More expensive, cheaper: one word, աւելի
English bends the word itself — cheap, cheaper, the cheapest — and here nothing inside the word moves. The adjective stays as it is, and աւելի steps in front of it: t'ang → aveli t'ang. For example: “Այս պանիրը աւելի թանկ է” — This cheese is more expensive. A rule from the Western Armenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
English bends the word itself — cheap, cheaper, the cheapest — and here nothing inside the word moves. The adjective stays as it is, and աւելի (aveli) steps in front of it: t'ang → aveli t'ang.
"Than" is քան (k'an), and it stands before the second participant of the comparison: Shugan aveli ezhan e, k'an khanut'ə. In live speech քան is often dropped, and the second noun takes the -է (-e) 'than' ending: Shugan khanut'ē ezhan e. The market is cheaper than the shop. Both are right; the second sounds more natural.
The superlative is the prefix ամենա-, glued to the front: amenat'arm hatsə — the freshest bread. One word, no space, no other changes.
Table
| Plain | Comparative | Superlative |
|---|---|---|
| թանկ — expensive | աւելի թանկ | ամենաթանկ |
| էժան — cheap | աւելի էժան | ամենաէժան |
| մեծ — big | աւելի մեծ | ամենամեծ |
| լաւ — good | աւելի լաւ | ամենալաւ |
By example
- Այս պանիրը աւելի թանկ էays banirə aveli t'ang eThis cheese is more expensive
- Շուկան աւելի էժան է, քան խանութըshugan aveli ezhan e, k'an khanut'əThe market is cheaper than the shop
- Սա ամենաթարմ հացն էsa amenat'arm hatsn eThis is the freshest bread
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
More expensive, cheaper: how does it work in Western Armenian?
English bends the word itself — cheap, cheaper, the cheapest — and here nothing inside the word moves. The adjective stays as it is, and աւելի steps in front of it: t'ang → aveli t'ang.
What does it look like in an example sentence Western Armenian?
“Այս պանիրը աւելի թանկ է” (ays banirə aveli t'ang e) — This cheese is more expensive. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.