All About Comparison of German Adjectives – Learn Easy Way/ Komparation der Adjektive

In this lesson, you will learn how to compare German adjectives. Qualities can be compared using the comparative and superlative forms of adjectives. This lesson will cover how to form and use these comparisons in German, as well as other methods of comparison.

CONTENTS

What is a comparison of adjectives?
Regular Comparison
Comparative and superlative forms with Umlaut
Irregular Comparison
Types and uses of the superlative
The superlative form am … sten
Superlatives placed in front of the noun
The superlative with the indefinite article – nominative
The superlative with the indefinite article – ACCUSATIVE
The superlative with the indefinite article – DATIVE
Some uses of the comparative and superlative
Equal comparison
Unequal comparison
Adverbs

What is a Comparison of Adjectives?

Adjectives can be used to compare something. To do this, you use adjectives in the comparative or superlative. The comparative is the form you use when comparing two things: something is bigger, smaller, faster, older, etc. The superlative is the form you use when comparing more than two things: biggest, best, fastest, oldest, etc

As in English, qualities can be compared using special forms of adjectives. These are formed with the endings -er and -st-, followed by a case ending if the adjective precedes a noun.

For example:
Mein Auto ist schnell, dein Auto ist schneller, aber sie hat das schnellste Auto. –
My car is fast, your car is faster, but she’s got the fastest car

Regular Comparison

In English the comparative is formed either by adding -er to the end of the adjective (small → smaller) or by inserting the word more (beautiful → more beautiful). In German the comparative is formed by adding -er to the adjective.

The superlative is the form you use to say that something is the biggest, the smallest, the best of all. In English we either use -est or the word most or least (for the lowest degree). In German we add -(e)ste: der älteste Bruder, die jüngste Schwester, das kleinste Kind.

When the superlative form is placed before a noun, it is typically accompanied by the definite article – der, die, or das – and must include the correct adjective endings. However, when the superlative is used in a predicative form, it follows the structure “am” + superlative adjective, as in “am ältesten Bruder,” “am jüngsten Schwester,” or “am kleinsten Kind.”

It is easy to confuse case endings and comparative endings. The case ending is attached to the comparative ending.
For example:
ein schneller Drucker – a fast printer
but
ein schnellerer Drucker – a faster printer

Regular comparison is divided into two groups: WITH umlaut and WITHOUT umlaut

Comparative and Superlative forms with Umlaut

Some common adjectives add Umlaut in the comparative and superlative.
For example: arm – ärmer – (das) ärmste:

These adjecitves also belong to this group: arg (bad), dumm ( stupid), grob (coarse), hart (hard), gesund (healthy), klug (clever), krank (sick, ill), kurz (short), lang (long), rot (red), scharf (sharp), schwach (weak), schwarz (black), stark (strong), warm ( warm), and others.

Adjectives in -el, -en, -er usually drop -e- in the comparative:
For example:
dunkel (dark) – dunkler
trocken (dry) – trockner
edel (fine) – edler
teuer (expensive) – teurer

In the superlative, -e- is inserted between the suffix and the adjective after –d, -t, -s, -ß, -sch, -sk, -st, -tz, -x, or -z.

Adjectives ending in –d, -t, -s, or -z add -est in the superlative:
For example:

Irregular Comparison

The adjectives gut, gern, viel, hoch and nah have an irregular comparison:

Types and uses of the superlative

• The superlative is the form you use to say that something is the best, the biggest, the smallest, the best of all.
• In English we either use -est or the word most or least (for the lowest degree).
• In German we add -st: der kleinste Junge, das kleinste Mädchen.
• If the superlative comes before a noun, it is usually used with the direct article – der/die/das – and requires the correct adjective endings.

The superlative form am … sten

Superlatives used as PREDICATE COMPLEMENTS of the verb sein are most often in the form am … sten:

For example:
Sie liest am schnellsten. – She reads the fastest.
Inna ist in unserer Klasse am fleißigsten. – Inna is the most hard-working in our class.
Tina ist am ältesten. – Tina is the oldest.
Alex ist am jüngsten. – Alex is the youngest.
Dieser Weg ist am steilsten. – This path is the steepest.
Ein Mercedes wäre am teuersten. – A Mercedes would be the most expensive.

This form remains unchanged.

Superlatives placed in front of the noun

der/die/das + adjective + -ste + NOUN

If the superlative is placed in front of a noun, it behaves like any other adjective and changes its ending accordingly

After der, die or das the ending will be either -ste or -sten.

Adjectives describing the subject of the sentence NOMINATIVE:

Er ist der schnellste Junge in der Schule. – He is the fastest boy in school.
Sie ist die größte Schülerin in ihrer Schule. – She is the tallest pupil in her school.
Sie ist das kleinste Mädchen in der Klasse. – She is the smallest girl in the class.
Wir sind die ältesten in dem Klub. – We are the oldest in the club.

Adjectives describing the direct object of a sentence ACCUSATIVE, after the difinite article the – den, die, das, die:

Die Wohnung hat den größten Balkon. – The flat has the largest balcony.
Das Zimmer hat die schönste Aussicht. –The room has the best view.
Sie stieg in das teuerste Auto ein. – The room has the most comfortable bed.
Wir beobachten die entfernsten Sterne. –We observe the most distant stars.

