Introduction to Komparativ und Superlativ
The comparative and superlative forms are used to compare things in German. The comparative (Komparativ) is used to show a higher degree of an adjective, while the superlative (Superlativ) indicates the highest degree.
Forming the Komparativ
To form the Komparativ in German, add -er to the adjective. For example:
- klein (small) → kleiner (smaller)
- alt (old) → älter (older)
- schnell (fast) → schneller (faster)
Forming the Superlativ
To form the Superlativ in German, add -ste or -sten to the adjective, along with "am" before it. For example:
- klein (small) → am kleinsten (the smallest)
- alt (old) → am ältesten (the oldest)
- schnell (fast) → am schnellsten (the fastest)
Note: When the adjective has a vowel (like "a," "o," or "u"), an umlaut is often added in the Komparativ and Superlativ forms, such as groß (big) → größer (bigger) → am größten (the biggest).
Examples of Comparative and Superlative
| Adjective |
Meaning |
Komparativ |
Superlativ |
| hoch |
high |
höher |
am höchsten |
| schön |
beautiful |
schöner |
am schönsten |
| stark |
strong |
stärker |
am stärksten |
| teuer |
expensive |
teurer |
am teuersten |
| langsam |
slow |
langsamer |
am langsamsten |
Special Cases
Some adjectives have irregular forms in the Komparativ and Superlativ:
- gut (good) → besser (better) → am besten (the best)
- viel (much) → mehr (more) → am meisten (the most)
- gern (like) → lieber (prefer) → am liebsten (prefer the most)