Using comparatives 1 Definition The comparative is the form of an
adjective
or
adverb
that indicates that the quality being described is possessed to a greater
extent.
For example, in the sentence He is taller than I am , the
word taller is a comparative adjective ; and in the sentence He
did better than I did , the word better is a comparative
adverb .
2 Formation 2.1 Adjectives Comparative adjectives are formed in French using plus , moins
or aussi , with que acting as link word (equivalent of
than in English).
Il est plus fort que moi en
math
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He is better than me in maths
Note the irregular forms:
Table 60.2.1a: Irregular comparative adjectives
standard form comparative bon meilleur
good better
mauvais plus mauvais / pire bad worse
Note
Note that pire is less common than plus mauvais . Pire tends to have the meaning of "even worse" or else express a moral judgement, while plus mauvais tends to express a judgement of quality or quantity:
Ce restaurant est pire qu'une cantine scolaire!
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This restaurant is worse than a school cantine!
Ce restaurant est plus mauvais que celui d'à côté
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This restaurant is worse than the one opposite
Ce devoir est meilleur que le précédent.
This homework is better than the last one.
Aujourd’hui le temps sera plus mauvais qu’hier.
Today the weather will be worse than it was yesterday.
Cette route est plus mauvaise qu’un chemin de terre.
This road is worse than an earth track.
Ce verglas est plus mauvais que celui d’hier soir.
This ice is worse than what we had last night.
Sa conduite est plus mauvaise que celle de ses amis.
His behaviour is worse than that of his friends.
2.2 Adverbs As with adjectives, comparative adverbs are formed using plus ,
moins or aussi , with que acting as link word
(equivalent of than in English):
Il a réagi plus calmement que
moi
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He reacted more calmly than I did
Il parle plus gentiment à ma soeur qu’à moi.
He talks more kindly to my sister than he does to me.
Elle a répondu plus hâtivement qu’elle n’aurait dû.
She replied more hastily than she ought to have.
Nous partons en vacances moins souvent qu’avant.
We go on holiday less often than we used to.
L’équipe joue moins bien qu’au début de la saison.
The team’s playing less well than it did at the beginning of the season.
Ce produit vous permet d’accédez plus rapidement à vos sites web favoris.
This product allows you to access your favourite websites more rapidly.
Note the irregular forms:
Table 60.2.2a: Irregular comparative adverbs
standard form comparative bien mieux
well better
beaucoup plus many / a lot more peu moins little less
Il se sent mieux qu’hier.
He feels better than he did yesterday.
Je parle mieux l’anglais que l’allemand.
I speak English better than I do German.
A l’hôpital elle sera mieux soignée que chez elle.
In hospital she’ll be better looked after than at home.
Cet appartement est mieux que celui de l’étage au-dessus.
This flat is better than the one on the floor above.
Cette maladie se soigne mieux qu’autrefois.
This disease is treated better than it used to be.
3 Other points 3.1 Use of neutral pronoun le
Where plus , moins or aussi are followed by
que plus a verb, the verb is often preceded by the
neutral pronoun
le .
Cet étudiant est plus doué que je ne l 'ai
d'abord cru
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This student is more gifted than I first thought
3.2 Use of "expletive" ne When using plus ... que or moins ... que
followed by a
verb
, an
expletive
ne can optionally be added
before the verb without any
negative
meaning:
La situation est plus grave
que je (ne )
le croyais
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The situation is more serious than I thought
Il a réagi plus calmement que
je (ne ) le craignais
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He reacted more calmly than I feared he would
3.3 Double comparisons While English uses the before the comparative word in double
comparisons, French doesn't:
Plus je travaille, plus
je comprends
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The more I work, the
more I understand
Plus tu essaieras, plus cela deviendra facile.
The more you try, the easier it will get.
Plus je mange de chocolat, plus j’en ai envie.
The more I eat chocolate, the more I want to.
Le casino est un piège: plus vous perdez, plus vous voulez jouer.
The casino is a trap: the more you lose, the more you want to bet.
Plus cela va cuire, plus cela va durcir.
The more it cooks, the more it will harden.
Plus j’y réfléchis, plus cela me semble irréalisable.
The more I think about it, the more it seems unachievable.
