Comparative adjectives in German table. Degrees of comparison of adjectives – Die Steigerung der Adjektive. Degrees of comparison of adjectives in German: exceptions

German adjectives, indicating quality,(and also adverbs)in Germanhave three degrees of comparison:

— positive(der Positive) : dick (thick)
- comparative (der Komparativ) : dick er(thicker)
- excellent(der Superlativ) : am dick sten (der dick ste) (the thickest)

The basic form of an adjective is the positive degree. It names the quality of an object without comparison, to this extent adjectives are given in the dictionary.

The positive degree serves as the basis for the formation of the other two degrees of adjectives.

comparative

The comparative form is formed by adding the suffix -er to the short form of the adjective and shows that this feature is inherent in some object or phenomenon to a greater extent than another:
klein - kleiner, laut - lauter, alt - älter,groß— größer

When forming the comparative and superlative degrees of comparison, most monosyllabic adjectives with root vowels -a, -o, -u accept umlaut:
alt - älter - am ältesten
groß - größer - am größten
jung- junger- am Jungsten

DerBruderist ä lter alsSchwester - Brother is older than sister

DieseSchuleist größ er alsunserHaus — This school is bigger than our house.

Ihr ä lterer Bruder —Her older brother

Seine jü ngere Schwester — His younger sister

The comparative degree of adjectives in a sentence can be used:

as a nominal part of the predicate

Dieses Bild ist schöner. — This picture is more beautiful (more beautiful).

Jenes Gebäude ist kleiner. — That building is smaller.

as a definition. In this case, the adjective comes before the noun and is declined like an adjective in the positive degree. Those. to the comparative degree (to -er), taken as a basis, the usual endings of adjectives are added:

DortscheinteinehellereLampe . — There is a brighter light there.

Wir suchen eine kleinere (größere) Wohnung. - We are looking for a smaller (larger) apartment.

Ich brauche ein en billigere n Computer. - I need a cheaper computer (the article has changed).

If a comparative adjective is followed by a comparison, then the conjunction is used als:

Dein Koffer ist leichter als meiner - Your suitcase is lighter than mine.

The comparative degree of adjectives can also be strengthened by adverbs such as viel (much, much), immer (here: everything), noch (yet), bedeutend (significantly).

Die Tage wurden immer k ürzer. — The days were getting shorter.

DieserSportleristjetztnochst ä rker . - This athlete is now even stronger.

Gestern war es bedeutend w ärmer. — Yesterday it was much warmer.

A comparative adjective can also become a noun:

Nichts Interessantes. - Nothing interesting.

Es gibt nichts Interessant er es als Fußball. - There is nothing more interesting than football.

Haben Sie nicht etwas Billigeres? - Don’t you have anything cheaper?

Der Klügere gibt nach. - (More) smart is inferior.

. Superlative

Superlative shows that a given sign is inherent in some object or phenomenon Vhighest degree compared to others:

Er ist der beste Schüler in der Klasse. - He is the best student in the class.

Sie ist die schönste Frau in der Stadt. - She is the most beautiful woman in the city.

The superlative form is formed by adding the suffix — st or, if the adjective ends in — d, — t, — s, — x, — z, -ß , — los, — haft, then the suffix — est:alt— am ä ltesten, jung - amjü ngsten, groß — amgröß ten

Die ä lteste Dame - the oldest lady

Dasjü ngste Kind - youngest child

Superlative adjectives can also serve two functions in a sentence:

as a nominal part of the predicate and has an unchangeable form. It is formed using a particle am and suffix -sten: am kleinsten (smallest, least of all), am schönsten (most beautiful, most beautiful of all), am größten (largest, most of all)

Dieses Zimmer ist am kleinsten. — This room is the smallest.

