Comparatives & Superlatives

📌 Nota gramatical

To compare adjectives in a comparative of superiority, use the structure 'mais [adjective] do que'. This is equivalent to 'more ... than' in English. The adjective agrees in gender and number with the subject being described when applicable.

📌 Nota gramatical

To express that something possesses a quality to a lesser degree, use 'menos [adjective] do que'. This mirrors the English 'less ... than'.

📌 Nota gramatical

To state that two things are equal in a certain quality, use 'tão [adjective] quanto' or 'tão [adjective] como'. Both 'quanto' and 'como' are completely interchangeable in European Portuguese.

📌 Nota gramatical

When comparing amounts or actions rather than adjectives, use 'mais [noun] do que', 'menos [noun] do que', or verb + 'mais do que' / 'menos do que'.

📌 Nota gramatical

When comparing equal quantities of nouns, 'tanto' must agree in gender and number with the noun that follows it (tanto, tanta, tantos, tantas), followed by 'quanto' or 'como'.

📌 Nota gramatical

To form the relative superlative of superiority, use the definite article (o, a, os, as) + noun + mais + adjective, or noun + o mais + adjective. Often followed by 'de' (of/in).

📌 Nota gramatical

To express the lowest degree within a group, use the definite article + noun + menos + adjective. It mirrors the superlative of superiority structure but uses 'menos'.

📌 Nota gramatical

The adjective 'bom' (good) does not follow the regular 'mais bom' pattern. Its comparative form is 'melhor' (better). Note that 'mais bom' is considered incorrect in standard European Portuguese.

📌 Nota gramatical

The adjective 'mau' (bad) has an irregular comparative form: 'pior' (worse). Just like 'melhor', it takes 'do que' when making direct comparisons.

📌 Nota gramatical

For size or age, 'grande' and 'pequeno' have irregular comparatives: 'maior' (bigger/older) and 'menor' (smaller/younger). Regular forms 'mais grande' and 'mais pequeno' are sometimes heard for physical size, but 'maior' and 'menor' are preferred and mandatory for age.

📌 Nota gramatical

To form the absolute relative superlative with irregular adjectives, combine the definite article with the irregular comparative form (o melhor, a pior, o maior, o menor).

📌 Nota gramatical

To express an extreme degree without comparing it to anything else (equivalent to 'very', 'extremely', or '-est' without 'the'), add the suffix '-íssimo' to the adjective. Drop the final vowel before adding '-íssimo' (e.g., bonito -> bonitíssimo).