Comparative adverbs

A comparison shows how two people, things, quantities, or actions relate to each other. English uses expressions such as more expensive than, less often than, and as fast as.

French builds comparisons with words such as plus, moins, aussi, and autant. The form of the comparison depends on what you compare.

Comparisons with plus, moins, and aussi

Plus expresses a greater degree, moins expresses a smaller degree, and aussi expresses an equal degree.

With adjectives and adverbs, the basic comparison follows these patterns:

plus + adjective or adverb + que moins + adjective or adverb + que aussi + adjective or adverb + que

The three forms compare greater, smaller, and equal degrees:

Que becomes qu' before a vowel sound, as in plus rapide qu'elle.

Other comparison patterns use autant instead of aussi, especially with nouns and verbs.

Adjective comparisons

A comparative adjective describes how a quality differs between two people or things. The adjective still agrees with the noun it describes.

Plus, moins, or aussi comes before the adjective, and que introduces the second part of the comparison:

The comparative word does not affect adjective agreement. Grande agrees with maison or Marie, while difficiles agrees with exercices.

Adverb comparisons

A comparative adverb compares how, when, or how often actions happen.

The comparison uses the same plus, moins, and aussi structure:

Adverbs do not agree with the subject, so their form stays the same throughout the comparison.

Noun and quantity comparisons

A comparison can also show that someone or something has a greater, smaller, or equal quantity of a noun.

Quantity comparisons use de before the noun:

plus de + noun + que moins de + noun + que autant de + noun + que

These forms compare quantities rather than qualities:

Use autant de, not aussi de, to express equal quantities.

Verb and action comparisons

A comparative can describe the degree, amount, or frequency of an action. In this structure, the comparative word follows the verb.

Verb comparisons use plus, moins, or autant:

Use autant for equality with a verb. Aussi expresses equality with an adjective or adverb instead.

Autant and davantage

Autant expresses an equal amount or degree with verbs and nouns. With a noun, it takes de.

The form changes according to what follows it:

Davantage means more. It often replaces plus after a verb or appears with de before a noun.

Its common uses focus on greater amounts or quantities:

In basic adjective and adverb comparisons, use plus rather than davantage.

Meilleur, mieux, pire, and other irregular comparisons

Some common comparisons do not use the regular plus pattern.

Meilleur is the comparative form of bon when bon functions as an adjective. It means better and agrees with the noun:

Mieux is the comparative form of bien. It functions as an adverb and does not change form:

Pire means worse and commonly compares negative qualities or situations. Plus mauvais is also possible in many contexts:

Moindre can express a smaller degree in some abstract comparisons. For physical size, plus petit remains the normal form:

From learning to practice

When listening to conversations, notice comparisons involving prices, sizes, preferences, quantities, and everyday activities. Pay particular attention to whether the comparison describes a quality, an action, or an amount, since that distinction determines whether French uses aussi, autant, or another comparative form.