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
Aujourd’hui le temps sera plus mauvais qu’hier.
Today the weather will be worse than it was yesterday.
La viande rouge est plus mauvaise pour la santé que le poisson.
Red meat is less good for you than fish.
Sa conduite est plus mauvaise que celle de ses amis.
His behaviour is worse than that of his friends.
Les confitures de ma mère sont meilleures que celles du supermarché.
My mother’s jams are better than the supermarket’s.
Selon lui le système éducatif est plus mauvais dans son pays qu’en France.
According to him the educational system is worse in his country than it is in France.
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
Elle a répondu plus hâtivement qu’elle n’aurait dû.
She replied more hastily than she ought to have.
Il faut t’habiller plus chaudement qu’hier.
You must dress more warmly than you did yesterday.
Ce produit vous permet d’accédez plus rapidement à vos sites web favoris.
This product allows you to access your favourite websites more rapidly.
Elle marche plus difficilement que l’an passé.
She walks with more difficulty than she did last year.
Je m’entends moins bien avec Marie qu’avec son frère.
I get on with Marie less well than I do with her brother.
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
Je parle mieux l’anglais que l’allemand.
I speak English better than I do German.
Je vois mieux maintenant qu’avec mes anciennes lunettes.
I can see better now than with my old glasses.
Cette maladie se soigne mieux qu’autrefois.
This disease is treated better than it used to be.
Je dors mieux qu’avant.
I sleep better than I used to.
J’écris plus mal avec un stylo bille qu’avec un stylo plume.
I write worse with a ball-point pen than with a fountain pen.
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 je mange de chocolat, plus j’en ai envie.
The more I eat chocolate, the more I want to.
Plus il grandit, plus il devient difficile.
The older he gets, the more difficult he’s becoming.
Plus je regarde ce tableau, plus il me plaît.
The more I look at this picture, the more I like it.
Plus vous tarderez à l’appeler, plus elle s’inquiétera.
The longer you delay calling her, the more she’ll worry.
Plus tu essaieras, plus cela deviendra facile.
The more you try, the easier it will get.
