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How to use comparatives and superlatives in Italian?

By: Debora Chellini Thu May 16 2024
Italian
Adjectives

In Italian, we use comparatives to compare two things, as when we notice one person is taller or faster than someone else, and superlatives to compare one thing to a whole group, as when we notice that you are the tallest or the shortest in a group of friends.

In this post, we’ll introduce comparatives and superlatives of majority, minority, and equality, as well as the relative and absolute superlative, and irregular comparatives and superlatives. Let's see how to do this in Italian!

Table of Contents

    What are the types of comparatives and superlatives in Italian?

    There are three types of comparatives in Italian: comparatives of majority, comparatives of minority, and comparatives of equality:

    • Comparative of majority: X > Y

      Mia sorella è più alta di mio fratello.

      My sister is taller than my brother.

    • Comparative of minority: X < Y

      Questo libro è meno interessante di quello.

      This book is less interesting than that one.

    • Comparative of equality: X = Y

      Quel gatto è (tanto) fedele quanto un cane.

      That cat is as loyal as a dog.

    And there are two types of superlatives in Italian: relative superlatives and absolute superlatives:

    • Relative Superlatives (the most… out of…)

      Giorgio è il più alto di tutti.

      Giorgio is the tallest of all.

    • Absolute Superlatives (the most… of all)

      Siena è bellissima.

      The city of Siena is the most beautiful.

    Now we can go through each of these types of comparatives and superlatives one-by-one!

    How to form comparatives majority and minority in Italian?

    Comparatives of majority and minority in Italian are formed with the structure più/meno… di/che(more/less... than). For example:

    • Mia sorella è più alta di mio fratello.

      My sister is taller (lit. more tall) than my brother.

    • Questo libro è meno interessante di quello.

      This book is less interesting than that one.

    • Mi diverto meno a cantare che a suonare.

      I have less fun singing than playing (a musical instrument).

    The most “classic” type of comparison uses this structure:

    più / meno

    more / less

    adjective

    di

    than

    But più and meno can be followed by che(than)! So let’s clarify when to use più/meno… di and più/meno… che.

    When to use ‘più’ and ‘meno’ with ‘di’

    Più(more) and meno(less) are used with di(than) to compare nouns, before quanto and quel che, and before numerals. Take a look:

    • Use di when comparing two or more nouns. You might be comparing them in terms of…

      • some quality they have

        (here, the word after più or meno will be an adjective):

        Andrea è più sincero di te.

        Andrea is more sincere than you.

        → compares different nouns: you vs. Andrea

      • something that they each have or do:

        • Ho più giorni di vacanza di Maria e Giacomo / dei miei amici.

          I have more days off than Maria and Giacomo/than my friends.

          → compares different nouns: me vs. Maria and Giacomo OR me vs. my friends

        • Sandro studia più di me.

          Sandro studies more than me.

          → compares different nouns: Sandro vs. me

    • Use di before quanto and quel che. Keep in mind that they are followed by the Italian subjunctive:

      Gli italiani mangiano più frutta di quanto/quel che pensassi.

      Italians eat more fruit than I thought.

    • Use di before numerals:

      Sono appena arrivati più di 30 studenti.

      More than 30 students have just arrived.

    Tip

    After di, use the stressed pronouns: me, te, lui, lei, Lei, noi, voi, loro.

    ✅ Sandro studia più di me.

    Sandro studies more than me.

    Do NOT use a subject pronoun:

    ❌ più di io

    When to use ‘più’ or ‘meno’ with ‘che’?

    Più(more) and meno(less) are used with che(than) when comparing two qualities of a single noun, when “than” comes before a preposition, or when “than” comes before an adverb. Let's see:

    • Use che when comparing qualities, actions, possessions, preferences, etc. that are ascribed to a single noun:

      • Maria è più intelligente che ricca.

        Maria is more intelligent than rich.

        → Maria’s intelligence vs. Maria’s wealth

      • Lo smartphone è meno utile che difficile da usare.

        The smartphone is less useful than difficult to use.

        → The smartphone’s usefulness vs. ease of use

      • Mi piace più cucinare che mangiare.

        I like cooking more than eating.

        → My preference for cooking vs. eating

    • Use che before (eg. con(with), a(to), da(from), per(for)...):

      Anna è meno gentile con Maria che con Simona.

      Anna is less kind to Maria than to Simona.

    • Use che before an adverb:

      Abbiamo passato la serata più/meno allegramente che seriamente.

      We spent the evening more/less cheerfully than seriously.

    Let’s recap:

    più/meno… di(more/less...than)

    • compares two or more entities

    • before quanto and quel che

    • before numerals

    più/meno… che(more/less...than)

    • compares qualities, etc. on a single entity

    • with prepositions

    • with adverbs

    How to form comparatives of equality in Italian?

    Comparatives of equality in Italian are formed using the structure (tanto)... quanto…(as... as...) and (cosi)... come… (as... as...).

    • Quel gatto è (tanto) fedele quanto un cane.

      That cat is as loyal as a dog.

    • Questa moto è (così) costosa come la tua.

      This motorbike is as expensive as yours.

    Tip

    Tanto or così can be omitted and the sentence maintains the same meaning.

    Keep the following tips in mind:

    • When tanto and quanto are followed by nouns, they always agree in number (singular/plural) and gender (masculine/feminine):

      Nella classe c’erano tante ragazze quanti ragazzi.

      There were as many girls in the class as there were boys.

