what is it?
German adjectives and adverbs have three degrees of comparison: the positive (the base form, e.g. groß — big), the comparative (expressing a higher degree, e.g. größer — bigger), and the superlative (expressing the highest degree, e.g. am größten — biggest). The comparative uses als (than) for unequal comparisons and (genauso) … wie (just as … as) for equal ones. Several common adjectives and the adverb gern have irregular forms that must be learned individually.
when to use it
Unequal comparison (comparative + als): use when one thing has more of a quality than another. The word after the comparative is always als, never wie.
Equal comparison (genauso … wie / so … wie): use when two things share the same degree of a quality. The positive (base) form of the adjective sits between genauso and wie.
Superlative (am -sten): use when one thing stands out above all others in a group, or to express an absolute peak (e.g. am schnellsten — fastest).
Preference with gern / lieber / am liebsten: use this adverb ladder with verbs to express what someone likes, prefers, or likes most to do.
formation
The regular pattern adds -er for the comparative and am -sten for the superlative. Many common monosyllabic adjectives also add an umlaut (a → ä, o → ö, u → ü) in both the comparative and superlative. Adjectives whose stem ends in -t, -d, -s, -z, -ß insert an extra -e- before -sten (e.g. am ältesten).
| positive | comparative | superlative | meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| klein | kleiner | am kleinsten | small |
| schnell | schneller | am schnellsten | fast |
| alt | älter | am ältesten | old |
| groß | größer | am größten | big |
| jung | jünger | am jüngsten | young |
| gut | besser | am besten | good |
| viel | mehr | am meisten | much / many |
| gern | lieber | am liebsten | (to like doing) |
German does not form the comparative with a separate word like English «more». Never say *mehr interessant — the suffix -er is always attached directly to the adjective: interessanter.
examples in context
common pitfalls
«größer wie» — wrong conjunction after a comparative.
After a comparative, use als, not wie. Wie is reserved for equal comparisons with genauso … wie. Say Berlin ist größer als Hamburg, not *größer wie Hamburg.
«mehr interessant» — analytic comparative does not exist in German.
Unlike English, German never places a separate word before the adjective to form the comparative. Always attach -er directly to the stem: interessanter, not *mehr interessant.
«alter» / «am großten» — missing umlaut.
Many common monosyllabic adjectives change their vowel in the comparative and superlative. Alt becomes älter / am ältesten; groß becomes größer / am größten. These umlauts are not optional — omitting them produces a non-word. Learn the umlaut forms together with the base adjective.
Three sentences, graded here. Nothing is saved and no account is needed.
Dieser Weg ist ___ von allen drei Wegen. (kurz)
Fill in the blank with the correct superlative form of the adjective in parentheses.