Italian comparatives, superlatives (adjectives/adverbs)
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Comparative and superlative constructions are used to make comparisons between two or more terms.
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A comparative adjective (aggettivo comparativo) expresses a comparison between two elements.
There are three different kinds of comparatives.
The comparative of majority is formed according to the following structure:
più + adjective + di
Italian | English |
---|---|
Mio fratello è più bravo di me. | My brother is better than me. |
Mia nonna è più vecchia di me. | My grandma is older than me. |
The comparative of minority is formed according to the following structure:
meno + adjective + di
Italian | English |
---|---|
Egli è meno ricco di Giovanni. | He is less rich than Giovanni. |
Anna è meno divertente di te. | Anna is less fun than you. |
The comparative of equality is formed according to the following structure:
adjective + quanto / come
Italian | English |
---|---|
Il mio amico è arrabbiato quanto te. | My friend is as mad as you are. |
Anna é alta come Maria. | Anna is as tall as Maria. |
Some adjectives create their comparative forms in two ways.
Together with the analytic form (più + adjective+ di), these adjectives have the synthetic forms.
Learn them by heart.
Adjective | Comparative (analytic form) | Comparative (synthetic form) |
---|---|---|
buono (good) | più buono (better) | migliore (better) |
cattivo (bad) | più cattivo (worse) | peggiore (worse) |
grande (big) | più grande (bigger) | maggiore (bigger) |
piccolo (small) | più piccolo (smaller) | minore (smaller) |
alto (high) | più alto (higher) | superiore (higher) |
basso (low) | più basso (lower) | inferiore (lower) |
The construction of the sentence remains the same as regular forms.
Italian | English |
---|---|
Andrea è migliore di Luca. | Andrea is better than Luca. |
La tua squadra è peggiore della mia. | Your team is worse than mine. |
The analytic and the synthetic form coexist. You can learn the correct usage by practising the language only.
La torta di mia nonna è più buona della mia.
My grandma's cake is better than mine.
La nostra idea è migliore della loro.
Our idea is better than theirs.
A superlative adjective expresses the fact that somebody has a certain quality to the maximum extent.
The superlative can be either relative or absolute.
The relative superlative states that someone or something has a certain quality to the maximum extent within a certain group of people or things.
It can be formed according to one of the following structures:
1. Determinate article + Più / Meno + adjective + Di (+ determinate article) / Tra / Fra + Noun
2. Determinate article + Noun + Più / Meno + adjective + Di (+ determinate article)/ Tra / Fra + Noun
Italian | English |
---|---|
Giorgia è la più bella della classe. | Giorgia is the most beautiful girl in the class. |
Stefano è il meno alto tra i giocatori della squadra. | Stefano is the shorter (the less tall) among the players in the team. |
La spiaggia più bella della Corsica è Capo Pertusato. | The most beautiful beach in Corsica is Capo Pertusato. |
Roma è la città più grande d'Italia. | Rome is the largest city in Italy. |
The absolute superlative form is used to state that someone (or something) has a certain quality to the highest degree, without any term of comparison.
In general, it is formed by adding the suffix -ISSIMO to the adjective (after dropping its last vowel).
Italian | English |
---|---|
Amo Torino, è una città bellissima. | I love Turin, it's a beautiful city. |
Siamo troppi, c'è pochissimo spazio. | We are too many, there's very few room. |
The absolute superlative adjective can also be formed as follows:
una casa davvero grande
a very big house
un libro noioso noioso
a very boring book
un gioco superdivertente
a very funny game
Italian | English |
---|---|
Questo film è molto interessante. | This film is very interesting. |
Michel sta bene? É pallido pallido. | Is Michel ok? He is very pale. |
Amo il cioccolato extrafondente. | I love extra dark chocolate. |
As the comparatives, some superlative adjectives (both relative and absolute) create their superlative forms in two ways.
Together with the analytic forms (il più + adjective+ di / suffix -ISSIMO), these adjectives also have the synthetic form.
Learn them by heart.