Unsere Stadt ist am schönsten. — Our city is the most beautiful.

as a definition. Then the adjective agrees with the defined noun in gender, number and case, that is, it takes a case ending and stands with a definite article. It is declined according to the same rules as an adjective in the positive degree. Nominative: der kleinste Tisch, die hellste Lampe, das größte Fenster, Genitive: des kleinsten Tisches, der hellsten Lampe, des größten Fensters.

Adjectives that take umlaut in the comparative degree also retain it in the superlative degree.

Some adjectives have forms like sumlaut, So and without:

glatt- glatter— am glattesten

glatt- glatter— am glattesten

Degrees of comparison should be remembered 6 adjectives, because their education does not follow general rules:

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Degrees of comparison of adjectives are one of the simplest topics in the German language.
There are three forms of adjectives: ordinary, comparative and superlative. For example: beautiful, more beautiful, most beautiful. And in German they are formed according to a completely understandable pattern:

schnell - fast
schnell + er - faster
am schnell + sten - the fastest

Well, it’s also worth noting the superlative forms that stand immediately before the object and characterize it: der/die/das schnell + ste – the fastest / the fastest / the fastest

Der Mount Everest ist der höchste Berg der Welt.– Mount Everest is the largest mountain in the world.

The degrees of comparison of some German adjectives need to be memorized, since they are exceptions and have special forms.

good: gut – besser – am besten

high: hoch – höher – am höchsten

close: nah – näher – am nächsten

a lot: viel – mehr – am meisten

But in most German books these three forms are presented precisely in the section “degree of comparison of German adjectives”.

And that's all? No. Where is it going? You're not in English class. German – it wouldn’t be German if everything were so easy and simple. As always, there is something to trip over and even get yourself in trouble.

So! We get rid of tripping the traditional way. Namely, we take it and remember it. No witchcraft...

What should you pay attention to? Where are they, the treacherous elements?

Degrees of comparison of German adjectives

The whole point is that you need to remember a few rules that I will list...

1. If the adjective ends with the letters: -d, – t, -s, -ss, -ß, – sch, -z, -tz, -x – then the superlative ending – est is added to it (instead of just -st ):

wild – wilder – am wildest en
heiß – heißer – am heißes ten

2. Second nuance: some adjectives can change vowels radically: the vowel acquires an umlaut. Which ones exactly? There are many short adjectives - consisting of one syllable:

arm – ä rmer – am ä rmsten
jung – jü nger – am jü ngsten

3. Comparatively, adjectives that end in -el and -er lose e:

dunkel – dunkl er – am dunkelsten
teuer – teur er – am teuersten

And that's it now. Once you practice a little, you will remember it very quickly, not like this one from German grammar.

Some comparative designs

With this topic, it is immediately worth considering comparative proposals.
For example: this book is more interesting than that one, but this blanket is as warm as that one...

Remember the following formulas:

Same = so…wie (adjective does not change)

Not the same (bigger, better, more beautiful) ≠ als... (adjective change: takes on comparative degree: adjective + er)

Berlin ist größer als Hannover. – Berlin is bigger than Hannover.
Hannover ist so groß wie Leipzig. – Hannover is the same as Leipzig.

We will consider comparative proposals and designs in more detail in a separate article, but for now this is enough 🙂 Good luck!

In German, as in Russian, there are three degrees of comparison of adjectives and adverbs: positive (Positiv), comparative (Komparativ), superlative (Superlativ).

Table 13

As can be seen from the examples, adjectives can form degrees of comparison, both with and without umlaut. Without umlaut, degrees of comparison are formed by the following adjectives:

With root diphthong au: sauber, sauberer, der sauberste (am saubersten)

With suffixes -bar, -el, -er, -en, -e, -haft, -ig, -lich: dankbar, edel, finster, offen, rege, schmackhaft, lustig

Some other adjectives: voll, klar, froh

There are a number of adjectives and adverbs that form degrees of comparison not according to general rules:

nah(e), näher, am nächsten

hoch, höher, am höchsten

gut, besser, am besten

german, lieber, am liebsten

bald, eher, am ehesten

viel, mehr, am meisten

Using degrees of comparison

1. If the comparison follows an adjective in the basic, positive form, then the conjunctions so (ebenso) ... wie ... are used:

Er ist so (ebenso) gross wie sie. He's as big as she is.

