One ending for every adjective
English has two systems: taller with an ending, more interesting with a helper word. German has only the first. Every adjective takes -er, however long it is: interessant becomes interessanter, kompliziert becomes komplizierter.
Comparisons to hear first
Mein Bruder ist älter als ich.
My brother is older than me.
Das Buch ist interessanter als der Film.
The book is more interesting than the film.
four syllables and still just an ending
Deine Wohnung ist schöner als meine.
Your flat is nicer than mine.
Umlaut and other changes
Many short, common adjectives with a, o or u also take an Umlaut: alt becomes älter, not alter. Not all of them do (klar → klarer, schnell → schneller), so learn the common ones as you meet them.
Common adjectives with Umlaut
| Adjective | Comparative | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| alt | älter | old → older |
| jung | jünger | young → younger |
| groß | größer | big → bigger |
| lang | länger | long → longer |
| kurz | kürzer | short → shorter |
| warm | wärmer | warm → warmer |
| kalt | kälter | cold → colder |
| nah | näher | near → nearer |
Adjectives ending in -el or -er drop that e before the ending: dunkel → dunkler, teuer → teurer.
The forms in sentences
Im Sommer sind die Tage länger.
In summer the days are longer.
Diese Jacke ist teurer als die andere.
This jacket is more expensive than the other one.
teuer loses its e: teurer, not teuerer
Der Flur ist dunkler als die Küche.
The hallway is darker than the kitchen.
Four forms you simply memorise
Irregular comparatives
| Base | Comparative | English |
|---|---|---|
| gut | besser | good → better |
| viel | mehr | much, many → more |
| gern | lieber | gladly → rather, preferably |
| hoch | höher | high → higher |
gern is an adverb: it says how willingly you do something. Its comparative lieber is how German says *rather* and *prefer*.
Mehr is about quantity and stands in front of a noun: mehr Zeit, mehr Geld. It is never used to make an adjective comparative.
Lieber replaces the English verb prefer: Ich trinke lieber Tee (literally I drink more gladly tea).
The irregulars at work
Heute geht es mir besser.
I'm feeling better today.
Ich trinke lieber Tee als Kaffee.
I'd rather drink tea than coffee.
Wir brauchen mehr Zeit.
We need more time.
als and so … wie
English has than for a difference and as … as for equality. German keeps the same two ideas apart with als and wie.
Different or equal?
als: one is more than the other
als follows a comparative.
Anna ist größer als ihr Bruder.
Anna is taller than her brother.
Der Kaffee hier ist besser als zu Hause.
The coffee here is better than at home.
so … wie: the two are equal
The adjective stays in its plain form between so and wie. For less, German usually says nicht so … wie.
Mein Auto ist so alt wie deins.
My car is as old as yours.
Der Film war nicht so gut wie das Buch.
The film wasn't as good as the book.
Turning the dial: viel, etwas, noch, immer
viel besser
much better. Use viel here, not sehr: sehr belongs to plain adjectives.
etwas älter
slightly older. etwas or ein bisschen softens the difference.
noch schöner
even nicer.
immer teurer
more and more expensive: immer plus a comparative describes a trend.
So ist es viel besser.
That's much better.
Es wird immer kälter.
It's getting colder and colder.
Kannst du etwas langsamer sprechen?
Could you speak a bit more slowly?
In front of a noun
In front of a noun the comparative gets an extra adjective ending after the -er. More on those endings later.
Wir suchen eine größere Wohnung.
We're looking for a bigger flat.
Haben Sie ein billigeres Zimmer?
Do you have a cheaper room?
