Language/Dari/Grammar/Comparatives-and-Superlatives
Comparing things is an essential part of language. In this lesson, you will learn how to use comparative and superlative adjectives in Dari to compare and describe things. By the end of this lesson, you will be able to express the differences between objects and people with ease.
Consider exploring these related pages after completing this lesson: Past Tense & Pronouns.
Basics of Comparatives
Comparative adjectives are used to show the difference between two or more things or people. In Dari, we form comparative adjectives by adding the suffix -تر (-tar) to the end of the adjective. For example:
| Dari | IPA | English |
|---|---|---|
| قدیمی | qadimi | old |
| قدیمی‌تر | qadim-tar | older |
As you can see, we have simply added -تر (-tar) to the end of the adjective قدیمی (qadimi) to create the comparative form قدیمی‌تر (qadim-tar), which means "older."
But what if the adjective ends in a vowel like صاف (saaf) which means "clean"? In this case, we add -ترین (-tarin) to the end of the adjective:
| Dari | IPA | English |
|---|---|---|
| صاف | saaf | clean |
| صاف‌ترین | saaf-tarin | cleanest |
This rule applies to all adjectives that have a vowel in the last syllable.
Basic Superlatives
Superlative adjectives, on the other hand, are used to show the highest degree of a characteristic. We form superlatives by adding the suffix -ترین (-tarin) to the end of the adjective. For example:
| Dari | IPA | English |
|---|---|---|
| خوش شانس | khosh-shans | lucky |
| خوش‌شانس‌ترین | khosh-shans-tarin | luckiest |
As you can see, we have added the suffix -ترین to the end of the adjective خوش‌شانس (khosh-shans) to create the superlative form خوش‌شانس‌ترین (khosh-shans-tarin), which means "luckiest."
Irregular Comparatives and Superlatives
Some adjectives have irregular forms for comparatives and superlatives in Dari.
1. خوب (khub) - good
Comparative form: بهتر (behtar) - better
Superlative form: بهترین (behtarin) - best
2. بد (bad) - bad
Comparative form: بدتر (badtar) - worse
Superlative form: بدترین (badtarin) - worst
3. زیاد (zyad) - more/many
Comparative form: بیشتر (bishtar) - more/many
Superlative form: بیشترین (bishtarin) - most
4. کم (kam) - less/few
Comparative form: کمتر (kamtar) - less/fewer
Superlative form: کم‌ترین (kamtarin) - least/fewest
5. عالی (aali) - excellent
Comparative form: بالاتر (baalatar) - higher
Superlative form: بالاترین (baalatarin) - highest
6. پایین (paayin) - low
Comparative form: پایین‌تر (paayin-tar) - lower
Superlative form: پایین‌ترین (paayin-tarin) - lowest
Exceptions and Special Cases
There are some cases where we use different words for comparatives and superlatives in Dari. For example:
1. بزرگ (bozorg) - big
Comparative form: بزرگتر (bozorg-tar) - bigger
Superlative form: بزرگوارترین (bozorg-var-tarin) - the biggest/most dignified
2. کوچک (kuchak) - small
Comparative form: کوچکتر (kuchak-tar) - smaller
Superlative form: کوچک‌ترین (kuchak-tarin) - the smallest
3. تند (tond) - fast
Comparative form: تندتر (tond-tar) - faster
Superlative form: تندترین (tond-tarin) - the fastest/fastest-paced
4. کند (kand) - slow
Comparative form: کندتر (kand-tar) - slower
Superlative form: کندترین (kand-tarin) - the slowest
5. زود (zood) - early
Comparative form: زودتر (zood-tar) - earlier
Superlative form: زودترین (zood-tarin) - the earliest
6. دیر (deer) - late
Comparative form: دیرتر (deer-tar) - later
Superlative form: دیرترین (deer-tarin) - the latest
Comparing Things in Sentences
To compare two things or people, we use the following pattern:
<Item 1> + <comparative form> + از + <item 2>
For example:
1. قابل توجه‌ترین فرد را می‌شناسم (qaabele tawjoh-tarin fard ra mishenasam) - I know the most notable person. 2. سیب‌های من دوست‌داشتنی‌تر از سیب‌های تو هستند (seb-haye man dust-dashtani-tarin az seb-haye to hastand) - My apples are more delicious than your apples.
To express the superlative, we use this pattern:
<Item 1> + <superlative form> + از همه
For example:
1. بهترین فصل دوران سفر به نظرم بهار است. (behtarin fasl-e dowran-e safar be nazaram bahar ast) - In my opinion, the best season for traveling is spring.
Remember, when using comparatives and superlatives in Dari, always use the correct form and make sure to pay attention to exceptions and special cases.
Exercises
1. Translate the following sentences into Dari:
a) The red flower is more beautiful than the yellow flower.
b) Sarah is the smartest student in the class.
c) The pizza at this restaurant is the best in town.
2. Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the adjective:
a) او سازنده‌ی ----------------------------------- تکه‌های تمام پازل‌ها است. (he is the maker of the most difficult puzzle pieces.) b) شب‌های ----------------------------------- از همه شب‌ها سردتر هستند. (winter nights are the coldest of all nights.) c) ایران مهمترین کشور ----------------------------------- شمال آفریقاست. (Iran is the most important country of North Africa.)
3. Write a paragraph comparing your two favorite movies. Use comparatives and superlatives where appropriate.
Conclusion
In this lesson, you learned how to form and use comparative and superlative adjectives in Dari to compare and describe things. Paying attention to exceptions and special cases is essential when using comparatives and superlatives. Now you can share your opinions about things and people using precise and persuasive language. Keep practicing to get better!
Great work on completing this lesson! Take a moment to investigate these connected pages: Negation & Basic Prepositions.