18. Comparatives and Superlatives O
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18.1 A sentence that compares two quantities or qualities, such as John is taller than Mary or John ate more than Mary, is called a comparative sentence. A Japanese comparative sentence takes one of two forms, as follows. Y    U means more than Y or compared to Y.
■Llote that unlike English, I iladjectives in Japanese do not have comparative or superlative forms.
hayashi: Is it hotter in Los Angeles than in Miami?   kawamura: No, it's hotter in Miami. hayashi: Well, which has more rain—Los Angeles or Miami?   kawamura: It rains more in Miami.
:htn: Which is coldest—Sapporo, Sendai, or Tokyo? machida: Sapporo. chin: Among them, which is farthest north?   machida: Sapporo is farthest north,   chin: I see.
3kown: Which is colder, Sendai or Yamagata? mimura: Yamagata is colder, brown: Then, which has more snow?   mimura: As you might expect, Yamagata. It snows about one meter.
"One meter is about 3.3 feet. Some people say instead of ^ — hJk
[Continues.)
X   li  Y   J;U adjective
Xis more ...than Y. (lit, More than Y,Xis...)
Tokyo is larger than Osaka, (lit., More than Osaka, Tokyo is large.)
7s Mr. Hayashi more serious than Mr. Mimura? (lit., More than Mr. Mimura, is Mr. Hayashi serious?)
X   [£   Y   J: U      adverb + verb
X does ...more {...) than Y. (lit., More than Y, X does...)
If rained more this winter than last winter.
ifp is
Ms. Brown got up earlier than Ms. Gibson.
18.2 To ask a comparative question, use the following construction, which means Of X and Y, which [alternative) is/does [more)...
X   t   Y   t   £t> £>(£>[£5)#    adjective or ^
adverb + verb
Wfriafr (alternative) is more...—X or Y? Which (alternative) does...more (...) —Xor Y?
The answer to this question takes the following form, meaning The [alternative of) Xis [more)...
X {<D\%o)W	adjective or	
	adverb + verb	
		Xis more...
		Xdoes [something) more...
etc i\        an <j>
m #9t$L t ±m9tiL £ £-s e> cos e>)   # u
Who is stricter—Professor Yokoi or Professor Oono? (lit., Of Professor Yokoi and Professor Oono, which [alternative] is strict?)
Professor Oono is stricter, (lit., The alternative of Professor Oono is strict.)
it* fc
Who gets up earlier—Ms. Brown or Ms. Gibson? (lit., Of Ms. Brown and Ms. Gibson, which [alternative] gets up early?)
Ms. Brown gets up earlier, (lit., The alternative of Ms. Brown gets up early.)
Notice that when li^>0 is used in its temporal meaning of early, the character-?-^ is used. When li^tA means fast or quick, use the character
The following adverbs expressing degreeare often used in comparative sentences.
if o t. by far
feoi more
'>L or t> J: o-<t a little
This university is far bigger than that university.
Anchorage is colder (lit, more cold) than Vancouver.
•¥>$<"•& . t* -re >,jf?
Mr. Yamaguchi is a bit younger than Mr. Takada.
The counter... in (f/mes, as in magnification) or a specific number (plus the appropriate counter, if necessary) specifies the extent of the difference in comparisons. These expressions come before adjectives or adverbs.
X'Aj l
X'fv
i
This train is three times faster than that train.
Cappuccino costs 200 yen more than cafe au lait.
18.3 A superlative sentence is one that compares the quality or quantity of three or more entities and specifies which entity has most of that quality or quantity. For instance, Who is the most popular actress in the United States—Julia Roberts, Angelina Jolie, or Nicole Kidman?
A Japanese superlative sentence takes one of the following forms.
(— H [lit, number one] means most.)
X tYtZ	(7)*T	X#v	*	adjective or
	or	(or other		adverb + verb
		particle)		
X is the most,.. among X, Y, and Z. X does...the most (...) amongX, Y, and Z.
Ut. \£A, £t>
Among London, Paris, and Moscow, Moscow is the coldest.
l\y It/ulfP fib
$>0®A<Dz>t>T\ ¥7y>ZA,tfi- mm<£v&to
Among those four people, Ms. Gibson runs fastest.
Among beer, juice, and cola, I drink cola most often.
18.4 An equative sentence is one that equates two entities. For example, He is as tall as I am. Equative sentences in Japanese are expressed as follows.
X   [i  Y   t.    [5jL/<bU adjective or
adverb + verb
As you remember, [s]   means same and < b U means about. The phrase N L/<T bt^ means to [about) the same extent or to [about] the same degree. This sentence means X is about the same as Y with regard to...
/£ ft <D = E Itm%ft (D = E d: III D < b ^IH#H\T"T„
March in Hiroshima is about as warm as March in Kagoshima.
Bjffl2MJ#3*/£Ei;<&l*«l:< ccC^Sto
Ms. Machida comes here about as often as Mr. Hayashi.
A negative equative sentence such as A is not as... as B is expressed with this structure. ((5<!f means as much as.)