Spanish grammar · Elementary (A2)
Comparisons: más… que, tan… como, mejor
How to compare people and things in Spanish: más and menos… que, tan… como, the irregular mejor, peor, mayor and menor, and el más…
More and less
Spanish has no endings like “-er”. Put (more) or (less) before the adjective and (than) after it. The adjective agrees with the noun as usual.
Use for “much”: (much more expensive). After , use and : (taller than me).
- El piso del centro es más grande que el otro.The flat in the centre is bigger than the other one.
- La cocina es menos luminosa que el salón.The kitchen is less bright than the living room.
- Mi hermana es más alta que yo.My sister is taller than me.
- El tren es mucho más rápido que el autobús.The train is much faster than the bus.
As… as
To say two things are equal, use + adjective + . With nouns, use , which agrees with the noun: , , .
With a verb, use : (I don't work as much as you).
- La cocina es tan grande como la del otro piso.The kitchen is as big as the one in the other flat.
- Hoy no hace tanto frío como ayer.It isn't as cold today as yesterday.
- No hay tanta gente como en verano.There aren't as many people as in summer.
Mejor, peor, mayor, menor
Four comparisons have their own form. Never add to them. and are mostly used for age; for size, say and .
and are also the comparisons of and : (I feel better today).
| Adjective | Comparison | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (good) | (better) | |
| (bad) | (worse) | |
| age: older | ||
| age: younger |
The most: el más…
For “the biggest”, “the most expensive”, use , , or + + adjective. “In” after it is : (the cheapest flat in the neighbourhood).
With numbers, “more than” and “less than” are and : .
- Es la habitación más grande de la casa.It's the biggest room in the house.
- Es el mejor restaurante de la ciudad.It's the best restaurant in the city.
- El alquiler es de más de novecientos euros.The rent is more than nine hundred euros.