what is it?
When a comparative or superlative adjective appears directly before a noun — in attributive position — it must carry a case, gender, and number ending, just like any other attributive adjective. The comparative is formed by adding -er to the base form before the declension ending (e.g. besser- → ein besseres Angebot). The superlative uses the stem -(e)st- before the ending (e.g. der schönste Tag). Separately, the adjective ending after a quantifier — alle, viele, einige, mehrere, wenige — depends on whether that quantifier itself signals the grammatical information: alle behaves like a definite article and triggers weak -en endings, while viele, einige, mehrere, wenige leave the adjective to carry strong endings on its own.
when to use it
Attributive position only. These rules apply when the adjective stands between a determiner (or quantifier) and a noun. Predicative comparatives (Das Angebot ist besser.) are never declined.
Comparative: comparing two things. Use the comparative stem (base + -er) whenever you express that something has more of a quality than something else.
Superlative: singling out the extreme. Use the superlative stem (base + -(e)st) when one item stands out as the most or least of a group. In attributive position this always takes a declension ending; the am …sten form is reserved for predicative and adverbial use.
After alle — weak endings. Alle carries full case/gender marking itself, so the following adjective takes the weak ending -en throughout (like after der/die/das).
After viele, einige, mehrere, wenige — strong endings. These quantifiers do not fully mark case and gender, so the adjective must carry strong endings (like after no article at all).
formation
Build an attributive comparative or superlative in two steps: first add the degree suffix to the adjective stem, then add the appropriate declension ending.
| degree | suffix added to stem | example stem + suffix | declension ending added | final attributive form (nom. sg. masc.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| positive | — | gut | -er (strong) / -e (weak) | ein guter Plan / der gute Plan |
| comparative | -er | besser- | -es (strong neut.) / -e (weak) | ein besserer Plan / der bessere Plan |
| superlative | -(e)st | best- | -e (weak, always) | der beste Plan |
The superlative in attributive position is always weak-declined because it almost always follows a definite article or alle. Where no article is present, strong endings apply in the same way as for the comparative.
Adjective endings after quantifiers (plural, nominative/accusative)
| quantifier | ending type | example |
|---|---|---|
| alle | weak: -en | alle guten Freunde |
| viele | strong: -e | viele gute Freunde |
| einige | strong: -e | einige gute Ideen |
| mehrere | strong: -e | mehrere gute Gründe |
| wenige | strong: -e | wenige gute Angebote |
In other cases (genitive, dative) the same logic holds: aller guten Freunde (genitive pl., weak) vs. vieler guter Freunde (genitive pl., strong).
examples in context
common pitfalls
Leaving the comparative undeclined. Learners sometimes treat the comparative -er suffix as the whole job and write *ein besser Angebot. The comparative suffix and the declension ending are separate: the correct form is ein besseres Angebot (stem besser- + ending -es).
Using am …sten attributively. The form am schönsten is correct only in predicative or adverbial use (Der Tag war am schönsten.). Before a noun, use the declined superlative: der schönste Tag, not *der am schönsten Tag.
Wrong endings after alle and viele. Because alle looks like a strong quantifier, learners sometimes write *alle gute Freunde (strong ending). In fact alle fully marks the noun phrase, so the adjective is weak: alle guten Freunde. Conversely, after viele the adjective must be strong: viele gute Freunde, not *viele guten Freunde. The same applies to einige, mehrere, wenige.