Comparatives in French
Use plus (more), moins (less), aussi (as), and autant (as much) to compare adjectives, adverbs, nouns, or verbs.
plus / moins / aussi + adj./adv. + queplus de / moins de / autant de + nom + queverbe + plus / moins / autant + que
Comparison with Adjectives
| French | Phonetic | English |
|---|---|---|
| Marie est plus grande que Julie. | mah-ree eh ploo grahnd kuh zhü-lee | Marie is taller than Julie. |
| Ce film est moins intéressant que le livre. | suh film eh mwan an-teh-reh-sahn kuh luh leevr | This movie is less interesting than the book. |
| Paul est aussi intelligent que Marc. | pol eh oh-see an-teh-lee-zhahnt kuh mark | Paul is as smart as Marc. |
Comparison with Adverbs
| French | Phonetic | English |
|---|---|---|
| Il court plus vite que moi. | eel koor ploo veet kuh mwah | He runs faster than me. |
| Elle chante moins bien que toi. | el shont mwan byan kuh twah | She sings less well than you. |
| Tu parles aussi clairement que le professeur. | tyoo parl oh-see klair-mohn kuh luh pro-feh-seur | You speak as clearly as the teacher. |
Comparison with Nouns (Quantities)
| French | Phonetic | English |
|---|---|---|
| J’ai plus de livres que toi. | zhay ploo duh leevr kuh twah | I have more books than you. |
| Elle a moins de temps que moi. | el ah mwan duh tahn kuh mwah | She has less time than me. |
| Nous avons autant de travail que vous. | noo zav-on oh-tan duh tra-vahy kuh voo | We have as much work as you. |
Comparison with Verbs (Actions)
| French | Phonetic | English |
|---|---|---|
| Paul travaille plus que moi. | pol tra-vahy ploo kuh mwah | Paul works more than me. |
| Je sors moins que toi. | zhuh sor mwan kuh twah | I go out less than you. |
| Ils voyagent autant que nous. | eel vwa-yahzh oh-tan kuh noo | They travel as much as us. |
Irregular Comparative Forms
| Regular | Comparative | Phonetic | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| bon (good) — adjective | meilleur(e)(s) | may-yur | better (adjective) |
| mauvais (bad) — adjective | pire | peer | worse |
| bien (well) — adverb | mieux | myuh | better (adverb) |
| mal (badly) — adverb | plus mal | ploo mal | worse |
Dialogue — Choisir un ordinateur portable
Ce modèle est plus léger que celui de gauche.
(suh moh-dèl eh ploo lay-zhay kuh suh-lwee duh gosh)
This model is lighter than the one on the left.
Oui, mais il est moins puissant que le modèle Pro.
(wee meh eel eh mwan pwee-sahn kuh luh moh-dèl pro)
Yes, but it’s less powerful than the Pro model.
Ceux-ci démarrent plus vite que les anciens, et ils chauffent moins.
(suh-see day-mar ploo veet kuh lay zan-syain, eh eel shoof mwahn)
These ones boot up faster than the older ones, and they heat up less.
Celui-ci a autant de mémoire que le Pro, non ?
(suh-lwee-see ah oh-tan duh mé-mwar kuh luh pro, non)
This one has as much memory as the Pro, right?
Exact. Et l’écran est meilleur sur ce modèle.
(eg-zakt. ay lay-kran eh may-yeur sur suh moh-dèl)
Exactly. And the screen is better on this model.
Mais le clavier réagit mieux que celui-là !
(meh luh kla-vyé ray-a-zhee myuh kuh suh-lwee-lah)
But this keyboard responds better than that one!
Mon budget est moins élevé que le tien. On cherche un pack plus abordable.
(mon byu-djè eh mwan zay-lé-vay kuh luh tyin. on sher-sh uh pak ploo a-bor-dabl)
My budget is lower than yours. Let’s look for a more affordable bundle.
Dans ce pack, vous avez plus de ports que sur l’autre, et la batterie tient autant que la Pro.
(dan suh pak, voo zavé ploo duh por kuh syr lo-tr, ay la ba-t’ri tyin oh-tan kuh la pro)
In this bundle, you have more ports than the other, and the battery lasts as long as the Pro.
La finition n’est pas aussi soignée que sur le haut de gamme, mais ça me va.
(la fi-ni-syon nè pah zo-see swa-nyay kuh syr luh o duh gam, meh sa muh va)
The finish isn’t as refined as on the high-end one, but I’m fine with that.
Et il démarre de plus en plus vite après les mises à jour.
(ay il day-mar duh pluz an plu veet a-prè lay miz a zhoor)
And it starts up faster and faster after the updates.
Alors, pour le rapport qualité-prix, ce modèle est meilleur que les autres.
(a-lor, pour luh ra-por ka-li-tay pri, suh moh-dèl eh may-yeur kuh lay zot)
So, for value for money, this model is better than the others.
D’accord. Prenons celui-ci, il nous convient aussi bien que le Pro.
(da-kor. pruh-non suh-lwee-see, il noo kon-vyin oh-see byan kuh luh pro)
Okay. Let’s take this one; it suits us as well as the Pro.
Exceptions & Edge Cases
| Case | Example | Guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Double comparative to insist | De plus en plus vite / De moins en moins cher | Fixed expressions meaning “more and more / less and less”. |
| Negation with equality | Il n’est pas aussi fort que toi. | Use pas aussi… que to say “not as… as”. |
| Superlatives (separate lesson) | le/la/les plus, le/la/les moins |
Built from the comparative base. |
Summary & Strategy
- ✅ Adj./Adv. → plus / moins / aussi + adj./adv. + que.
- ✅ Nouns → plus de / moins de / autant de + nom + que (use de only).
- ✅ Verbs → verb + plus / moins / autant + que.
- ✅ Irregulars → bon → meilleur (adj.), bien → mieux (adv.), mauvais → pire, mal → plus mal.
- ✅ Agreement on adjectives; adverbs are invariable.
