more intelligent than her' in French?
How do you say 'he is as stupid as him' in French?
How do you say 'she is the weirdest' in French?
How do you say 'she is the smallest' in French?
How do you say 'in the worst case scenario' in French?