Comparative is a syntactic to express a comparison between two or more entities or groups of entities in degree, quality, quantity, etc. So how to make comparisons in Spanish? How to use some basic forms of comparisons or comparative forms including comparisons of inequality (more than/less than) and comparisons of equality (as...as) in Spanish?
How to make comparisons in Spanish?
1. Comparisons of equality in Spanish
As..as
Formula: tan + adjective/adverb + como = as + adjective/adverb + as
Example:
Sara is as tall as your brother - Sara es tan alta como tu hermano.
Note: The adjective used in this type of comparison must match the subject of the sentence in both gender and number.
See gender rules in Spanish nouns for more information!
Examples:
My sister is as tall as your brother - Mi hermana es tan alta como tu hermano.
My brother is as tall as your brother - Mi hermano es tan alto como tu hermano.
As many as/ As much as
Formula: tanto + noun + como = as many/as much + noun + as
Note: the word “tanto” must match the noun that follows in both gender and number.
- Tanta: used for singular noun, feminine gender
- Tanto: for singular noun, masculine gender
- Tantos: plural noun, masculine gender
- Tantas: plural noun, feminine gender
Examples:
I have as much money as Peter - Tengo tanto dinero como Peter.
My mother has as much patience as her - Mi madre tiene tanta paciencia como ella.
He has as many bananas as him - Tiene tantos plátanos como él.
2. Comparisons of inequality in Spanish
More than/Less than
Formula:
más + adjective/adverb/noun + que = more + adjective/adverb/noun + than
menos + adjective/adverb/noun + que = less + adjective/adverb/noun + than
Note: The adjective must match the first noun as it is the subject of the comparison.
Examples:
Pizza is more delicious than squash - La pizza es más sabrosa que la calabaza\
Pizza is less delicious than squash - La pizza es menos sabrosa que la Calabaza
Not as…as
Formula: no + verb + tan + adjective/adverb + como
Example:
I am not as tall as your brother - Pedro no es tan alto como su hermano.
Single word comparisons
Just like in English, there are single adjectives that you can’t use more than or less than to make comparisons. For example, “tall” becomes “taller” in English. And in Spanish, with these adjectives, you don’t use “más” or “menos”. Instead, you just need to add the afterwards “que”.
Formula: adjective + que
Example:
I am older than my sister - Soy mayor que mi hermana.
Some one word comparison in Spanish with English translation:
- Major - better
- Peor - worse
- Mayor - larger
- Mayor - older
- Menor - younger
If the comparative is followed by a number, use “de” rather than “que”
Formula: más/menos + de + number = more than/less than + number
Example:
There are more than five people here - Hay más de cinco personas aquí.
Note: if the comparative is followed by a number and is negative, use “que” to mean “only”
Formula: más/menos + que + number = only + number
Examples:
There are only five people in here - No hay más que cinco personas aquí.
I only have twenty dollars - No tengo más que veinte dólares.
I have more than twenty dollars - Tengo más de veinte dólares.
Learning how to compare two things is not enough, you also need to learn superlatives in Spanish!
Check out for more Spanish to English translation, grammar, and vocabulary.