How to make comparisons: Italian grammar lesson 133

Start here

You’ll receive my free resources together with my best offers! Opt out at any time.

Create a free lifetime account to get access to all the free lesson and other resources.

I’ll take you to your shiny new student dashboard.

What is il comparativo in Italian?

In Italian, we form the comparative using the words più (more) and meno (less).

Luca è più vecchio di Mario.

Luca is older than Mario.

Il mio cane è meno intelligente del tuo.

My dog is less intelligent than yours.

In this lesson, we are going to look at one of the possible ways of forming the comparative in Italian:

  • Più+ adjective + di+ second part of the comparison

    comparative Italian

When to use più di and meno di?

We use più + adjective + di when:

The second part of the comparison is a noun.

Giulio è meno simpatico di Greta.

Giulio is less pleasant than Greta.

The second part of the comparison is a pronoun.

Noi siamo più vecchi di te.

We are older than you.

The second part of the comparison is an adverb.

Adesso il tempo è più bello di prima.

Now the weather is better than before.

Italian comparison

How to use più di and meno di?

Be careful: when the second part of the comparison starts with an article, the article joins onto di, which becomes a preposizione articolata (del, della, dello, dell’, dei, degli, delle).

This preposition will match the number and gender of the noun or pronoun it precedes. Have a look at the sentences below:

Mia madre è più giovane della signora Anna.

My mother is younger than Ms. Anna.

I miei occhiali sono più costosi dei tuoi.

My glasses are more expensive than yours.

I lupi sono meno pericolosi degli orsi?

Are wolves less dangerous than bears?

comparisons in Italian

How to use di più with verbs alone?

If the comparison involves a verb and the term of comparison is not expressed in the sentence, you add di in front of più.

Free Guide
How to Learn Languages Fast

Examples:

Per saperne di più, clicca qui.

To learn more, click here.

Quel modello costa di più perché è nuovo.

That model costs more because it’s new.

Ad un asta, vince chi offre di più.

At an action, who bids more wins.

Practice with Quizlet

Here's a set of flashcards and quizzes to practice this grammar topic.

Il comparativo: examples

Well done! Now you know how and when to use the structure più + adjective + di correctly. Let’s have a look at some more examples of this form of comparative; note that you can use it with questions, positive and negative sentences, and with all verb tenses!

Secondo te, i girasoli sono più belli delle rose?

What do you think? Are sunflowers more beautiful than roses?

Pensavo che Paolo fosse meno alto di Marco, ma mi sbagliavo.

I thought Paolo was shorter than Marco, but I was wrong!

Non sei più forte di me!

You’re not stronger than me!

Still translating in your head? Wanna speak Italian for real? Check out Stefano's courses to think directly in Italian and become fluent fast!

FAQs on How to make comparisons: Italian grammar lesson 133

Stefano

Italian language tutor, course author, and polyglot. After learning 12 languages, I can tell you that we all master languages by listening and mimicking. With my method, you'll be speaking Italian from Lesson 1.

Follow me to fluency​

Receive my free resources once a week together with my best offers! 

Create a free lifetime account to get access to all the free lesson and other resources.

I’ll take you to your shiny new student dashboard.

6 Responses

  1. “Ad un asta, vince chi offre di più.
    At an action, who bids more wins."

    Nella frase inglese, dovrebbe esserci auction invece di action, vero?

Leave a Reply

Share:

Still translating in your head?

Wanna speak Italian for real? Check out Stefano’s courses to think directly in Italian and become fluent fast!
[mwai_chatbot_v2 id="support"]
Try my courses
for free​
ripeti con me mockup sm

Let me show you around

How long to fluency?

Find out how long it will take you to master Italian!
Get on the right track in 3 minutes.

dolce vita logo

We're already friends!

Coming from Luca and Marina?
Here's a special deal for you!
Just tell me where I should send the coupon.

50% OFF
all language resources

We're already friends!

Coming from All Language Resources?
Here's a special deal for you!
Just tell me where I should send the coupon.

50% OFF
GRAB A COUPON NOW, REDEEM IT LATER
50% OFF

To receive free resources once a week together with my best offers, just tell me where to send everything. Opt out at any time.

Create a free lifetime account to get access to all the free lesson and other resources.

I’ll take you to your shiny new student dashboard.