Adjective | Relative superlative (analytic form) | Relative superlative (synthetic form) | Absolute superlative (analytic form) | Absolute superlative (synthetic form) |
---|---|---|---|---|
buono (good) | il più buono (the best) | il migliore (the best) | buonissimo (very good) | ottimo (very good) |
cattivo (bad) | il più cattivo (the worst) | il peggiore (the worst) | cattivissimo (very bad) | pessimo (very bad) |
grande (big) | il più grande (the biggest) | il maggiore (the biggest) | grandissimo (very big) | massimo (very big) |
piccolo (small) | il più piccolo (the smallest) | il minore (the smallest) | piccolissimo (very small) | minimo (very small) |
alto (high) | il più alto (the highest) | il superiore (the highest) | altissimo (very high) | supremo / sommo (very high) |
basso (low) | il più basso (the lowest) | l'inferiore (the lowest) | bassissimo (very low) | infimo (very low) |
The analytic and the synthetic form coexist. You can learn the correct usage by practising the language only.
La torta di mia nonna è la più buona del mondo.
My grandma's cake is the best in the world.
La nostra idea è la migliore della classe.
Our idea is the best in the class.
A comparative adverb introduces a comparison between two elements.
There are three different kinds of comparatives.
The comparative of majority is formed according to the following structure:
Più (more) + Adverb + Di
Italian | English |
---|---|
Mio fratello corre più lentamente di me. | My brother runs faster than me. |
Lui ha fame e mangia più velocemente degli altri. | He's hungry and he eats faster than the other students. |
The comparative of minority is formed according to the following structure:
Meno (less) + Adverb + Di
Italian | English |
---|---|
Lui parla meno forte di Marco. | He speaks less loud than Marco. |
Anna dorme meno profondamente di Chiara. | Anna sleeps less soundly than Chiara. |
The comparative of equality is formed according to the following structure:
(Tanto) + Adverb + quanto
Italian | English |
---|---|
Il mio amico parla lentamente quanto te. | My friend speaks as slowly as you do. |
Michele scrive tanto rapidamente quanto Marco. | Michele types as quickly as Marco. |
A superlative adverb expresses a certain quality to the maximum extent.
The superlative can be either relative or absolute.
The relative superlative states that someone or something has a certain quality to the maximum extent within a certain group of people or things.
It can be formed according to the following structure:
Determinate article + Più / Meno + adverb + Di (+ determinate article) / Tra / Fra
Italian | English |
---|---|
Giorgio era quello che correva il più velocemente tra di noi. | Giorgio was the one who ran the fastest between us. |
Martina leggeva il più attentamente possibile. | Martina was reading as carefully as possible. |
The absolute superlative form is used to state that someone (or something) has a certain quality to the highest degree, without any term of comparison.
Superlative adjective (feminine singular form) + mente
Adjective | Superlative adverb | English |
---|---|---|
Forte → Fortissima → Fortissimamente | Lui parla fortissimamente. | He speaks so loudly. |
Piano → Pianissima → Pianissimamente | Cammina pianissimamente! | Walk super slowly! |
Comparative and superlative adverbs also have some irregular forms; they must be learned by heart.
Adverb | Comparative | Superlative |
---|---|---|
Bene (Good) | Meglio (Better) | Ottimamente Benissimo (Amazingly) |
Male (Bad) | Peggio (Worse) | Malissimo (Terribly) |
Molto (A lot) | Più (More) | Moltissimo (The most) |
Poco (A little) | Meno (Less) | Pochissimo Minimamente (The littlest) |
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
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Daniela is a wonderful teacher. I really had difficulty properly expressing myself in Italian. Daniela not only tought me the basic rules of Italian grammar, but more importantly, during our many conversations in Italian, she helped me express myself much better and with confidence. I still have some path to go, particulalry deepening my knowledge of grammar. The next phase that I will start in a couple of months will focus on perfectionning that. I hope Daniela will find the time to work with me again
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
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I asked Daniela to help me with pronunciation. She pays careful attention, and corrects my pronunciation as needed.
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Elena P.Thank you, Angalinna. I'm happy to know that you are both satisfied with the lessons. Keep on learning and you'll continue to improve!
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
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Daniela is super nice! Super professional and lessons delivered in a informal and enjoyable way! Thanks Daniela :)
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Hi, I'm Dajana, I'm 31 years old and I come from Naples.
