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Forming comparative adjectives in Spanish: mayor/menor/mejor/peor

Written by qualified Spanish expert Inma Sánchez BA
Last updated: 2024-05-04
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Learn about Spanish comparative adjectives

The following Spanish comparative adjectives that end in -or/ -ior have the same form for masculine and feminine singular:

Mayor (bigger/older) 

Menor (smaller/younger)

Mejor (better)

Peor (worse)

Inferior (inferior/lower)

Superior (superior/higher)

Have a look and listen to the following examples:

Mi hijo mayor estudia en Oxford.My eldest son studies in Oxford.

Mi hija mayor estudia en Salamanca.My eldest daughter studies in Salamanca.

El móvil de Darío funciona mejor que mi móvil.Darío's mobile works better than mine.

La situación es peor ahora.The situation is worse now.

Su hermano menor quiere una bicicleta.Her younger brother wants a bike.

Su hermana menor quiere un novio.Her younger sister wants a boyfriend.

Este producto es de una calidad inferior.This product is of inferior quality.

El examen es para un nivel superior de inglés.The exam is for a higher level of English.

Plural form

To form the plural of these adjectives add -es.

This applies to masculine and feminine.

Mayor → mayores

Menor → menores

Mejor → mejores

Peor → peores

Superior → superiores

Inferior → inferiores

Here are more examples, this time in plural:

Javier y Gerardo son mayores que Luis.Javier and Gerardo are older than Luis.

Las niñas de Alicia son menores que mis niñas.Alicia's girls are younger than mine.

Hemos tenido mejores vacaciones.We've had better holidays.

Vosotras sois peores que ellos.You are worse than them.

Las ventas fueron superiores a los costes.The sales were higher than the expenses.

Los costes fueron inferiores a las ventas.The expenses were lower than the sales.

Note: Not all adjectives that end in -r follow the same rule.

See also:

Additional note:

  • When using the adjectives inferior and superior in comparative sentences, the preposition used is "a".

Los costes fueron inferiores a las ventas.
Los costes fueron inferiores que las ventas.

  • However, when using the adjectives mayor and menor, we use "que".

Los costes fueron menores que las ventas.
Los costes fueron menores a las ventas.

See also How to say the best/the worst/the oldest/the youngest in Spanish (irregular superlatives)

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Examples and resources

Javier y Gerardo son mayores que Luis.Javier and Gerardo are older than Luis.
Las niñas de Alicia son menores que mis niñas.Alicia's girls are younger than mine.
Hemos tenido mejores vacaciones.We've had better holidays.
Vosotras sois peores que ellos.You are worse than them.
Las ventas fueron superiores a los costes.The sales were higher than the expenses.
Los costes fueron inferiores a las ventas.The expenses were lower than the sales.
Mi hija mayor estudia en Salamanca.My eldest daughter studies in Salamanca.
Mi hijo mayor estudia en Oxford.My eldest son studies in Oxford.
Su hermano menor quiere una bicicleta.Her younger brother wants a bike.
Su hermana menor quiere un novio.Her younger sister wants a boyfriend.
Este producto es de una calidad inferior.This product is of inferior quality.
El examen es para un nivel superior de inglés.The exam is for a higher level of English.
El móvil de Darío funciona mejor que mi móvil.Darío's mobile works better than mine.
La situación es peor ahora.The situation is worse now.
Let me take a look at that...