Comparative and superlative
Steigerung der Adjektive
The Steigerung (comparison of adjectives) is how German compares qualities: schön, schöner, am schönsten.
“größer wie du” — a very common mistake. English has one word for comparing (“than”) and another for equality (“as”), and German splits the job the same way with als and wie, but people mix them up all the time.
Three steps
ShortcutNo matter how long the word is, the ending is the same: -er and am -sten. German has no “more / most” split like English (beautiful, more beautiful vs. big, bigger).
English adds “more” and “most” in front of long adjectives; German always adds an ending to the end of the adjective. The three steps are called Positiv · Komparativ · Superlativ.
| Positiv | Komparativ …er | Superlativ the …est | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| schnell | schneller | am schnellsten | fast |
| klein | kleiner | am kleinsten | small |
| interessant | interessanter | am interessantesten | interesting |
The third row matters: interessant is a long word, but it still takes -er. This is where English speakers slip most often — there is no such thing as mehr interessant (“more interesting”).
Der Zug ist schneller als das Auto.
The train is faster than the car.
Der Zug ist mehr schnell.
English leaking in — this doesn’t exist
Two forms of the superlative
The “-est / most” idea is built in two ways, and its position in the sentence decides which one you need.
| Where | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| After the verb, standing alone | am …-sten | Dieser Zug ist am schnellsten. This train is the fastest. |
| Before a noun, as an adjective | der/die/das …-ste | Das ist der schnellste Zug. That is the fastest train. |
At A1 the am …-sten form is enough — the second one needs adjective endings, which is a separate topic. Quick rule: before a noun use the article form, standing alone use the am form.
When -esten, when Umlaut
- If the adjective ends in -d · -t · -s · -ß · -z · -sch, an -e- slips into the superlative: alt → am ältesten, heiß → am heißesten.
- Most one-syllable adjectives take an Umlaut on a · o · u: alt → älter · groß → größer · jung → jünger · lang → länger · kalt → kälter · warm → wärmer.
- The Umlaut rule does not work for longer adjectives: langsam → langsamer (not längsamer).
The Umlaut list is short and made up of everyday words — don’t try to cram it, it sticks as you use it. If you’re not sure, say it without the Umlaut: you’ll still be understood, it will just sound a bit foreign.
Five irregulars — these you memorise
| Positiv | Komparativ | Superlativ | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| gut | besser | am besten | good |
| viel | mehr | am meisten | much · a lot |
| gern | lieber | am liebsten | gladly · like to |
| hoch | höher | am höchsten | high |
| nah | näher | am nächsten | near · close |
The gern row is the most useful in daily life: Ich trinke gern Tee, aber lieber Kaffee — am liebsten Wasser. “I like tea, but I prefer coffee — and most of all I like water.”
als or wie — one difference
In English it is easy: “taller than” but “as tall as”. German works the same way, but with two different words, and that is why people mix them up. The split is sharp: equal means wie, different means als.
| Situation | Conjunction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Equal — same degree | so … wie | Elif ist so groß wie Ali. Elif is as tall as Ali. |
| Different — comparison | …-er als | Elif ist größer als Ali. Elif is taller than Ali. |
Rule to memorise: if there is a Komparativ, use als; if not, use wie. The moment you see the -er ending, als follows. In casual speech you may hear größer wie — it is common but wrong, and it is not accepted in an exam.
Der Kaffee ist so heiß wie der Tee.
The coffee is as hot as the tea.
Der Kaffee ist heißer als der Tee.
The coffee is hotter than the tea.
What you just learned
Ich trinke ___ Tee. (I prefer tea)
Show the answer
lieber. The comparative of the adjective gern is irregular.
«Er ist größer wie ich.» — this sentence is correct.
Show the answer
False — Wrong. In comparisons (when there is an -er ending) you always use als: größer als ich.
interessant → Komparativ?
Show the answer
interessanter. Even though the word is long, the ending is the same; German has no more split.
Traps
mehr schön · am meisten schön
The English pattern more beautiful does not carry over into German. Even a long adjective takes an ending.
Das Bild ist mehr schön.
no such structure
Das Bild ist schöner.
The picture is more beautiful.
Forgetting am
A bare superlative doesn’t stand on its own; it wants am in front of it. Das ist schnellsten is only half a sentence.
Dieser Zug ist am schnellsten.
This train is the fastest.
Saying größer wie
A structure you hear a lot but which is wrong. When there is a comparison, use als: größer als. wie is only used in the so … wie pattern, that is, for equality.
Thinking gut → guter
gut is irregular: besser · am besten. guter is not a Komparativ, it is an adjective with an ending (ein guter Mann) — two different things.
Build the sentence yourself
Tap the words and put them in order. This is the hardest part of German — and there are no options to pick from, you build it.
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tap the words
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tap the words
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tap the words
Know this before the test
The core of the topic in three lines, then the mistakes people make most often.
- Komparativ = -er, Superlativ = am -sten
interessant → interessanter → am interessantesten. The English “more” pattern doesn’t exist in German — every adjective takes an ending.
schnell → schneller → am schnellsten
- One-syllable adjectives take an Umlaut
alt → älter · groß → größer · jung → jünger.
am ältesten
- als = difference, wie = equality
größer als (bigger than) · so groß wie (as big as).
Elif ist so groß wie Ali.
- Memorise three irregulars
gut → besser → am besten · viel → mehr → am meisten · gern → lieber → am liebsten.
Am liebsten trinke ich Wasser.
größer wie
größer als
You hear it in speech, but it is a mistake in writing and in exams.
mehr interessant
interessanter
There is no “more” pattern; the ending goes on every adjective.
am gutesten
am besten
gut is irregular.
gerner
lieber
The comparative of gern is lieber.
Test yourself
Tap an answer — we will look at why together.
interessant → Komparativ?
more interesting
Elif is as tall as Ali.
so … wie = as … as
gut → Superlativ?
the best
alt → Superlativ?
the oldest
I like water best of all.
Which one is wrong?
Practice done — –
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Adjective comparison pocket card
This whole page — tables, traps, examples — as one PDF. Download it, print it, run through it before the exam.
Related topics
Nouns
das Haus · die Haustür
German nouns (Substantive) are the words that name things; they are always capitalised and carry a gender: das Haus, die Haustür.
Adverbs
heute · hier · schnell
German adverbs describe a verb, an adjective or a whole sentence and never take an ending: heute, hier, schnell.
Word order
Heute gehe ich ins Kino
German word order puts the conjugated verb in second position, whatever comes first: Heute gehe ich ins Kino.