2. If a comparison follows an adjective in comparative form, then the conjunction is used als:

Sie ist jünger als er. She is younger than him.

3. The two superlative forms are used differently from each other.

Form der beste is used as a definition, that is, it stands, like any other adjective, before a noun: der beste Tag.

Form am besten used as a nominal, i.e. unchangeable part of the predicate: derTagist am besten,dieTagesind am besten

4. A characteristic feature is the use of the comparative form of the adjective without comparison as such:

grö sseres Haus- relatively, quite large house

lä ngere Zeit- quite a long time

hö here Gewalt- high power

hö here Mathematik– higher mathematics

Remember two options for turnover “as much as possible”: mö glichst viel,

so viel wie möglich

Übung 1.Read the comic, pay attention to the use of comparative adjectives.

Ü bung2. Now write the text of the comic yourself.

Table 14

Ü bung3. Compare the items according to the sample.

Tisch B ist breiter als Tisch A. Tisch C ist am …

Tisch A ist am billigsten. Tisch B ist… als…

Übung 4.What Not fits?

1. Zimmer: hell – zufrieden – sauber - leer

2. Auto: gesund – schnell – laut – lang

3. Pullover: teuer – gut – breit – groß

4. Nachbar: dick – nett – klein – niedrig

5. Stuhl: leicht – niedrig – klein – langsam

6. Schrank: breit – schwer – kalt – schön

Übung 5.What Not fits?

1. wohnen: billig – ruhig – groß – schön

2. arbeiten: gern – nett – langsam – immer

3. schmecken: bitter – süß – schnell – gut

4. essen: warm – gesund – schnell – klein

5. feiern: dick – gerne – oft – laut

6. erklären: falsch – genau – hoch – gut

Übung 6.Fill the table.

Table 15

Ü bung7. Form comparative and superlative degrees and use them in a sentence as a nominal part of the predicate.

Die Stunde ist kurz. Die Minute ist…. Die Sekunde ist….

It's warm. Der Juni ist…. Der Juli ist….

Die Übung ist lang. Das Diktat ist…. Der Aufsatz ist….

Der see ist tief. Der Fluss ist…. Das Meer ist….

Das Eisen ist schwer. Das Blei ist…. Das Gold ist….

Die Gasse ist breit. Die Strasse ist…. Der Prospekt ist….

Ü bung 8 . Answer the questions.

Was essen Sie lieber: Fisch, Fleisch oder Kuchen?

Was trinken Sie lieber: Sekt, Bier oder Saft?

Was gefällt Ihnen besser: Paris, Berlin oder Moskau?

Wann essen Sie mehr: im Sommer, im Winter oder im Herbst?

Welche Sprache ist leichter: Russisch, Englisch oder Deutsch?

Wo ist das Klima besser: im Ural, in Sibirien oder auf der Krim?

Was hören Sie lieber: das Klavier, die Geige oder Gitarre?

Ü bung 9 . Compare objects of different quality using these groups of words.

die Wolga, lang, die Oka.

dieser Weg, kurz, jener Weg.

dein Platz, bequem, mein Platz.

seine Wohnung, gross, meine Wohnung.

die Berge im Kaukasus, hoch, die Berge auf der Krim.

Adjectives in German have degrees of comparison. For example:

Meine Wohnung ist klein. – My apartment is small.
The adjective is here in its basic form.

And here is the comparative degree (Comparative) :

Deine Wohnung ist klein er als meine. – Your apartment is smaller than mine.

