The Ukrainian language, like many other languages, has degrees of comparison for adverbs. These degrees of comparison allow speakers to express differences in intensity or degree between adverbs. Adverbs of quality which end in “-о” or “-e” (derived from adjectives of quality) can have comparative and superlative degrees of comparison. There are two forms of the comparative and superlative: the simple, and the compound. The compound form is easier to learn.
Comparative degrees
The comparative degree of an adverb is used to compare two actions or states. In Ukrainian, the comparative degree of an adverb is formed by adding the suffix “-іше” or “-ше” to the positive degree of the adverb.
| Positive adverb |
Simple form + suffix (-ше / –іше) |
Compound form + “більш” (more) / “менш” (less) |
|---|---|---|
| шви́дко – quickly | шви́дше – quicker |
більш шви́дко – more quickly менш шви́дко – less quickly |
| пові́льно – slowly |
повільні́ше – more slowly |
більш пові́льно – more slowly менш пові́льно – less slowly |
| ціка́во – interestingly | цікаві́ше – more interestingly |
більш ціка́во – more interestingly менш ціка́во – less interestingly |
Superlative degrees
The superlative degree of an adverb is used to describe the highest degree of intensity or degree of an action or state. In Ukrainian, the superlative degree of an adverb is formed by adding the prefix “най-” (the most) to the comparative degree of the adverb.
| Positive adverb |
Simple form + prefix (най-)* and + suffix (-ше/ –іше) |
Compound form + найбі́льш– (the most) / найме́нш– (the least) |
| шви́дко – quickly | найшви́дше – quicker |
більш шви́дко – more quickly менш шви́дко – less quickly |
| пові́льно – slowly | найповільні́ше – more slowly |
найбі́льш пові́льно – most slowly найме́нш пові́льно – least slowly |
| ціка́во – interestingly | найцікаві́ше – more interestingly |
найбі́льш ціка́во – most interestingly найме́нш ціка́во – least interestingly |
