Hindi normally compares two unequal items by marking the standard with से se: X + Y से + adjective. Thus यह कोट उस जैकेट से सस्ता है means “this coat is cheaper than that jacket.” The adjective describes X; Y is only the reference point.
Hindi often needs no separate equivalent of English -er or more. The से phrase itself creates a comparative reading. Add ज़्यादा “more,” कम “less,” काफ़ी “considerably,” or थोड़ा “slightly” only when that extra degree meaning matters.
The comparison frame
| Part | Function | Example |
|---|---|---|
| X | item being described | यह कोट |
| Y से | comparison standard | उस जैकेट से |
| adjective | property compared | सस्ता |
| copula | tense/agreement | है |
यह कोट उस जैकेट से सस्ता है।
yah koṭ us jaikeṭ se sastā hai.
This coat is cheaper than that jacket.
पहाड़ी रास्ता मुख्य सड़क से छोटा है।
pahāṛī rāstā mukhya saṛak se choṭā hai.
The mountain route is shorter than the main road.
The neutral order places the से phrase before the adjective. Other orders can be licensed by contrastive focus, but English order is not a safe template.
See से as a comparison standard for the postposition's full nominal and pronominal paradigm.
Agreement belongs to the described item
The standard does not control adjective agreement. A declinable adjective agrees with X.
| Features of X | Comparative predicate |
|---|---|
| masculine singular | यह कोट उस जैकेट से सस्ता है |
| masculine plural | ये कोट उन जैकेटों से सस्ते हैं |
| feminine singular | यह साड़ी उस पोशाक से सस्ती है |
| feminine plural | ये साड़ियाँ उन पोशाकों से सस्ती हैं |
यह अलमारी उस मेज़ से भारी है।
yah almārī us mez se bhārī hai.
This cupboard is heavier than that table.
Here भारी is indeclinable, so it stays unchanged even though feminine अलमारी is the described item. Morphological invariability does not mean that the adjective describes the standard.
The standard is oblique
Because से is a postposition, its complement takes oblique case.
| Direct citation form | As standard |
|---|---|
| लड़का | लड़के से |
| लड़के | लड़कों से |
| मैं | मुझसे |
| वह | उससे |
| वे | उनसे |
मेरी बहन मुझसे दो साल छोटी है।
merī bahan mujhse do sāl choṭī hai.
My sister is two years younger than I am.
यह बच्चा अपने दोनों भाइयों से लंबा है।
yah baccā apne donoṃ bhāiyoṃ se lambā hai.
This child is taller than both of his brothers.
मैं से and वह से are not Standard Hindi forms. Use fused oblique मुझसे/उससे.
Attributive comparatives and direct–oblique agreement
A comparative phrase can modify a noun inside a larger noun phrase.
हमें इससे सस्ता होटल चाहिए।
hameṃ isse sastā hoṭal cāhie.
We need a hotel cheaper than this one.
उससे सस्ते कमरे में बालकनी नहीं है।
usse saste kamre meṃ bālkanī nahīṃ hai.
The room cheaper than that one does not have a balcony.
Direct masculine singular सस्ता होटल has -आ. Before में, masculine singular कमरा becomes oblique कमरे, and adjective सस्ता becomes सस्ते. The comparative उससे does not change that ordinary agreement pattern.
Optional degree words
यह पुल पुराने पुल से काफ़ी चौड़ा है।
yah pul purāne pul se kāfī cauṛā hai.
This bridge is considerably wider than the old bridge.
दूसरा विकल्प पहले विकल्प से थोड़ा कम महँगा है।
dūsrā vikalp pahle vikalp se thoṛā kam mahãgā hai.
The second option is slightly less expensive than the first.
काफ़ी/थोड़ा measure the size of the difference. कम reverses the scale. With a straightforward adjective, ज़्यादा is optional: उससे लंबा and उससे ज़्यादा लंबा can both mean “taller than him,” with the latter making “more” explicit.
Lexical बेहतर already means “better.” ज़्यादा बेहतर occurs for emphasis (informal), but careful prose normally prefers बेहतर or काफ़ी बेहतर.
Conventional meanings in comparison
The compared scale comes from the adjective's contextual meaning.
यह मुद्दा पिछले मुद्दे से बड़ा है; इस पर तुरंत निर्णय चाहिए।
yah muddā pichle mudde se baṛā hai; is par turant nirṇay cāhie.
This issue is bigger than the previous one; it needs an immediate decision.
Here बड़ा means more important or consequential, not physically larger. In मेरी बहन मुझसे छोटी है, छोटी means younger. The morphology remains regular through these meaning shifts.
Agreement in a ने-clause
सीमा ने मेरी घड़ी से महँगी घड़ी खरीदी।
sīmā ne merī ghaṛī se mahãgī ghaṛī kharīdī.
Seema bought a watch more expensive than mine.
Both महँगी and खरीदी agree with unmarked feminine object घड़ी. The ने-marked agent does not control either form; the standard मेरी घड़ी से does not control them either.
Common Mistakes
1. Leaving the standard in direct -आ form
❌ मेरा कमरा उस कमरा से बड़ा है।
Incorrect: कमरा becomes oblique कमरे before से.
✅ मेरा कमरा उस कमरे से बड़ा है।
merā kamrā us kamre se baṛā hai.
My room is bigger than that room.
2. Agreeing with the standard
❌ यह सड़क उस रास्ते से लंबा है।
Incorrect: the described noun सड़क is feminine, so use लंबी.
✅ यह सड़क उस रास्ते से लंबी है।
yah saṛak us rāste se lambī hai.
This road is longer than that route.
3. Copying English adjective order
❌ यह बैग भारी उस बैग से है।
Incorrect neutral order: place the से standard before भारी.
✅ यह बैग उस बैग से भारी है।
yah baig us baig se bhārī hai.
This bag is heavier than that bag.
4. Making an indeclinable adjective feminine
❌ यह मशीन उस मशीन से तेज़ी है।
Incorrect: तेज़ is invariant; तेज़ी is the noun ‘speed.’
✅ यह मशीन उस मशीन से तेज़ है।
yah maśīn us maśīn se tez hai.
This machine is faster than that machine.
Key Takeaways
- Mark the comparison standard with oblique से and place it before the comparative adjective in neutral order.
- A separate “more” word is often unnecessary.
- Declinable adjectives agree with the described item, never automatically with the standard.
- Direct/oblique and ने-clause agreement continue to operate inside comparative constructions.
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Start learning Hindi →Related Topics
- से as comparison standardA2 — Use से to set the standard in unequal comparisons, from ordinary adjective contrasts to pronouns, quantities, and सबसे superlatives.
- Superlatives with सबसेB1 — Use सबसे before an adjective to select the highest or lowest member of a contextually defined comparison set.
- Analytic degree with अधिक and कमB1 — Use invariant अधिक and कम before adjectives for formal more and neutral less, while preserving ordinary adjective agreement.
- Declinable adjectives in -āA1 — Form the -ā, -e, and -ī agreement pattern of variable Hindi adjectives across gender, number, case, and predicate position.
- Indeclinable adjectivesA2 — Recognize Hindi adjectives that keep one form across gender, number, case, and attributive or predicative position.
- कितना कौन-सा and कैसा agreementB1 — Choose and inflect कितना, कौन-सा, and कैसा to ask about quantity, selection, and quality across gender, number, and case.