      In this case tante(as many) agrees with ragazze(feminine plural) and quanti(as) agrees with ragazzi(masculine plural).

    • These two pairs are usually interchangeable, but you must use (tanto)...quanto when talking about quantities (how much/many):

      Studio (tanto) quanto te ma i miei voti non sono così buoni come i tuoi.

      I study as much as you but my grades are not as good as yours.

    What is the relative superlative in Italian?

    In Italian, the relative superlative is used to compare one noun to a group. To form a relative superlative, just follow the rules for forming comparatives of majority or comparatives of minority, but add a definite article before più(more) or meno(less). Compare the following:

    Comparative of majority
    (no article)
    Relative superlative
    (with an article)

    Giorgio è più alto di Alice.

    Giorgio is taller than Alice.

    → Compares Georgio to Alice

    Giorgio è il più alto di tutti i compagni di classe.

    Giorgio is the tallest of all the classmates.

    → Compares Georgio to a group (his classmates)

    However, there is often a simpler way to use relative superlatives.

    For example, if I am describing my bug collection, I could say:

    Questa farfalla è la più bella degli insetti della mia collezione.

    This butterfly is the most beautiful of the insects in my collection.

    But it would be simpler just to say:

    Questa farfalla è l’insetto più bello della mia collezione.

    This butterfly is the most beautiful insect in my collection.

    In this second sentence, the relative superlative adjective, più bello(pretty) actually describes and agrees with insetto(insect), then we apply this label: l’insetto più bello to the butterfly.

    Important

    There are two ways to combine più + adjective with a noun. They both have the same meaning:

    • definite article + noun + più + adjective

      l’insetto più bello

      the most beautiful insect

    • definite article + più + adjective + noun

      il più bello insetto

      the most beautiful insect

    Don’t forget to use the correct form of the definite article!
    Important

    When the relative superlative expresses an opinion, and the phrase that describes the group you’re selecting from contains a verb, use che + the subjunctive!

    • Questo è il più bel libro che abbia mai letto.

      It is the best book I have ever read.

    • Luca è il ragazzo più simpatico che conosca.

      Luca’s the nicest guy I know.

    Here are a number of different phrase structures, then, that you can use to form the relative superlative:

    • il più /meno + adjective + di…

    • il + noun + più /meno + adjective + di / tra / fra…

    • il + noun + più /meno + adjective + che + subjunctive

    • il più /meno + adjective + tra/fra + … + (di...)

    What is the absolute superlative in Italian?

    The absolute superlative is used to say that something is the best or the worst there is. Like when you are eating a pizza in Naples and you can only say, "Buonissima!(It's the best!)". No comparison would work here, it’s simply the best!

    Let’s see how you can make an “absolute” statement in Italian. There are different ways to express it:

    • With -issimo/-issima/-issimi/-issime(very) attached to the adjective after dropping the last vowel. For example:

      amaro → amarissimo

      bitter → the most bitter

      Questo caffè è amarissimo.

      This coffee is the most bitter.

      bella → bellissima

      beautiful → the most beautiful

      Siena è bellissima.

      The city of Siena is the most beautiful.

      Notice that the adjectives agree with the noun they modify: il caffè is masculine singular, and so it is amarissimo.

    • By placing molto(very), tanto(so), parecchio(quite a lot), assai(very), and other such adverbs of degree in front of the adjective:

      • Marta e Luisa sono molto alte.

        Marta and Luisa are very tall.

      • Questi libri sono parecchio interessanti.

        These books are quite interesting.

      Tip

      Here, molto, tanto, parecchio, and assai do NOT agree with the subject but the adjectives do!

    • By joining the adjective with another one, which will strengthen the meaning:

      Oggi ho lavorato tutto il giorno senza pausa: sono stanca morta!

      I have been working all day with no break, so I am dead tired!

      Check our list of the most used expressions for the absolute superlative in Italian; they will be useful when speaking!

    • By adding arci- / stra-(super, so, ultra) at the beginning of the adjective:

      • Sono stracontenta con i risultati.

        I’m super happy with the results.

      • Questa attrice è arcifamosa.

        This actress is so famous.

      Tip

      While you can impress your friends more by adding arci- or stra- to the adjective, remember that it is perfectly fine to use -issimo/a, or molto + adjective to sound like a native!

    Irregular comparatives and superlatives

    In Italian, like in English, there are irregular comparatives and superlatives. It’s just like how we don’t say “This cheese is more good than that one” we say “This cheese is better than that one!”

    However, in Italian, there are not many of these. Check our complete list of Italian irregular comparatives and superlatives, and get memorizing! It will be a precious resource when practicing with our exercises!

    Conclusion

    There are several ways of describing what surrounds you. We Italians generally say that our cappuccino is the best; sometimes we walk for hours to enjoy a cappuccino that is the best among those in town. But we shouldn’t sound so “absolute;” we could say that “Bar Centrale’s’ cappuccino is richer than Caffè Imperiale’s cappuccino,”— and remember that comparisons generally express a subjective opinion and encourage comparing different aspects. So, sipping a cappuccino or eating a pizza can become a linguistic experience! Now that we’ve covered comparatives and superlatives, “stay hungry” and keep on learning Italian with us!

    To learn more about comparative and superlative adverbs in Italian, follow the link!

    Downloadable Resources

    Elevate your language-learning journey to new heights with the following downloadable resources.

    How do comparatives and superlatives work in Italian?~Comparative and Superlatives TableHow do comparatives and superlatives work in Italian?~Activities

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