The comparative degree of an adjective is formed by adding -er to the base of the word. Also note the word als (than).
It should be noted that an umlaut is added to many short adjectives when forming the comparative degree.

kalt-k ä lter (cold - colder), dumm - d ü mmer (stupid - stupider)

In addition to the comparative, the adjective also has a superlative degree. (Superlativ) . For example:

Sie ist das schön ste Mädchen. - She is the most beautiful girl.

Dieser Betrieb besitzt modernste Maschinen. – This company has the most modern machines.

The same adjectives that received Umlaut in the comparative degree, they also receive it in the superlative:

The superlative degree is declined (that is, changed according to cases), of course, according to the same three rules:

mit dem schönste n Mädchen - with the most beautiful girl.

Adjectives whose stem ends in -t, – d, – sch, – s, – ß, – z superlatively before -st insert -e-(which you don’t need to specifically remember - otherwise you won’t be able to say it):

der kält e ste Januar seit zehn Jahren. – The coldest January in the last 10 years;

Der kürz e ste Weg ist nicht immer der beste. – The shortest path is not always the best.

A superlative adjective can also be turned into a noun:

Das ist das Schön st e, was es gibt. - This is the most beautiful thing there is.

Unser Älte st er (unsere Älteste) arbeitet bei der Bank. – Our (most) eldest (son) (our eldest daughter) works in (literally: at) a bank.

Wer ist der Nächste? – Who is next (literally: closest)?

Adjectives on -el, -er lose, cut it -e– not only in position before the noun, but also in the comparative degree. The superlative remains unchanged:

dunkel (dark), der dunkle Keller (dark cellar), es wird dunkler (getting darker), es ist am dunkelsten (darkest of all);

teuer (expensive), der teure Mantel (expensive coat), er ist teurer (it is more expensive),

er ist am teuersten (he is dearer than everything, everyone).

An adjective in the comparative degree can also stand before a noun and be a definition of it. Compare:

ein billiger Wagen - a cheap car,

ein billig er er Wagen is a cheaper car;

ein großes Haus - big house,

ein größ er es Haus – larger house;

eine kleine Wohnung – small apartment,

eine Klein er e Wohnung – smaller apartment:

Wir suchen eine kleinere (größere) Wohnung. – We are looking for a smaller (larger) apartment.

That is: to the comparative degree (to - er), taken as a basis, the usual endings of adjectives are added (according to three rules):

ein billigere r Computer, de r billiger e Computer (cheaper);

viele billiger e computer, diese billigere n Computer(plural - non-specific or specific);

Ich brauche ein en billigere n Computer. – I need a cheaper computer(the article has changed).

A comparative adjective can also become a noun. Compare:

Nichts Interessantes. - Nothing interesting.

Es gibt nichts Interessant er es als Fußball. – There is nothing more interesting than football.

Haben Sie nicht etwas Billigeres? – Don’t you have anything cheaper?

Der Klügere gibt nach. – (The more) smart one is inferior.

It is also worth noting that an adjective in the comparative degree can sometimes mean not comparison, but simply a weakened quality:

eine kleine Stadt (small town) – eine kleinere Stadt (small town ~ rather small);

eine alte Frau (old woman) – eine ältere Frau (old woman ~ rather old);

lange Zeit (long, long time) – längere Zeit (long time ~ rather long).

That is: no less, Not older and not longer, but on the contrary, a little larger than the small one, younger than the older one and shorter than the long one.

To reinforce the material, watch a video with examples:

Adjectives form comparative forms atypically:

hoch – höher – am höchsten (high – above – above all),

nah – näher – am nächsten (close – closest – closest, all).

In addition, there are several adjectives whose degrees of comparison are completely different words. You need to remember them:

gut – besser – am besten (good – better – best of all),

viel – mehr – am meisten (many – more – most of all, all).

And also adverbs (non-declining characterizing words):

wenig – minder – am mindesten (little – less – least of all),

gern – lieber – am liebsten (willingly – most willingly – most willingly),

bald – eher – am ehesten (soon – most likely – most likely).