I am graduated in Foreign Languages and Litteratures and I have a II Level Master degree in Teaching Italian as Second Language.
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How will I teach you italian? By playing!
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Don’t you think studying can be a pleasure? Join me and you’ll find out!
Cheers,
Dajana
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Dajana adapts to the profile of its students and their constraints, while ensuring follow-up between each lesson. The lessons also work very well in groups. I am very satisfied. Dajana adapts to its students and their constraints. She's also keen on ensuring a follow up between lessons. It also works very well in groups. I am fully satisfied
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Hi everyone!
My name is Daniela, I am Italian and I come from a small town in Sicily, Southern Italy. I am a qualified Italian language teacher and a CELI examiner! I work in two language schools teaching Italian and I also teach English at school.
I love foreign languages, translating, reading and listening to music. Are you ready to start your language learning path with me? We are going to learn many things and to talk a lot, if you allow me to! Don’t worry if you’ve never studied the language before: everyone can attend my classes – from beginner to advanced students. You just need passion for what you're going to do and... a good Internet connection. Materials are provided by me!
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Thank you for putting up with all my mistakes today! We had plenty of conversation practice although the listening we did was quite tough but very useful .
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Would you like to learn a new language and need somebody to guide you? I am the right person for you
Learning a foreign language is always a good investment: it broadens your cultural horizons, it increases dramatically your employability and it helps your business penetrate foreign markets.
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I am available for any explanations also via e mail
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Luisa is such a great teacher; she’s energetic, patient, enthusiastic. I recommend her for anyone, child or adult.
Luisa A.Thank you so much Nicole !!!! much appreciated !!
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Hi, my name is Alessia, I teach Italian to foreigners.
I got a degree in "DAMS" (Disciplines of Arts, Music, and Entertainment), a degree in "Italian Literature, language, and Culture - Cultural Promotion Curriculum", the CEDILS certification from the Ca' Foscari University of Venice for the teaching of 'Italian to foreigners and I am a CELI examiner of the CEDIS Lazio network. I have collaborated on various educational projects, language learning apps, and educational and recreational videos for children.
I am available to help you with your projects if you need help writing for example a theme, a letter, or your curriculum vitae.
An example of one of my lessons to learn the language in a more fun way? Through the analysis of a scene taken from an Italian film, we will analyze the syntax, grammar, idioms, and puns, we will hear the accents so that you too can speak like an Italian.
I can help you learn Italian in many ways, personalizing the lessons as much as possible according to your needs.
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Alessia is a goal-oriented and very professional teacher who I can recommend highly. She targets a students weak points allowing one to improve rapidly. We worked with various mediums e.g. documentaries, textbooks, written and verbal exercises, all specifically chosen to meet the needs and interests of the student.
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Hi there, my name is Roberta. I am an Italian native speaker, and a professional language teacher with a DITALS II certification from Siena University. I live in Italy in a lovely little town called Monate near a small lake of the same name, just 40 minutes by car from Milan.
The aim of the lessons will not be learning generic Italian but to learn Italian according to the needs of every student. Each lesson will be personalized and designed to match students’ interests, linguistic level and learning style.
Every lesson will be planned around a text, which could either be a written piece, an audio segment or a video that will be used as a focal point for both communication and grammatical study. I will provide students with all of the teaching materials used in class that can later be used for homework and self – study, especially for developing writing skills.
I have been working as an Italian teacher since 2016, offering both traditional and e-learning/online classes. I am specialized at teaching young people and adults who want to study Italian for a variety of different reasons: work, education, residency or simply for a love of Italy and its culture.
Finally, as a result of my volunteer position as a documents advisor for immigrants, I can help students to prepare for the B1 level Italian language exam, which is necessary to apply for Italian citizenship.
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Roberta, is a fantastic teacher! She really helped to improve my confidence in using the formal Italian and in preparing for interviews in Italy. She tailored all our lessons to exactly my needs, and we also had a laugh in the process. Thanks again for all your help Roberta!
Roberta L.Thank you very much Emma, they are very happy to have helped you!
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I prepare tailored lessons based on the students' needs and interests using textbooks, videos, interactive resources and ad-hoc materials.
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