Comparison

The comparative is used to compare two things together.
Comparisons can express superiority, inferiority or equality.

Comparative of adverbs and adjectives

Comparative of Superiority

Plus...que (more...than)

  1. Our neighbours are richer than us.
    Nos voisins sont plus riches que nous.

  2. My new job is more interesting than the previous one.
    Mon nouveau travail est plus intéressant que le précédent.

Note that the English language has two ways to form the comparative of superiority ( word+er...than ; more... than) whereas the French language has only one form (plus...que).

Comparative of Inferiority

moins...que (less than)

  1. Your sofa is less comfortable than mine.
    Ton canapé est moins confortable que le mien.

Comparative of Equality

aussi...que (as...as)

  1. Reading a book can be as exciting as watching a movie.
    Lire un livre peut être aussi excitant que de voir un film.

  2. Your room is as big as mine.
    Ta chambre est aussi grande que la mienne.

Negation of comparative

  1. Our neighbours are not as rich as we are.
    Nos voisins ne sont pas aussi riche que nous.

  2. My new job is not as interesting as the previous one.
    Mon nouveau travail n'est pas aussi intéressant que le précédent.

  3. Your sofa is not less comfortable than mine.
    Ton canapé n'est pas aussi confortable que le mien.

  4. Reading a book is not as exciting as watching a movie.
    Lire un livre n'est pas aussi excitant que de voir un film.

  5. Your room is not as big as mine.
    Ta chambre n'est pas aussi grande que la mienne.

Comparative of nouns

When comparing nouns, 'de' needs to be added before the noun - moins de + noun or plus de+noun.
Also note that the comparative of equality changes - aussi... becomes autant de + noun.

  1. Our neighbours are luckier than us.
    Nos voisins ont plus de chance que nous. (to be lucky = to have luck in French)

  2. Some companies offer less vacation time than others.
    Certaines entreprises proposent moins de congés que d'autres.

  3. We have as much money as our neighbours
    Nous avons autant d'argent que nos voisins.

  4. I bought more DVDs than CDs.
    J'ai acheté plus de DVD que de CD.

  5. I have fewer coloured shirts than white shirts.
    J'ai moins de chemises de couleur que de chemises blanches.

  6. I put as many forks on the table as knives.
    J'ai mis autant de fourchettes sur la table que de couteaux.

Negation of comparative of noun

The negation of the comparative of noun works like a normal negation. Just note that, just like in English, the negation of the comparative of equality effectively amounts to a comparative of inferiority.

  1. Our neighbours are not luckier than us.
    Nos voisins n'ont pas plus de chance que nous. (to be lucky = to have luck in French)

  2. These companies do not offer less vacation time than the others.
    Ces entreprises ne proposent pas moins de congés que les autres.

  3. We don't have as much money as our neighbours
    Nous n' avons pas autant d'argent que nos voisins. (means we have less money than our neighbours)

  4. I did not buy more DVDs than CDs.
    J'ai n'ai pas acheté plus de DVD que de CD.

  5. I do not have fewer coloured shirts than white shirts.
    J'ai n'ai pas moins de chemises de couleur que de chemises blanches.

  6. I did not put as many forks on the table as knives.
    J'ai n'ai pas mis autant de fourchettes sur la table que de couteaux. ( means I put fewer forks than knives).