Comparing Nouns vs. Adjectives: plus de vs. plus
संज्ञा बनाम विशेषण की तुलना: plus de बनाम plus
Two structures look almost identical but do different jobs — plus de counts a noun, while plus alone intensifies an adjective or adverb. Hindi, like English, uses a single word, ज़्यादा, for both cases, so this French split is a genuinely new distinction to build, not something you already track in Hindi.
Grammar Comparison
व्याकरण तुलना
plus de + noun = 'more [noun]' (quantity) — Hindi's ज़्यादा here too
J'ai plus de temps. (I have more time.)
मेरे पास ज़्यादा समय है।
When comparing an amount of something — a noun — use plus de (or moins de, autant de) directly before the noun, with no que required unless comparing to something specific. Hindi's ज़्यादा समय ('more time') uses the same ज़्यादा you'd use for an adjective, so Hindi gives you no built-in cue that a noun-comparison needs special grammatical treatment in French — you have to consciously notice 'I'm comparing an amount of a thing' and reach for plus de specifically.
plus + adjective/adverb = 'more [quality]' (degree) — same Hindi word, different French structure
Il est plus intelligent. (He is more intelligent.)
वह ज़्यादा होशियार है।
When comparing a quality or manner — an adjective or adverb — use plus (or moins, aussi) directly before that word, with no de. Since Hindi's ज़्यादा covers both ज़्यादा समय (a noun) and ज़्यादा होशियार (an adjective) without changing form or adding any equivalent to de, mixing up plus de and plus is a very natural mistake for a Hindi speaker too, for the same reason it's natural for an English speaker: your native language never forced you to ask 'am I comparing a noun or a quality?' before choosing a word — French does force that question, every time.
Vocabulary
शब्दावली
- Hindi
- ज़्यादा समयzyādā samay
- English
- more time
- Hindi
- ज़्यादा होशियारzyādā hośiyār
- English
- more intelligent
- Hindi
- कम पैसेkam paise
- English
- less money
- Hindi
- कम महंगाkam mahaṅgā
- English
- less expensive
- Hindi
- उतनी ही किताबेंutnī hī kitābeñ
- English
- as many books
- Hindi
- उतनी ही आसानी सेutnī hī āsānī se
- English
- as easily
- Hindi
- ज़्यादा लोगzyādā log
- English
- more people
- Hindi
- ज़्यादा तेज़ी सेzyādā tezī se
- English
- more quickly