Spanish · Elementary (A2) · Chapter 4 of 12
Home and housing
Buscar piso
Compare flats and neighbourhoods in Spanish with más… que, tan… como and mejor, and talk about rent with numbers up to 1,000.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Compare two places with más… que, menos… que and tan… como
- Use mejor, peor, mayor and menor
- Talk about rent with numbers from 100 to 1,000
- Describe a flat and its neighbourhood
Listen
Alba and Hugo, a young couple in Málaga, have seen two flats to rent and are deciding which one to take. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Alba
Bueno, Hugo, ¿qué piso te gusta más: el del centro o el de la playa?
Well, Hugo, which flat do you like better: the one in the centre or the one by the beach?
Hugo
No sé. El del centro es más grande que el otro. Tiene tres dormitorios.
I don't know. The one in the centre is bigger than the other one. It has three bedrooms.
Alba
Sí, pero es mucho más caro. El alquiler es de novecientos euros al mes.
Yes, but it's much more expensive. The rent is nine hundred euros a month.
Hugo
Es verdad. Y el de la playa cuesta setecientos cincuenta.
That's true. And the one by the beach costs seven hundred and fifty.
Alba
Además, el de la playa es más luminoso y tiene terraza.
Also, the one by the beach is brighter and it has a terrace.
Hugo
Sí, pero el barrio es más ruidoso. Hay muchos bares y restaurantes.
Yes, but the neighbourhood is noisier. There are lots of bars and restaurants.
Alba
Bueno, a mí me gustan los bares. Y está más cerca de mi trabajo.
Well, I like bars. And it's closer to my work.
Hugo
Y la cocina es tan grande como la del centro.
And the kitchen is as big as the one in the centre.
Alba
Entonces, ¿alquilamos el de la playa?
So, shall we rent the one by the beach?
Hugo
Vale. Para nosotros es mejor.
OK. It's better for us.
Understand
Comparing: más… que, menos… que, tan… como
To compare two things, use (more) or (less) + adjective + (than): (bigger than), (less expensive than). Spanish has no endings like -er: “cheaper” is simply .
To say two things are the same, use + adjective + : (as big as). The adjective still agrees with the noun: . To say “much”, add : (much more expensive).
- El piso del centro es más grande que el otro.The flat in the centre is bigger than the other one.
- El barrio es menos ruidoso que el centro.The neighbourhood is less noisy than the centre.
- La cocina es tan grande como el salón.The kitchen is as big as the living room.
- Mi piso es mucho más pequeño que el de Ana.My flat is much smaller than Ana's.
Mejor, peor, mayor, menor and “the one…”
Four common comparisons have their own word. Don't add to them: (better than), never . and are mostly used for age: (My sister is older than me).
With numbers, use and : (more than a thousand euros).
To avoid repeating the noun, keep or and drop the noun: → (the one in the centre), → .
| Spanish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| better (from ) | ||
| worse (from , bad) | ||
| older | ||
| younger |
Hundreds: rent and bigger prices
100 is , but 101 to 199 use : (120). The hundreds from 200 to 900 are one word, and they agree with feminine nouns: but (200 people). Note the irregular , and .
There's no after the hundreds: 750 is . The only goes between tens and units: (755). 1,000 is .
| Number | Spanish | Number | Spanish |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 600 | ||
| 200 | 700 | ||
| 300 | 800 | ||
| 400 | 900 | ||
| 500 | 1,000 |
More in the grammar: Spanish numbers: from 0 to a million · Comparisons: más… que, tan… como, mejor
New words
- el pisoflat, apartment · masculine; in Latin America or
- no séI don't know · from
- grandebig · same form for masculine and feminine; opposite: /
- el otro / la otrathe other one
- el alquilerrent · masculine
- al mesa month, per month
- Es verdad.That's true.
- ademásalso, besides, what's more
- luminoso / luminosabright, full of light
- la terrazaterrace, balcony · feminine
- el barrioneighbourhood, area · masculine
- ruidoso / ruidosanoisy · opposite: / (quiet)
- el trabajowork, job · masculine
- alquilarto rent
Practise
1.How do you say “The kitchen is smaller than the living room”?
2.Complete the sentence: “My sister is older than me.”
My sister is older than me.
3.Write 500 in words.
The rent is five hundred euros a month.
4.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.The flat by the beach is cheaper.
5.Match the Spanish with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
6.Which one means “as big as”?
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
Mi piso es más grande que el otro.
My flat is bigger than the other one.
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.