Grammar 7.2: Comparisons of inequality with más and menos plus que

• This is purely a question of learning the grammar structures for these types of comparisons, and then using them.
   
• In this presentation, we'll be learning how to use more than expressions (más + que) and less than expressions (menos + que) in 3 different grammar contexts.
   
• This will allow us to create unequal comparisons using:
• verbs
• adjectives
• nouns

Structure 1: unequal comparisons based on verbs

• The structure is this:
• [Person/thing 1] VERB + más que [person/thing 2]
• [Person/thing 1] VERB + menos que [person/thing 2]
   
• This allows you to say that some person/thing does an action more than (más que) or less than (menos que) something or someone else.
   
• Examples from page 226 in your textbook:
• El microondas (thing 1)
  CUESTA más que
  la cafetera (thing 2)
   
• La tostadora (thing 1)
  CUESTA menos que
  la aspiradora (thing 2)

Structure 2: unequal comparisons based on adjectives

• The structure is this:
• [Person/thing 1 + verb] + más [adjective] que [person/thing 2]
• [Person/thing 1 + verb] + menos [adjective] que [person/thing 2]
   
• This allows you to say that some person/thing is  more or less [adjective] than someone or something else.
• Note that in Spanish, the adjective has to agree with the first noun in the sentence, not the second one.
• Note also that in English, we often compare this way by adding the suffix "er" to an adjective (ie, we say "prettier" more often than we say "more pretty"). 
• Spanish has no such suffix that does this. It's always "más" plus adjective plus "que". 

Structure 2: unequal comparisons based on adjectives

• Structure:
• [Person/thing 1 + verb] + más [adjective] que [person/thing 2]
• [Person/thing 1 + verb] + menos [adjective] que [person/thing 2]
   
• Examples from page 226 in your textbook:
• La lavadora es (thing 1 +verb) 
  más carA que
  la cafetera (thing 2)
   
• El secador de pelo es (thing 1+ verb)
  menos carO que 
  la aspiradora (thing 2)

Structure 3: unequal comparisons based on nouns

• The structure is this:
• [Person/thing 1 + verb] + más [noun] que [person/thing 2]
• [Person/thing 1 + verb] + menos [noun] que [person/thing 2]
  
   
• This allows you to say that some person/thing has more or less of some noun than someone or something else.
   
• We'll do more contextualization with these comparisons, as it will make them easier to understand. See page 228 of your textbook.

• Noun for comparison: baño/s
• La casa de los Yassín tiene más BAÑOS que la casa de los Londoño.
• La casa de los Londoño tiene menos BAÑOS que la casa de los Yassín.
   
• Noun for comparison: patio/s
• La casa de los Rozo tiene más PATIOS que la casa de los Londoño.
• La casa de los Londoño tiene menos PATIOS que la casa de los Rozo.
  
  NB: Superlative constructions will not be on the Final, so we are not focusing on them here.