Adjective

Adjectives can be compared. German grammar, like Russian, distinguishes three degrees of comparison.

This article presents all three degrees of comparison, the rules for their formation and examples of use.

1. Education

Correct adjectives:

<-e->:

Adjectives with endings<-e>:

Irregular adjectives:

2. Education rules

Correct adjectives:

The basic form of the comparative degree receives the ending<-er>. The attributive form of the superlative degree is used with the definite article and receives the ending<-ste>. The form of predicative use is preceded by the word , and the adjective gets the ending<-sten>:
→ schön er ~ der/die/das schön ste ~ am schön sten
→ klein er ~ der/die/das klein ste ~ am klein sten
→neu er ~ der/die/das neu ste ~ am neu sten
→ faul er ~ der/die/das faul ste ~ am faul sten
→ schnell er ~ der/die/das Schnell ste ~ am Schnell sten

Adjectives with forms having an insertion<-e->:

If the base form of the adjective ends in<-d>, <-t>, <-z>, <ß>or , then for better pronunciation an insertion is added to the superlative forms<-e->:
→wil d~der/die/das wild e ste~am wild e sten
→ schlech t~ der/die/das schlecht e ste ~ am schlecht e sten
→ stol z~der/die/das stolz e ste ~ am stolz e sten
→ hüb sch~ der/die/das hübsch e ste ~ am hübsch e sten
→ sü ß ~der/die/das süß e ste ~ am süß e sten

Adjectives with endings<-e>:

If the base form of the adjective already ends in<-e>, then the comparative form receives only the ending<-r>:
→leis e~leise r
→ müd e~müde r
→ bös e~bose r
→ gerad e~gerade r
→weis e~weise r

Adjectives with forms that have umlauts:

In some adjectives, the vowel becomes an umlaut in other forms. Most often we are talking about monosyllabic adjectives that describe a person:
→ a lt ~ ä lter ~ der/die/das ä lteste~am ä ltesten
→ st a rk~st ä rker ~ der/die/das st ä rkste ~ am st ä rksten
→gr oß ~ gr ö ßer ~ der/die/das gr ö ßte ~ am gr ö ßten
→d u mm~d ü mmer ~ der/die/das d ü mmste~amd ü mmsten
→ges u nd~ges ü nder ~ der/die/das ges ü ndeste ~ am ges ü ndesten

Irregular adjectives:

Irregular adjectives have different forms in other degrees that must be learned by heart.

3. Examples

Positive degree:

It is the basic form of an adjective and describes only one noun.

Attributive usage:
→ Petra ist ein schönes Mädchen.
(Petra is a beautiful girl.)

Predicative use:
→ Petra ist schön.
(Petra is beautiful.)

Comparative:

She compares two nouns and describes the difference between them.

Attributive usage:
→ Petra ist ein schönes Mädchen, aber Maria ist ein schöneres Mädchen.
(Petra is a beautiful girl, but Maria is a more beautiful girl.)

Predicative use:
→ Petra ist schön, aber Maria ist schöner(als ie).
(Petra is beautiful, but Mary is more beautiful (her).)

Superlative:

She compares at least three nouns and names the highest degree. When used attributively, the definite article is added.

Attributive usage:
→ Petra ist ein schönes Mädchen, Maria ist ein schöneres Mädchen, aber Eva ist das Schönste Mädchen.
(Petra is a beautiful girl, Maria is a more beautiful girl, but Eva is the most beautiful girl.)

Predicative use:
→ Petra ist schön, Maria ist schöner, aber Eva ist am schönsten(von allen).
(Petra is beautiful, Maria is more beautiful, but Eva is the most beautiful of all.)

4. Signal words

Positive degree:

so... - Also) ...
... wie- ... How
zu... - too much...

Comparative:

... als- ... how
viel... - much...
immer... - All ...

Superlative:

... von Allen- ... everyone / everything
... Genitiv - ... genitive p.