Comparatives and superlatives

Unit 28 (Unidad 28) Comparatives and superlatives (Los comparativos y superlativos) Level 1 1.1 Comparison of adjectives indicating inequality and equality (Comparaci ´ on de adjetivos indicando desigualdad e igualdad) 1.2 Comparison of adverbs indicating equality and inequality (Comparaci ´ on de adverbios indicando igualdad y desigualdad) 1.3 Superlatives + adjectives (Superlativos + adjetivos) 1.4 Other features (Otros detalles) 1.1 Comparison of adjectives indicating inequality and equality i The comparison of adjectives is formed by using m´as (more) and menos (less) before the adjective. Que (than) is used after the adjective. Examples Carlos es m´as r´apido que t´u Carlos is faster than you Este chico es m´as listo que su hermano This boy is smarter than his brother Son menos ruidosos que las muchachas They are less noisy than the girls Es un hotel menos tranquilo que el otro It’s a less quiet hotel than the other one negro / m´as negro / menos negro black / blacker / less black capaz / m´as capaz / menos capaz capable / more capable / less capable ii Four adjectives, in addition to their regular comparatives, have other, and, in two cases, preferred, forms: Positive Comparative bueno (good) mejor (better) malo (bad) peor (worse) grande (big, large) mayor (bigger, larger) peque˜no (small) menor (littler, smaller) Examples Esta novela es mejor que la otra This novel is better than the other one Isabel es peor estudiante que Mar´ıa Isabel is a worse student than Mar´ıa 261 ASTUDENT GRAMMAR OF SPANISH Tu ni ˜na es mayor que la m´ıa Your girl (daughter) is bigger than mine Mi prima es menor que yo My cousin is smaller than me iii Comparison of adjectives (indicating equality) Tan (as/so) is used here, followed by como (as): Es tan abusado (M)/listo como su pap´a(M)/ padre He’s as smart as his father Es tan caro como el caviar It’s as dear as caviar 1.2 Comparison of adverbs indicating equality and inequality i Equality. As with adjectives, tan + como is used: Habla espa˜nol tan bien como su profesora She speaks Spanish as well as her teacher La ni˜na escribe tan perfectamente como su hermano mayor The little girl writes as perfectly as her older brother ii Inequality. M´as (more) and menos (less) are used here, followed by que (than), as with comparisons of adjective: Corre m´as r´apidamente que yo She runs faster than me Lee m´as lentamente que su primo She reads more slowly than her cousin Lo arregla menos f´acilmente que yo He sorts it out less easily then me Trabaja menos seriamente que su hijo She works less seriously than her son 1.3 Superlatives + adjectives i The superlative is usually expressed by placing the definite article with the comparative: Son los m´as inteligentes They are the most intelligent Este hotel es el m´as caro de la ciudad This hotel is the dearest in town Este es el peor jugador del equipo This is the worst player in the team El tiempo que hace es el mejor del a˜no Theweather is the best this year ii De follows a superlative in cases where in English we would have in: Te xas es el estado m´as extenso de los Estados Unidos Texas is the biggest state in the United States El Nilo es el r´ıo m´as largo del mundo The Nile is the longest river in the world 1.4 Other features i Frequently, menos is replaced by no + tan + adjective or adverb + como: No es tan alto como su hermana He’s not so tall as his sister No trabaja tan seriamente como yo He doesn’t work as seriously as me 262 28 Comparatives and superlatives ii M´as de and menos de are used before quantities and numbers: Hay m´as de un mill´on de libros en aquella biblioteca There are more than a million books in that library ¿Por qu´e compras menos de dos kilos? Why do you buy less than two kilos? iii Tanto . . . como, with