Adjectives describing the indirect object of the sentence DATIVE:

Sie hat das Haus mit dem schönsten Garten. – She has the house with the most beautiful garden.
Er hat das Haus mit der schönsten Küche. – He has the house with the most beautiful kitchen.
Ich habe das Haus mit dem schönsten Bad. – I have the house with the most beautiful bathroom.
Wir haben das Haus mit den schönsten Fenstern. – We have the house with the most beautiful windows.

The superlative with the indefinite article – NOMINATIVE

When you use the superlative with the indefinite article ein, eine, ein or possessive article mein, sein, kein to describe the subject of the sentence, the adjective takes the following endings:

For examle:

Das ist ihr bester Freund. – This is her best male friend.
Das ist seine beste Freundin. – This is his best female friend.
Das ist ein neues Auto. – This is a new car.
Das sind meine schönsten Kleider. – These are my most beautiful dresses.

The superlative with the indefinite article – ACCUSATIVE

The superlative with the indefinite article ein, eine, ein and possessive article mein, sein, and negative article kein is used to describe the sentence’s direct object as follows.
Ich habe meinen besten Freund getroffen. – I met my best friend.
Ich habe meine beste Freundin getroffen. –  I met my best friend.
Ich habe mein ältestes Kind getroffen. . – I met my oldest kid.
Ich habe meine besten Komillitonen getroffen. – I met my best fellow students.

The superlative with the indefinite article – DATIVE

The superlative with the indefinite article ein, eine, ein and possessive article mein, sein, and negative article kein is used to describe the definite object of the sentence as follows:

Ich habe es meinem besten Freund gegeben. – I gave it to my best friend.
Ich habe es deiner besten Freundin gegeben. – I gave it to your best friend.
Ich habe es seinem jüngsten Kind gegeben – I gave it to her youngest child.
Wir haben es ihren besten Freunden gegeben. – We gave it to their best friends.

Some uses of the comparative and superlative

Equal comparison

so/ genauso (ebenso=  + POSITIVE (adjective) +  wie  = EQUOLITY

For example:                  
Maxim ist genauso alt wie Lana / Мaxim und Lans sind gleich alt. – Maxim is the same age as Lana / Мaxim and Lans are the same age.
Maxim  lernt genauso fleißig wie Lana. – Maxim studies just as hard as Lana.
Tina ist ebenso groß wie ich. – Tina is just as tall as me.
Der Roman „Krieg und Frieden“  ist so dick wie ein Wörterbuch. – The novel ‘War and Peace’ is as thick as a dictionary.
Du bist so faul wie dein Bruder. – You’re as lazy as your brother.

• Saying as (big) as
  If you are comparing two things which are similar, you use the expression so ___ wie – as ___ as.
  
  For example:
  as tall as – so groß wie.
  Er ist so groß wie sein Vater. – He is as tall as his father.
  Er ist so komisch wie sein Bruder. – He is as strange as his brother.

• The comparative particle is als (than).
  For example:
  Mein Auto ist schneller als deins. – My car is faster than yours.
  London ist schmutziger als Zürich. – London is dirtier than Zurich.
  
• Equality is expressed by so … wie (‘as … as’):
  
  For example:
  Peter ist so alt wie Thomas. – Peter is as old as Thomas/the same age as Thomas.
  Ich bin so groß wie du. – I’m as tall as you.
  
  Equality can be reinforced by using ebenso or genauso (‘just as …’).
  For example:
  Ich bin genauso/ebenso groß wie du.

Unequal comparison

KOMPARATIVE + als
Maxim ist älter als Alex. – Maxim is older than Alex.
Lana ist jünger als Maxim. – Lana is younger than Maxim.
Maxim ist nicht so alt wie Lana. – Maxim is not as old as Lana.
Du bist schöner als Tina. – You’re prettier than Tina.
Das Fenster ist länger als die Tür. – The window is longer than the door.
Mario hat eine längere Nase als Leo. – Mario has a longer nose than Leo.

• Progression (more and more) is expressed by using immer with the comparative:
  
  For example:
  Das Wetter wird immer schlechter. – The weather is getting worse and worse.
  Meine Arbeit wird immer schwieriger. – My work is getting more and more difficult.
  
• Proportion (‘the more … the more’) can be expressed by je … desto/umso with a comparative adjective:
  
  For example:
  Je länger man Deutsch lernt, desto/umso leichter wird es. – The longer you learn German, the easier it becomes.

• Comparative adjectives often have the meaning ‘fairly’, ‘quite’:
  
  For example:
  eine ältere Frau – an elderly woman, a fairly old woman
  eine größere Stadt – a fair-sized town, quite a large town
  Ich habe längere Zeit dort gewohnt. – I lived there for a while/for a number of years.

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Grammar Content

Adverbs

Adverbs are unchanging words. They are used to determine time, place, cause, effect, manner and other circumstances in a sentence and as attributes with nouns, pronouns or adjectives. Several attachments can be compared, but their comparison is incorrect.
They are:

Adverbs are stable words that do not change form. They express various circumstances in a sentence, including time, place, cause, and manner. Additionally, adverbs can modify nouns, pronouns, and adjectives. While several adverbial forms can be compared, such comparisons may not always be appropriate. Here are some examples:

See more: