Free grammar · Unit 51 of 51

More, less, the most: יוֹתֵר מִ, פָּחוֹת מִ, הֲכִי

Hebrew has no «bigger». It says «big more»: גָּדוֹל יוֹתֵר, or «more big»: יוֹתֵר גָּדוֹל; both orders are fine. «Than» is מִ glued to the next word: הַבַּיִת שֶׁלָּהּ גָּדוֹל יוֹתֵר מֵהַבַּיִת שֶׁלִּי, «her house is bigger than mine»; הוּא צָעִיר מִמֶּנִּי, «he is younger than me». «Less» is פָּחוֹת: פָּחוֹת יָקָר מִ, «less expensive than».

«The most» is הֲכִי before the adjective, and the noun takes הַ: הַסֵּפֶר הֲכִי טוֹב «the best book», הָעִיר הֲכִי יָפָה בָּאָרֶץ «the most beautiful city in the country». The adjective still agrees with the noun; only the small words are fixed. And «as… as» is כְּמוֹ: הִיא גְּבוֹהָה כְּמוֹ אָחִיהָ, «she is as tall as her brother».

The page has the explanation, the table of three steps of גָּדוֹל and the first two exercises: «Haifa is smaller than Tel Aviv» and «this is the best restaurant in the city». The other four, including typing «the most» yourself and building a sentence with כְּמוֹ, open with a free account.