its three other forms (tanta / tantos / tantas . . . como), as much / many . . . as,isused with equality of nouns: No tengo tanto pan como Jorge Ihaven’t got as much bread as Jorge No traes tantos discos como Elena Yo u don’t bring as many discs as Elena Hay tanta mantequilla como en casa There’s as much butter as at home Tienes tantas cucharas como yo Yo uhaveasmany spoons as me Exercises Level 1 i Make three separate sentences from the two available. Follow the example Juan disfruta mucho. Armando disfruta poco > 1. Armando disfruta menos que Juan + 2. Juan disfruta m´as que Armando + 3. Armando no disfruta tanto como Juan a Alicia se divierte mucho. Rosa se divierte poco b Los muchachos descansan mucho. Yo descanso poco c El doctor se cansa mucho. Su hijo se cansa poco d Los ni˜nos gritan mucho. Juanito grita poco e Me preocupo mucho. T´utepreocupas poco f La se˜nora trabaja mucho. Marta trabaja poco g Tus amigas platican (M)/hablan mucho. T´u platicas/hablas poco h Teresa gasta mucho. Sus hijos gastan poco i Ellos comen mucho. Yo como poco j La ni˜na se queja mucho. Su hermano se queja poco ii Put the following sentences in the negative. Use tanto/a/os/as. Example Escrib´ı dos cartas. Juan escribi´o cuatro cartas > No escrib´ı tantas cartas como Juan a En mi pa´ıs hay muchas monta˜nas. En el tuyo hay menos b Alicia salta tres metros. Lupe salta dos c En las ciudades hay mucha niebla. En los pueblos hay poca niebla d Luis toma mucha leche. Alicia toma poca e Practicamos varios deportes. Luc´ıa practica pocos f Ech´eaperder mucho papel. Rosa ech´oaperder poco g Jorge tiene mucho dinero. Nosotros tenemos poco h En mi coche hay mucho lugar. En el tuyo hay poco i Elena recibi´omuchos regalos. Tere recibi´o pocos j Mis sobrinos comieron muchas aceitunas. Los tuyos comieron pocas iii Paired activity Objective –Topractice statements of comparison Method –Aand B ask each other questions using ten expressions such as tan .como, m´as .que, menos .que, tantos . 263 ASTUDENT GRAMMAR OF SPANISH Examples A: ¿Eres m´as listo que yo? B: No soy tan listo como t ´u A: ¿Mi hermana es menos inteligente que yo? B: Tu hermana no es tan inteligente como t´u Level 2 2.1 Como = like or as in English (Como = .) 2.2 Que replaced by de lo que (Que reemplazado por .) 2.3 Cuanto .tanto 2.4 Superlatives of adverbs (Superlativos de adverbios) 2.5 Absolute superlative of adjectives (Superlativo absoluto de adjetivos) 2.6 Absolute superlative of adverbs (Superlativo absoluto de adverbios) 2.1 Como = like or as in English Corre como un conejo She runs like a rabbit Lucha como un tigre He fights like a tiger Hazlo como lo quieras Do it as you wish 2.2 Que replaced by de lo que i When each part of the comparison contains a different verb, que is replaced by de lo que: Es menos f´acil de lo que dice It’s less easy than he says El examen fue m´as dif´ıcil de lo que hab´ıamos temido Theexamination was more difficult than we had feared Es m´as tonto de lo que parece He’s dumber than he looks ii This is also true with nouns: Tiene menos dinero de lo que dice She has less money than she says Ha cometido m´as delitos de lo que piensas He’s committed more crimes than you think 2.3 Cuanto .tanto i Cuanto .tanto followed by any comparative are used in correlatives to express ratio, corresponding to the English the .the: Cuanto m´as viejo es el vino, tanto mejor The older the wine, the better it is Cuanto m´as largo es el d´ıa tanto m´as corta la noche The longer the day, the shorter the night ii Tanto m ´as/menos .cuanto que corresponds to all the more/less .because . . . : El delito es tanto m´as grave cuanto que acaba de salir de la c´arcel The crime is all the more serious because he’s just come out of jail 264 28 Comparatives and superlatives Estoy tanto menos satisfecho de