Komparativ und Superlativ
Comparing things - this apartment is bigger, that one is the cheapest - is genuinely useful the moment you start apartment hunting (Lesson 8) or comparing prices (Lesson 12). The good news: the pattern is close to English "-er/-est," with one small addition.
groß → größer (big → bigger)
billig → billiger (cheap → cheaper)
Just like English, but note many one-syllable adjectives with a, o, or u also add an umlaut: groß→größer, not "grosser."
groß → am größten (the biggest)
billig → am billigsten (the cheapest)
Unlike English "the biggest," German's predicate superlative always uses am + adjective + -sten as one fixed unit - there's no separate word for "the" in this construction.
| gut | besser | am besten |
| viel | mehr | am meisten |
| gern | lieber | am liebsten |
Notice lieber and am liebsten - you already met these in Lesson 21 without the grammar name attached. They're simply the comparative and superlative of gern.
Diese Wohnung ist größer als die andere. (This apartment is bigger than the other one.)
Diese Wohnung ist am billigsten. (This apartment is the cheapest.)
als means "than" in a comparison - a new, narrow use of the word distinct from anything you've seen so far.
1. Comparative of "groß" (big)?
2. Superlative of "billig" (cheap) - am ______.
3. What word means "than" in a comparison?
4. Comparative of "gut" (good) - irregular.
5. Superlative form of "gern" you already knew from Lesson 21?
Cross-checked against the Goethe-Institut A1 practice materials.
Want to compare something specific - two jobs, two cities, two apartments? Ask your teaching agent to build the sentences with you.