Comparative adverbs are used to compare an action, a quality or a degree with another reference point. They allow expressing superiority, equality, or sometimes a nuance of quantity, by linking the measure of the described fact to a comparison element. Like adverbs, they naturally combine with the verb, the adjective or another adverb, as in the modules on the Adverbs, the Adverbs of Manner and the Adverbs of Quantity.

The comparison of superiority is built with more... than to signal that one element surpasses another. The form more is placed before the adverb, the adjective or the expression being measured, and then that introduces the term of comparison. One can strengthen the idea with well more, much more or by far, which mark a clearer difference.

IdéeIdea	ExempleExample
Plus... que indique une supériorité simple.More... than indicates simple superiority.	Il court plus vite que moi.He runs faster than me.
Bien plus renforce fortement la comparaison.Much more strengthens the comparison.	Cette route est bien plus longue que l’autre.This road is much longer than the other.
Beaucoup plus insiste sur un écart important.Very much more stresses a large gap.	Elle travaille beaucoup plus que son frère.She works much more than her brother.
De loin exprime une supériorité très marquée.By far expresses a very marked superiority.	Ce joueur est de loin le plus régulier.This player is by far the most consistent.

Equality is expressed with aussi... que when comparing a manner, a property or a degree of intensity. For quantity, one uses autant... que, especially with action verbs, nouns or groups expressing a measure. The choice between aussi and autant therefore depends on what is being compared, as is also seen in the Adverbs of Manner and the Adverbs of Quantity.

IdéeIdea	ExempleExample
Aussi... que compare une manière ou une qualité.Aussi... que compares a manner or a quality.	Elle parle aussi calmement que sa sœur.She speaks as calmly as her sister.
Autant... que compare une quantité.Autant... que compares a quantity.	Il mange autant que moi.He eats as much as I do.
Autant... que convient avec une mesure ou un volume.Autant... que is used with a measure or volume.	Nous avons autant de temps que vous.We have as much time as you.
Aussi... que peut aussi marquer un degré égal.Aussi... que can also mark an equal degree.	Ce film est aussi intéressant que le précédent.This film is as interesting as the previous one.

The comparative is placed in front of the element it modifies, whether it is a verb, an adjective or another adverb. Thus, plus, moins and aussi precede directly the form being compared, which explains their close link with the Placement of Adverbs. When the comparison concerns a quantity, it often frames a noun group or a measure complement.

IdéeIdea	ExempleExample
Plus se place devant l’adverbe comparé.Plus is placed in front of the adverb being compared.	Elle chante plus juste que lui.She sings more accurately than him.
Moins se place devant l’adjectif comparé.Moins is placed in front of the adjective being compared.	Cette solution est moins coûteuse que l’autre.This solution is less expensive than the other.
Aussi se place devant l’adverbe ou l’adjectif comparé.Aussi is placed in front of the adverb or the adjective being compared.	Il est aussi attentif que prudent.He is as attentive as he is prudent.
Autant encadre souvent la quantité comparée.Autant often frames the quantity being compared.	Elle a autant de patience que de talent.She has as much patience as talent.

Comparative forms do not agree with the noun or the subject, because they function as adverbs. We thus say plus fort, plus vite or plus longtemps without any change in form, even when the subject is feminine or plural. This invariability distinguishes them from adjectives, which vary according to gender and number, as in the entire system studied with the Adverbs.

IdéeIdea	ExempleExample
Plus ne varie pas selon le genre.Plus does not vary with gender.	Elles parlent plus fort.They speak louder.
Plus ne varie pas selon le nombre.Plus does not vary with number.	Ils marchent plus vite.They walk faster.
Moins ne varie pas selon le sujet.Aussi does not agree.	Marie chante moins souvent.The two teams play as well.
Aussi ne s’accorde jamais.Aussi does not vary with subject.	Les deux équipes jouent aussi bien.The two teams play as well.

The adverb bien becomes mieux when comparing the manner of an action. The adverb mal can have the form pis in a familiar, archaic or highly literary register, but this form remains rare and marked. These irregularities concern the comparative sense of the adverb, not the adjective.

IdéeIdea	ExempleExample
Bien devient mieux dans la comparaison.Bien becomes mieux in the comparison.	Il écrit mieux qu’avant.It writes better than before.
Mieux compare une manière de faire.Mieux compares a way of doing.	Elle comprend mieux que moi.She understands better than me.
Pis est rare et marqué par le registre.Pis is rare and marked by register.	Ce procédé est pis encore dans un style ancien.This method is pis still in an old style.
Pis s’emploie surtout dans un usage littéraire ou familier ancien.Pis is used mainly in literary or very old-fashioned usage.	Il joue pis que jamais.He plays pis than ever.

Negation can frame the comparative to limit or exclude the relation of comparison. Pas plus... que denies the idea of superiority, while ne... guère plus expresses a very small gain. These forms give the comparative a restrictive value rather than an affirmative one.

IdéeIdea	ExempleExample
Pas plus... que refuse la supériorité.Not more... than denies the superiority.	Il ne court pas plus vite que moi.He does not run faster than me.
Pas plus... que limite la quantité.Not more... than limits the quantity.	Elle n’a pas plus de temps que lui.She does not have more time than him.
Ne... guère plus marque un faible excédent.Ne... guère plus marks a small excess.	Il ne parle guère plus fort qu’hier.He does not speak much louder than yesterday.
La négation modifie le sens global de la comparaison.Negation changes the overall sense of the comparison.	Je n’en sais pas plus que toi.I don’t know more than you.

Plus que can be ambiguous out of context because it can mean a simple comparison, a residual quantity or a restriction. The sentence must therefore make clear the point of comparison to avoid hesitation between several readings. In speech, elisions and the pronunciation of plus can also convey a sense of ne... plus depending on context.

IdéeIdea	ExempleExample
Plus que peut rester vague sans repère.Plus que can remain vague without a reference.	Il ne reste plus que deux places.There are only two places left.
Le contexte précise le sens de plus que.Context clarifies the meaning of plus que.	Il est plus calme que son frère.He is calmer than his brother.
La prononciation peut signaler une disparition ou une comparaison.Pronunciation can signal disappearance or a comparison.	Je n’en veux plus.I don’t want any more.
À l’oral, l’ellipse peut créer une ambiguïté.Orally, ellipses can create ambiguity.	Il est plus rapide que prévu.He is faster than expected.

Some comparative locutions are very common and give nuances of time, progression or intensity. Plus que jamais reinforces the idea of a maximal degree in a given situation, plus ou moins introduces an approximation, and de plus en plus indicates ongoing progression. These turns are often encountered in everyday language and usefully complement the comparative use of Adverbs of Time.

IdéeIdea	ExempleExample
Plus que jamais intensifie l’état exprimé.Plus que jamais intensifies the expressed state.	Elle est plus que jamais déterminée.She is more determined than ever.
Plus ou moins exprime l’approximation.Plus or minus expresses approximation.	C’est plus ou moins terminé.This is more or less finished.
De plus en plus marque une progression.De plus en plus marks a progression.	Il travaille de plus en plus vite.He works faster and faster.
Plus que jamais convient à une situation actuelle.Plus que jamais is suitable for a current situation.	Nous avons plus que jamais besoin de calme.We need calm more than ever.

Comparative adverbs organize comparison by manner, degree and quantity, distinguishing superiority, equality, nuance and restriction. Their form remains invariable; their placement depends on the element compared, and certain forms such as mieux or pis introduce irregularities of meaning and register. When well mastered, they naturally integrate into comparisons of the adverb, the adjective and the verb, and directly prepare the study of Adverbs of Superlatives.