Comparative forms

The main difference is that in Eng. there are adjectives and adverbs that add "-er, -est" for comparative and superlative forms, for example "fast, faster, the fastest." No such endings are used in It.

Comparativo di maggioranza (the "greater... than" comparative)

The normal pattern is "più + agg. + di": "Aldo è più alto di Giacomo" ( Aldo is taller than Giacomo). It also applies to comparisons between quantities of things. See the examples:

"Ho più libri di te" ( I have more books than you sing. )

"Luigi guadagna più di Beppe" ( Luigi earns more than Beppe)

Comparativo di eguaglianza (the "as [much] as" comparative)

The normal patterns are "tanto... quanto" and "così... come"; however, the first element is frequently dropped:
"E' tanto alto quanto suo fratello" ( He's as tall as his brother) more often than not becomes "E' alto quanto suo fratello" or "...come suo fratello". Other examples:

"Luigi guadagna come un direttore di banca" ( Luigi earns as much as a bank manager)

"Ha tante amiche quante nemiche"( She's got as many friends as enemies). Notice the agreement for gender and number.

"Bevettero tanto vino quanta birra" ( They drank as much wine as beer)

Comparativo di minoranza (the "less / fewer... than" comparative)

The normal pattern is "meno... di". Example: "E' meno laboriosa di sua sorella" ( She's less hard-working than her sister.

"Ho studiato meno di ieri" ( I have studied less than yesterday)

"Sara ha meno DVD di Irene" ( Sara has got fewer DVD's than Irene)

"C'è meno zucchero in questa torta che in quella" ( There's less sugar in this cake than in that one). This example shows that "che" can be found instead of "di" before the second term of the comparison.

For the irregular forms of comparatives and superlatives see