Groß, größer, am größten

What does “am liebsten” mean compared with “gern”?

Take a look

Berlin ist größer als Hamburg.Berlin is bigger than Hamburg.
Der Mount Everest ist am höchsten.Mount Everest is the highest.
Mein Bruder ist so alt wie ich.My brother is as old as I am.
Sie ist die beste Schülerin.She is the best student.
gutgootgood

The rule

Adjectives let you compare things. The basic form is groß, the comparative is größer and the highest form is am größten. Often the comparative adds -er and the highest form uses am ... -sten. Some words change a vowel, as groß does; others have special forms, such as gut, besser, am besten. The course also shows am liebsten and größten. Learn these groups of forms together.

Remember: Basic, comparative, highest: groß, größer, am größten.

Goes with lesson 13, 17, 28 of the course.

What differs for you

English has big, bigger and biggest, so three comparison levels are familiar. German likewise adds endings, but the highest form often includes am, and a vowel can change: “groß, größer, am größten”. Some words have a special series, such as “gut, besser, am besten”. Learn the German trio together rather than attaching an English ending.

The forms

Three degrees

Grundform	Vergleich	höchste Stufe
groß	größer	am größten
schnell	schneller	am schnellsten
gut	besser	am besten
gern	lieber	am liebsten

Common mistakes

*groß, großer, am großesten → groß, größer, am größten.
*gut, guter, am gutesten → gut, besser, am besten.

Quick check

schnell → ___
Form the comparative.
Answer
schneller — Adjective + -er
alt → am ___
Form the superlative.
Answer
ältesten — With umlaut: a→ä + -sten
Dieses Buch ist ___ als das andere.
Choose the correct form.
1. interessant
2. interessanter
3. am interessantesten
4. interessantest
Answer
interessanter — Comparative: interessant + -er
Er ist größer wie sein Bruder.
Correct the mistake.
Answer
Er ist größer als sein Bruder. — 'als' follows the comparative, not 'wie'
Sie singt am ___ . (good)
Insert the correct form.
Answer
besten — Irregular: gut → am besten
Ich trinke ___ Tee als Kaffee.
Choose the correct form.
1. gerner
2. lieber
3. am liebsten
4. besser
Answer
lieber — gern → lieber (comparative)

The same exercises come back in the course — there Langula remembers what you know and asks again at the right moment. Learn German free →

Terms

Comparison: A quality is compared in degrees: fast, faster, fastest.
Comparative: The form for comparing two things: Anna is faster than Ben.
Superlative: The form for the highest degree of a quality: Anna runs fastest.
Adjective: A word that describes a quality: a big house.

BeforeWar and hatte: the simple past AfterReflexive verbs

Word classes

Der, die, das and ein, eine A1Why do different words appear before nouns?→Nouns, verbs and adjectives A1What do “Suppe”, “spiele” and “groß” tell you?→Plural nouns A1What changes in “Brüder” and “Kinder”?→Personal pronouns A1Personal pronouns replace nouns and indicate the person.→Adjective endings A2Why “einen roten Mantel” but “eine freundliche Person”?→Mein, dein, sein: whose is it? A2Whose passport does “Ihren Reisepass” refer to?→

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