Comparison of equality with 'so … wie' (as … as)
Vergleich mit so … wie
Express equality with 'so … wie' (as … as).
Structure
so + Adjektiv + wie + …
so + adjective + wie + …
Details
- Part of Speech
- Adjective
- Word Type
- Comparison of equality
- Register
- Standard
Explanation
When two things are equal, German uses the structure so … wie ("as … as"). The base form of the (no -er ending) goes between so and wie.
Structure: so + + wie + the thing you compare with.
Examples:
- Heute ist es so warm wie gestern. - Today it is as warm as yesterday.
- Anna ist so groß wie Tom. - Anna is as tall as Tom.
- Sie ist so alt wie ich. - She is as old as I am.
To say "not as … as", simply add nicht:
- Der Film ist nicht so gut wie das Buch. - The film is not as good as the book.
Common mistakes: Keep equality (wie) and inequality (als) apart. For equal things use so … wie; only for unequal do you use als (größer als). A frequent error is mixing them, e.g. saying so groß als - it must be so groß wie. Also, never add the ending here: it is so groß wie, not so größer wie.
About Comparison of equality with 'so … wie' (as … as)
Express equality with 'so … wie' (as … as).
Place the base between 'so' and 'wie': 'Sie ist so alt wie ich.' Negate with ' so … wie' for 'not as … as'.
Gleichheit drückt man mit 'so … wie' aus.
Caution
For equality use 'wie'; only unequal comparison uses 'als'. 'so groß wie' = as big as.