Mastering German Adjective Comparatives and Superlatives Ba | Learn German with Leo🦁

Mastering German Adjective Comparatives and Superlatives

Basic Rule: The comparative form of adjectives is formed by adding -er to the base word, while the superlative form uses -st or -est. Here's how it works:

Klein (small) -> kleiner (smaller) -> am kleinsten (smallest)
Wichtig (important) -> wichtiger (more important) -> am wichtigsten (most important)

Umlaut Magic: Certain short adjectives get an umlaut in the comparative and superlative forms:

Kalt (cold) -> kälter (colder) -> am kältesten (coldest)
Groß (big) -> größer (bigger) -> am größten (biggest)
Jung (young) -> jünger (younger) -> am jüngsten (youngest)
Alt (old) -> älter (older) -> am ältesten (oldest)

Here's the Deal with "Als": In German, comparisons often involve the word als (than), like so:

Mein Vater ist älter als meine Mutter. (My father is older than my mother.)

The Definite Article and Superlatives: When it comes to superlatives, you'll usually need the definite article because what you're describing is one-of-a-kind:

Der Gepard ist das schnellste Tier. (The cheetah is the fastest animal.)

But Wait, There's More! These adjectives and adverbs have special comparative and superlative forms that you'll want to memorize:

Gut (good) -> besser (better) -> am besten (best)
Viel (much) -> mehr (more) -> am meisten (most)
Wenig (little) -> minder (less) -> am mindesten (least)
Gern (gladly) -> lieber (prefer) -> am liebsten (prefer most)
Bald (soon) -> eher (sooner) -> am ehesten (soonest)

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