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!
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)
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:
adjectiveNo definition set for adjectiveLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.
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 nounsNo definition set for nounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., 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 adjectiveNo definition set for adjectiveLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.):
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 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.
After di, use the stressed pronounsNo definition set for stressed pronounsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.: me, te, lui, lei, Lei, noi, voi, loro.
✅ Sandro studia più di me.
Sandro studies more than me.
Do NOT use a subject pronounNo definition set for subject pronounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.:
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 prepositionNo definition set for prepositionLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., or when “than” comes before an adverbNo definition set for adverbLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.. 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
più/meno… che(more/less...than)
compares qualities, etc. on a single entity
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.
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 agreeNo definition set for agreeLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. 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 articleNo definition set for definite articleLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. before più(more) or meno(less). Compare the following:
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.
There are two ways to combine più + adjective with a noun. They both have the same meaning:
definite article + noun + più + adjective
the most beautiful insect
definite article + più + adjective + noun
the most beautiful insect
When the relative superlative expresses an opinion, and the phrase that describes the group you’re selecting from contains a verbNo definition set for verbLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., use che + the subjunctiveNo definition set for subjunctiveLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.!
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:
Questo caffè è amarissimo.
This coffee is the most bitter.
beautiful → the most beautiful
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.
Here, molto, tanto, parecchio, and assai do NOT agree with the subject but the adjectives do!
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.
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!
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