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Niente è tanto sgradevole quanto una stanza disordinata.

Niente è tanto sgradevole quanto una stanza disordinata.
Nothing is as unpleasant as an untidy room.
From Lesson 295:Negative prefixes (in-, dis-, s-)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Niente è tanto sgradevole quanto una stanza disordinata.

How does the prefix s- change the word sgradevole?
The prefix s- is often added to adjectives or verbs starting with a consonant to give them an opposite or negative meaning. Here, it attaches to gradevole (pleasant) to make sgradevole (unpleasant).
Why does disordinata use the prefix dis- instead of s-?
The prefix dis- works exactly like s- to create an opposite meaning. While s- is very common before consonants, dis- is usually required when the base word starts with a vowel, like ordinata (tidy), making it disordinata (untidy).
Why do we use tanto ... quanto here instead of così ... come?
Both tanto ... quanto and così ... come are used to say "as [adjective] as" in comparisons of equality. You can use either one here! Saying così sgradevole come would mean the exact same thing.
Doesn't niente usually require a double negative, like non è niente?
You only use the double negative (adding non before the verb) when negative words like niente or nessuno come after the verb. Because niente is the subject and comes before the verb è in this sentence, we drop the non.

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