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### The Absolute Comparative

Normally, we use the comparative form of an adjective to compare two things directly (e.g., "older *than* me"). But German also uses the comparative without a direct comparison to mean "rather," "quite," or "somewhat." This is called the **absolute comparative** (*absoluter Komparativ*).

Because there is no direct comparison, you won't see the word *als* (than). Instead, the comparative simply softens the adjective. When discussing senior living, for example, *alt* means "old," but *älter* used absolutely means "elderly" or "rather old."

Just like normal adjectives, the absolute comparative takes standard adjective endings when placed directly before a noun.

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This softening effect applies to many common adjectives. A "long" (*lang*) walk sounds intense, but a "somewhat long" (*länger*) walk sounds much more manageable.

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Similarly, a "minor" or "rather small" limitation uses the comparative form of *klein*.

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### Discussing Senior Living

As we talk about growing older, you will often need vocabulary to describe physical (*körperlich*) and mental (*geistig*) health. You will also discuss the support (*die Unterstützung*) and assistive devices that help people maintain a self-determined (*selbstbestimmt*) life.

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The absolute comparative (eine ältere Dame)

adjective

adverb

auxiliary verb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Definite articles and gender (der, die, das)

Indefinite articles (ein, eine)

Regular verbs and statement word order (ich -e, er -t)

The second person (du -st, Sie -en)

Yes/No questions

The verb 'to have' (habe, hast, hat)

Plural pronouns and regular verbs (wir, ihr, sie)

Plural 'to be' and 'to have' (sind, haben)

Plural nouns and the plural article (die)

Sentence negation (nicht)

Noun negation (kein, keine)

Question words (wer, was, wo, wie)

Numbers 0 to 12 (null, eins, zwei)

The accusative case (den, die, das)

Indefinite accusative articles (einen, keinen)

Direct object pronouns (mich, dich, ihn)

There is / there are (es gibt)

Vowel changes: e to i/ie (er spricht, sie liest)

Vowel changes: a to ä (er fährt)

Weather and conditions (es regnet)

First- and second-person possessives in the nominative (mein, dein, Ihr)

First- and second-person possessives in the accusative (meinen, deinen, Ihren)

Third-person and plural possessives (sein, ihr, unser, euer)

Possession with names (Annas Auto)

Demonstrative pronouns (dieser, diese, dieses)

Expressing preference (gern, lieber)

Asking about direction and origin (woher, wohin)

Expressing ability (können)

Polite requests (möchten)

Expressing intention (wollen)

Modal verbs of obligation and permission (müssen, dürfen)

Separable prefix verbs

Adverbs of frequency (immer, oft, manchmal, nie)

The Dative case and definite articles (dem, der, den)

Dative indefinite and negative articles (einem, einer, keinem)

Dative personal pronouns (mir, dir, ihm, ihr...)

Dative verbs (helfen, danken, gefallen, schmecken)

Dative prepositions (aus, bei, mit, nach...)

Accusative prepositions (für, ohne, gegen)

Two-way prepositions for location (in, an, auf...)

Informal singular imperative (mach, komm)

Plural and formal imperative (macht, machen Sie)

Coordinating conjunctions (und, oder, aber, denn)

Simple past of sein and haben (war, hatte)

The perfect tense: regular verbs (gemacht, gespielt)

Past tense: irregular verbs (ge-...-en)

The perfect tense: mixed verbs (gebracht, gekannt)

The perfect tense with sein (ist gegangen)

The perfect tense: separable verbs (eingekauft)

The perfect tense: inseparable and -ieren verbs (besucht, studiert)

Informal singular commands (mach, lern)

Numbers 13 to 20 (dreizehn to zwanzig)

Counting by tens to 100 (dreißig, vierzig)

Telling time (Uhr, halb, Viertel, vor, nach)

Numbers 21 to 99 (einundzwanzig, zweiunddreißig)

Greetings and farewells

Thank you, sorry and good wishes

Everyday replies

Numbers 100 to 1,000,000 (hundert, tausend...)

Becoming and getting (werden)

The impersonal pronoun (man)

Indefinite pronouns (jemand, niemand...)

Time sequence prepositions (vor, nach, bei)

Time span prepositions (von... bis, seit, für)

Adverbs of sequence (zuerst, dann, danach)

Two-way prepositions for direction (in, auf, an...)

Directional adverbs (hin, her)

Placement verbs (setzen, stellen, legen)

Months of the year (Januar, Februar)

The four seasons (Frühling, Sommer)

Time prepositions and indefinite pronouns (an, in, um)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 19th (am ersten)

Ordinals 20th and beyond (-ste, -sten)

Placement vs. location verbs (stellen vs. stehen)

Accusative reflexive pronouns (mich, dich, sich)

Accusative reflexive verbs (sich freuen)

Dative reflexive pronouns (mir, dir, sich)

Dative reflexive verbs (sich etwas merken)

Ordinal numbers 11th to 19th (-te)

Temporal prepositions (an, in, um)

Double objects with nouns

Double objects with pronouns

The modal verb for advice (sollen)

Simple past of modal verbs (musste, wollte...)

Simple past of common irregulars (wurde, wusste, es gab)

Adverbial connectors of consequence (deshalb, darum...)

Subordinate clauses for statements (dass)

Question	Answer
the retirement home	das Seniorenheim
An elderly gentleman lives in the new retirement home.	Ein älterer Herr wohnt in dem neuen Seniorenheim.
accessible	barrierefrei
This retirement home is completely accessible, which is why we like it.	Dieses Seniorenheim ist völlig barrierefrei, weshalb wir es mögen.
An accessible apartment is very important for an elderly woman.	Eine barrierefreie Wohnung ist für eine ältere Frau sehr wichtig.
sprightly	rüstig
My sprightly uncle takes a rather long walk every day.	Mein rüstiger Onkel macht jeden Tag einen längeren Spaziergang.
Are you still sprightly enough for a somewhat long journey?	Sind Sie noch rüstig genug für eine längere Reise?
physical	körperlich
Physical work is often exhausting for elderly people.	Körperliche Arbeit ist für ältere Leute oft anstrengend.
He has no physical problems, which is why he is happy.	Er hat keine körperlichen Probleme, weswegen er glücklich ist.
mental	geistig
the wheelchair	der Rollstuhl
My grandfather is mentally very alert, but he needs a wheelchair.	Mein Großvater ist geistig sehr wach, aber er braucht einen Rollstuhl.
Mental tasks help a lot.	Geistige Aufgaben helfen sehr.
the assistive device	das Hilfsmittel
A wheelchair is not a cheap assistive device.	Ein Rollstuhl ist kein billiges Hilfsmittel.
the limitation	die Einschränkung
Is there an assistive device for this limitation?	Gibt es ein Hilfsmittel für diese Einschränkung?
self-determined	selbstbestimmt
Despite a somewhat small limitation, she lives independently.	Trotz einer kleineren Einschränkung lebt sie selbstbestimmt.
A self-determined life is important for all of us.	Ein selbstbestimmtes Leben ist für uns alle wichtig.
the support	die Unterstützung
Does an elderly person need more support?	Braucht eine ältere Person mehr Unterstützung?
the caregiver	die Pflegekraft
The caregiver offers us great support.	Die Pflegekraft bietet uns großartige Unterstützung.
A good caregiver is not a machine.	Eine gute Pflegekraft ist keine Maschine.
to drag out	in die Länge ziehen
The meeting dragged on and on.	Die Sitzung zog sich immer weiter in die Länge.
Please do not drag the matter out any further.	Bitte zieh die Sache nicht weiter in die Länge.

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