Comparatives & Superlatives `

Comparative compares 2 things to each other examples: She is prettier than you. He is stronger than Bob. Spanish is easier Honors Physics.

Superlatives states that something or someone is the most or least He is the most intelligent in the class. She is the tallest in her family. Bob is the least athletic guy on the team.

comparatives in Spanish To form the comparative in Spanish, you put más (more) or menos (less) before the adjective, and que after it.

Comparative Formula más/menos + (adjective) + que

Comparative Examples Ella es más ambiciosa que su hermana. Él es menos ambicioso que ella.

Important note after “que” you can use subject pronouns (yo, tú, ella, etc...) or nadie (nobody).

Superlative form the superlative using the definite article (el, la, los, las) then más (more) or menos (less) and the adjective. The preposition de (of) follows the superlative.

Superlative Formula (el/la/los/las) + más/menos + adjective + de

Superlative examples Ella es la más inteligente del grupo. Él es el menos perezoso de la clase.

Reminder: Contractions Don’t forget that “de” and “el” cannot be beside each other in Spanish!!!! They will ALWAYS merge into the contraction “del” Example: El más alto del grupo (de + el)

Exceptions There are 4 adjectives that are irregular in comparatives and superlatives. You will NOT use más or menos with these

Irregular comparatives bueno (good) mejor (better) malo (bad) peor (worse) viejo (old) mayor (older) joven (young) menor (younger) Don’t use these words Instead use these

Irregular Comparative Example Correct: Rosita es mayor que Pancho. Incorrect: Rosita es más vieja que Pancho.

Irregular superlatives el/la/los/las mejor(es) (the best) el/la/los/las peor(es) (the worst) el/la/los/las menor(es) (the youngest) el/la/los/las mayor(es) (the oldest)

Irregular Superlative Example Correct: Pedro es el mejor de la clase. Incorrect: Pedro es el más mejor de la clase.

Checking for Understanding

What is a comparative? Compares two things to each other

What is a superlative? Says something/someone is the most or the least of a group

What is the formula to make a comparative in Spanish? más/menos + (adjective) + que

What is the formula to make a superlative in Spanish? (el/la/los/las) + más/menos + (adjective) + de

Which four adjectives are irregular in comparatives and superlatives? bueno malo viejo joven

Translate to Spanish using the comparative formula: Maria is taller than Marco. Maria es más alta que Marco.

Translate to Spanish using the comparative formula: Ignacio is shorter than Jorge. Ignacio es más bajo que Jorge.

Translate to Spanish using the comparative formula: Rosita is prettier than Maria. Rosita es más bonita que Maria.

Translate to Spanish using the comparative formula: Mario is younger than Luigi. Mario es menor que Luigi.

Translate to Spanish using the superlative formula: Carmen is the tallest in the class. Carmen es la más alta de la clase.

Translate to Spanish using the superlative formula: Roberto is the shortest of the group. Roberto es el más bajo del grupo.

Translate to Spanish using the superlative formula: Alfonso is the worst on the team. Alfonso es el peor del equipo.

El Fin

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