su conducta cuanto que le di dinero Iamall the less satisfied with her conduct because I gave her money 2.4 Superlatives of adverbs The superlative of adverbs is formed in the same manner as those of adjectives: Los mejores alumnos son los que hablan menos The best pupils are those who speak least Esa era la respuesta que menos esperaba o´ır That was the reply I was least expecting to hear Amo el mar cuando m´as alto suben las olas Ilove the sea when the waves rise up even more 2.5 Absolute superlative of adjectives i The absolute superlative of adjectives, when formed regularly, is made by adding -´ısimo.Itisthen varied like any adjective ending in o. This ending has an intensive value, equivalent to the English very or most.Aswith the common Italian -issimo, and the occasional -issime in French, this form derives from the Latin. Ejemplos El acero es dur´ısimo Steel is very hard/tough El oro es pur´ısimo Gold is very/most pure La casa es alt´ısima The house is very tall Las flores son hermos´ısimas Theflowers are really lovely Es una construcci´on fe´ısima It’s a really ugly building ii The following distinctions are to be observed in the formation of the absolute superlative of adjectives: aIfthe positive adjective ends in a consonant, it receives - ´ ısimo without changing, unless the final consonant is z,which changes to c before i: h´abil/h´abil´ısimo skillful / most skillful feliz/felic´ısimo happy / very happy feroz/feroc´ısimo fierce / most fierce bAfinal vowel or diphthong is omitted before - ´ ısimo. When the adjective ends in two vowels, as in io, both are omitted, although it could be maintained that the i remains butreceives a written accent, and therefore a spoken stress. importante/important´ısimo important / most important limpio/limp´ısimo clean / very clean sucio/suc´ısimo dirty / very dirty amplio/ampl´ısimo wide / widest, full/fullest pobre/pobr´ısimo poor / very poor Ejemplos una rec´amara (M) ampl´ısima avery spacious bedroom una mujer pobr´ısima avery poor woman Tiene manos limp´ısimas She’s got very clean hands 265 ASTUDENT GRAMMAR OF SPANISH iii If, after dropping the final a or o, the last remaining letter is c,itischanged to qu, and similarly g to gu to preserve the hard sound: blanco/blanqu´ısimo white / very white rico/riqu´ısimo rich / very rich fresco/fresqu´ısimo fresh / very fresh largo/largu´ısimo long / very long Ejemplos una piel blanqu´ısima avery white skin un r´ıo largu´ısimo avery long river unas fresas fresqu´ısimas some very fresh strawberries iv An unresolved issue.Inprinciple, the diphthongs ie and ue revert to their original vowels e and o since the stress is transferred to the ending: cierto/cert´ısimo certain / most certain tierno/tern´ısimo tender / most tender ferviente/fervent´ısimo fervent / most fervent bueno/bon´ısimo good / very good nuevo/nov´ısimo new / very new fuerte/fort´ısimo strong / very strong However, there has been a major shift in contemporary practice here. In the author’s experience, ciert ´ ısimo, tiern ´ ısimo, buen ´ ısimo, nuev ´ ısimo and fuert ´ ısimo have replaced the above, with the result that many Spanish speakers no longer know which is the correct one, suffering some residual sense that the original form is the correct one and the new one the wrong one. In any case, the so-called wrong form holds sway. This topic is another question for the quiz program, in both Spain and Mexico, for there are many other examples of these doublets (dobletes). It should be added that the author has never met with any form of the absolute superlative of viejo but viej ´ ısimo. This innovation was strenuously resisted by the members of the Real Academia and more conservative writers but they have lost the battle. v The following is just a small sample of adjectives (there are