比 — how to compare two things
Put 比 between the two things and the adjective at the end: 今天比昨天热 — today is hotter than yesterday. Chinese adjectives have no comparative form, and crucially you must drop 很 in a 比 sentence.
Structure
-
A + 比 + B + Adjective
A is more adjective than B.
-
A + 比 + B + Adjective + 一点儿 / 得多 / 多了
…a bit / far more.
-
A + 没有 + B + Adjective
A is not as adjective as B.
How it works
Chinese adjectives never change shape — there is no hot → hotter. The comparison lives entirely in the structure: 今天比昨天热。 Literally "today compared-to yesterday hot".
The rule learners break constantly: no 很. 今天比昨天很热 is wrong. The filler 很 exists only to stop a bare adjective sounding comparative — and here the sentence is comparative, so the crutch has to go. The same applies to 非常 and 太.
To say by how much, put the amount after the adjective: 高一点儿 (a bit taller), 高得多 / 高多了 (much taller), 高两公分 (2 cm taller). To reinforce it before the adjective, use 更 (even more) or 还.
The negative is not 不比 in ordinary speech — that means "is not more than", which is a subtler claim. Say "A isn't as … as B" with 没有: 我没有他高。 For equality use 跟…一样: 我跟他一样高。
Examples
Quick drill — 5 questions
Five fill-in-the-gap questions built from the example sentences above. No sign-up, no score kept — just a check that the pattern has actually landed.
Choose the word that belongs in the gap:
Common mistakes
| ✗ Wrong | ✓ Right | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 今天比昨天很热。 | 今天比昨天热。 | 很 is forbidden in a 比 sentence — the comparison already supplies the degree. |
| 他比我更高一点儿。 | 他比我高一点儿。 | Pick one: 更 before the adjective or a degree phrase after it, not both. |
| 我不比他高。 | 我没有他高。 | 不比 means "no more than" and implies a debate. For plain "not as tall as", use 没有. |
比 comparisons — frequently asked questions
How do you make comparisons in Chinese?
A + 比 + B + adjective: 今天比昨天热 (today is hotter than yesterday). Chinese adjectives have no comparative form, so nothing changes shape — the 比 does all the work.
Why can't you use 很 with 比?
Because 很 is only a filler that stops a bare adjective sounding like a comparison. In a 比 sentence the comparison is explicit, so the filler is redundant and ungrammatical. 今天比昨天很热 is wrong; 今天比昨天热 is right.
How do you say "much more" in a Chinese comparison?
Put the degree after the adjective: 贵得多 or 贵多了 (much more expensive), 高一点儿 (a bit taller), 大三岁 (three years older). Degrees never go before the adjective in a 比 sentence.
How do you say "not as … as" in Chinese?
Use 没有: 我没有他高 (I'm not as tall as he is). 不比 exists but means "no more than", which is a different and more argumentative claim. For "the same as", use 跟…一样: 我跟他一样高.
Next, learn
Put it to work
Drill the vocabulary for this level on the HSK 2 word list, rebuild scrambled sentences in the Sentence Builder, read graded stories that use this pattern in the story library, or follow a step-by-step route through the whole site in Guided Learning Paths.