Las comparaciones Sentences which compare a trait or a noun.

There are two different types of comparison sentences: EQUALITY and INEQUALITY. In Spanish 1, we focus on INEQUALITY only.

Comparisons of INEQUALITY are “-ER” types of words. BIGGER MORE ORGANIZED MORE PRACTICAL LESS FUN SMARTER PRETTIER TALLER

I am more daring than she is.. Mari is smarter than Lupe. Jorge y Paco are less lazy than their sisters. We are less serious than Abel.

Pause for practice… Actividad I

Because we are comparing TRAITS, the verb SER is usually used. After all, SER is used for physical descriptions and personality traits.

When making TRAIT comparisons of inequality, is used to say “more than”. The más and the que are separated by an adjective. más … que

Las chicas son más bajas que el profesor. The girls are shorter than the teacher.

Alberto es más ordenado que su hermano. Albert is more organized than his brother.

When comparing a TRAIT, the adjective will agree in number and gender with the SUBJECT ON THE LEFT, not the object on the right.

Alberto es más ordenado que su hermano.

Las chicas son más bajas que el profesor.

When making TRAIT comparisons of inequality, is used to say “less than”. The menos and the que are separated by an adjective. menos … que

Mi perro es menos feo que tu perro. My dog is less ugly than your dog.

Ustedes son menos reservados que los niños. You all are less shy than the children.

Pause for practice… Actividades II and III

Más / Menos … que can also be used when comparing a noun.

Ella tiene más zapatos que yo. She has more shoes than me.

Mi profesor califica menos exámenes que tu profesora. My teacher grades less exams than your teacher.

Practice!!!How do you say…? more tall than less lazy than less daring than more hard-working than less social than more talented than

How did you do? más alto/-a que menos perezoso/ -a que menos atrevido/ -a que más trabajador/-ora que menos sociable que más talentoso/ -a que

Pause for practice… Actividades IV and V

There are additional phrases you can use to make comparisons. These phrases are…

Mejor que Peor que Mayor que Menor que Better than Worse than Older than Younger than You will never use “bueno”, “malo”, “viejo” nor “joven” in a comparison phrase.

Mountain View es mejor que Mesa. Mountain View is better than Mesa.

Mi horario es peor que tu horario. My schedule is worse than your schedule.

Soy mayor que ustedes. I am older than you all.

Ustedes son MENORES que yo. What changed about “menor”? Why? You all are younger than me.

Practice!!! How do you say…? I swim better than you. We sing worse than Beyonce. They are older than me. My dog, Maverick, is younger than my dog, Jasper.

How did you do? Nado mejor que tú. Cantamos peores que Beyonce. Ellos son mayores que yo. Mi perro, Maverick, es menor que mi perro, Jasper.

Pause for practice… Actividad VI

Try to practice on your own with the comparisons of INEQUALITY (Actividad VII): Susi sings worse than Marco. Susi canta _____ _____ Marco.

Using the computer is easier than writing. Usar la computadora es _____ _____ _____ escribir.

The house is bigger than the car. La casa es _____ _____ _____ el carro.

Echo is less intelligent than Maverick. Echo es _____ _____ _____ Maverick.

There are more students than there are teachers. Hay _____ _____ _____ hay profesores.

How did you do? Susi canta peor que Marco. Usar la computadora es más fácil que escribir. La casa es más grande que el carro. Echo es menos inteligente que Maverick. Hay más estudiantes que hay profesores.

But wait! There’s more! We need to talk about SUPERLATIVES.

To say really, very or extremely, use the ending This suffix will agree in number and gender with the noun it modifies. This ending indicates that the noun has a high degree of the trait, but not necessarily the highest degree. It translates to “really”, “very” or “extremely”.

zvery tall buildings zextremely handsome boy zreally funny teacher zvery lazy students zreally talented dog zextremely tasty hamburger z edificios altísimos z chico guapísimo z profesora graciosísima z estudiantes perezosísimos z perro talentosísimo z hamburguesa sabrosísima

There are some spelling changes that take place: zFeliz zRica zLargos z Felizísimo z Ricísima z Largísimos Z > C C > QU G > GU zFelicísimo zRiquísima zLarguísimos

There’s another way to express a superlative. These phrases indicate the HIGHEST DEGREE of a characteristic.

Superlatives are “-EST” types of words. BIGGEST MOST ORGANIZED MOST PRACTICAL LEAST FUN SMARTEST PRETTIEST TALLEST

This is an easy formula to remember: Definite Article más OR menos NOUNADJECTIVE el, la, los, las The adjective in the phrase will agree in number and gender with the NOUN.

Def Art + Mejor Def Art + Peor Def Art + Mayor Def Art + Menor (The) Best (The) Worst (The) Oldest (The) Youngest As always, there are irregulars: Just like with comparisons, these expressions are made plural when the noun is plural.

Practice! ¿Cóme se dice…? z the worst class z the ugliest girl z the best movies z the oldest (female) cousin z the least favorite book

Se dice… z la peor clase z la chica más fea z las mejores películas z la mayor prima z el libro menos favorito

¿Comprendes? Si no comprendes, ¿qué debes hacer? If you don’t understand, what should you do?