Comparison is between two in terms of a certain quality usually expressed by an adjective, e.g. taller than. When we compare between 2 people or things in Arabic, we typically use the form (أفعل) followed by the preposition (من), e.g. “taller than“ is (أطول من)
محمد أكبر من أحمد ولكن أحمد أطول منه.
“Mohammed is older than Ahmed, but Ahmed in taller than him.“
بيتي أقدم من بيتك
“My house is older than yours.“
Below is a list of adjectives and their comparative forms. I tried to include opposites to be easier to learn.
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أكثر من
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كثير
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Much/a lot
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أقلّ من
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قليل
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Little/few
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أكبر من
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كبير
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Big
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أصغر من
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صغير
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Small
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أغلى من
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غالٍ
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Expensive
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أرخص من
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رخيص
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Cheap
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أطول من
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طويل
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Tall
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أقصر من
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قصير
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Short
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أقدم من
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قديم
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Old
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أحدث من
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حديث
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New
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أسمن من
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سمين
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Fat
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أنحف من
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نحيف
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Thin
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أوسع من
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واسع
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Wide
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أضيق من
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ضيق
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Narrow
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أجمل من
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جميل
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Beautiful
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أقبح من
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قبيح
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Ugly
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When we have long adjectives, containing three or more syllables, we cannot use the (أفعل) form. Instead, we use (أكثر) followed by the verbal noun derived from the adjective and (من). We have to note that this is different from English, because in English we use more followed by the adjective, while in Arabic, we use the verbal noun, e.g.
رامي منضبط ولكن منى أكثر انضباطاً منه.
Ramy is punctual, but Mona is more punctual than him.
Below is a list of adjectives that can be used in this form and their comparative counterparts:
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أكثر خوفاً من
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خائف
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Afraid
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أكثر توتراً من
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مُتَوَتّر
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Nervous
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أكثر استقلالاً من
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مُستقل
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Independent
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أكثر تأخراً من
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مُتأخر
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Late/retarded
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أكثر تقدماً من
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مُتقدم
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Advanced
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أكثر تكبراً من
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مُتكبّر
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Proud
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أكثر مثابرةً من
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مُثابِر
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Persistent
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أكثر تصميماً من
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مُصَمّم
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Determined
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It should be noted that the verbal noun after (أكثر) should be in the accusative form and ends in (تنوين الفتح).
Comments:
Juan:
Thank you,
Really worth studying, clear and concise.
You covered the comparative case when one of the things is more (less) than the other one, but sometimes they are the “same”, examples:
Peter is as old as John.
This house is as big as that one, etc.
This is also a comparison, how would it be expressed in arabic?
Thanks.
Aziza:
Thank you very much for your comment Juan. I will dedicate a special post to answer your question. Keep reading!
Salam,
Aziza
Niji:
If i’m not mistaken, for similarity in Arabic we just use a word مثل or ك .
If the sentence has a hidden meaning or metaphor, we should use uslub balaghah – “tasbih” تشبيه .
Anyway Admin, i have a question:
” When we have long adjectives, containing three or more syllables “.
Can you explain a little bit more about long adjective that contains three syllables only, but can’t use the (أفعل) form.
Thanks
Aziza:
Ahlan Niji,
As explained in the post, adjectives that have 3 or more syllables cannot take the form (أفعل) like shorter adjectives. We have to use (أكثر) which is the same for all adjectives, followed by the verbal noun derived from the adjectives concerned and the preposition (من) like the examples above.
I hope this is helpful,
Aziza
Nurhussen:
Good work.
aziza:
@Nurhussen Thank you!
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