many more) reverting to the original Latin for their entire form: acre/ac´errimo bitter / very bitter ´aspero/asp´errimo harsh / very harsh c´elebre/celeb´errimo most celebrated Needless to say, these last three are only in literary use. 2.6 Absolute superlative of adverbs i These are created by adding -mente to the superlative form of the adjective. They are not very common. It is felt that you should at least be aware of their function. Here are two examples: noblemente/nobil´ısimente nobly / most nobly ricamente/riqu´ısimamente richly / very richly 266 28 Comparatives and superlatives ii Since these forms are very cumbersome, they are generally replaced by, for example, muy, altamente, sumamente, extremamente, en extremo, en gran manera: Las pruebas resultaron altamente peligrosas The tests turned out to be highly dangerous El problema es sumamente dif´ıcil Theproblem is most difficult Se enoja (M)/enfada en extremo por cualquier cosa She gets angry over the slightest thing iii Many adjectives do not admit of comparisons. The principal ones are those that involve the idea of infinity and therefore express in themselves the idea of a superlative degree, or denote origin, material, shape or class. Such adjectives are: supremo met´alico principal inmortal italiano circular triangular celestial Of course, italiano is only one example among hundreds related to adjectives of countries: mexicano, espa˜nol, norteamericano, ingl´es, franc´es, and so on Exercises Level 2 i Completa los blancos con una de las siguientes expresiones. Puede haber m ´as de una respuesta como, tanto .como, m´as .que,menos .que,deloque Ejemplos Tiene seis a˜nos pero escribe ( ) una persona mayor > Tiene seis a˜nos pero escribe como una persona mayor Hay .caballos .vacas > Hay tantos caballos como vacas a Trabaja ( )unloco b Me ba˜no ( = nado in M)enelmar( )veces ( )t´u c Recibi´o( )regalos ( ) parientes ten´ıa d Env´ıa ( ) postales ( )env´ıa su amigo e Coge / Toma (M)( )( ) (dos palabras) puedas f Coge / Toma (M)( ) flores ( ) puedas g Estoy ( )( ) (dos palabras) ronco que no dej´edehablar / platicar (M)entoda la noche h Lleg´o con mucho ( )retraso ( )( )( ) (cuatro palabras) sol´ıa llevar i Es ( ) culto ( )( )( ) (cuatro palabras) yo pensaba j Tiene ( )d´olares ( )yo, de suerte que me invita a cenar k Le ofrec´ıunhelado por que ten´ıa ( ) dinero que yo l Hab´ıa ( )( ) (dos palabras) mil espectadores y no cab´ıan todos m Hab´ıa ( )( ) (dos palabras) veinte nadadores en la alberca (M)/piscina y hab´ıa mucho espacio n Compr´e( ) peras por que ten´ıa ( ) dinero ( )( )( ) (cinco palabras) pensaba o Aprob´o todos sus ex´amenes, es ( ) listo ( )( )( ) (cuatro palabras) pensaba ii Actividad en clase Objetivo – Usar el superlativo de adjetivos M ´ etodo –Seleelige a un miembro de la clase. Se divide la clase en dos equipos. El miembro de la clase escribe un adjetivo en el pizarr´on (M)/lapizarra. La clase tiene que encontrar el superlativo correspondiente. Huelga decir (Needless to say) que el primer equipo que alcance diez puntos gana el concurso 267 ASTUDENT GRAMMAR OF SPANISH Ejemplos Miembro de la clase: ¿Cu´al es el superlativo de “bueno”? Respuesta: Mejor Miembro de la clase: ¿Cu´al es el superlativo de “malo”? Respuesta: Peor Despu´es, el profesor le pide a cada equipo que forme una frase con los superlativos encontrados. El miembro de la clase se queda cerca del pizarr´on para indicar los puntos ganados en este concurso. Diez puntos es la meta. 268 . doesn’t work as seriously as me 262 28 Comparatives and superlatives ii M´as de and menos de are used before quantities and numbers: Hay m´as de un mill´on. 28 (Unidad 28) Comparatives and superlatives (Los comparativos y superlativos) Level 1 1.1 Comparison of adjectives indicating inequality and equality (Comparaci