All German word comparisons · Back to the topic overview
Meaning, sentence patterns and examples
| Word | Core meaning | Typical context | Grammar |
|---|---|---|---|
| als | than; as; when | unequal comparison, role or past time | comparison phrase or verb-final clause |
| wie | as; like; how | comparison, resemblance or manner | phrase; question or verb-final clause |
als
Meaning and usage: Use als to connect the second item after comparative adjectives or adverbs: older than, sooner than, more than. In another construction it describes a real role or capacity, such as als Lehrerin arbeiten. Temporal als introduces a past occasion or period. These uses share a spelling but need separate sentence patterns.
Grammar: Als does not automatically impose dative or accusative on a comparison; the sentence roles determine case. A short comparison phrase needs no comma. A full subordinate comparison or temporal clause normally has a comma and a final conjugated verb. Keep the main clause's finite verb second if the subordinate clause comes first.
Dieser Weg ist kürzer als der andere.
This route is shorter than the other one.
Als ich ankam, war das Büro schon geschlossen.
When I arrived, the office was already closed.
wie
Meaning and usage: Use wie in so … wie and genauso … wie comparisons. It also follows quantified so patterns such as doppelt so … wie: that means twice as much, not equality. It also expresses resemblance without a degree word: wie ein Profi. A question beginning Wie …? asks how, and an indirect question can introduce the manner in which something happens.
Grammar: A short wie comparison phrase needs no comma. A complete dependent clause uses final verb position: so schnell, wie ich kann. A direct Wie question places its finite verb second: Wie funktioniert das? In Ich weiß, wie das funktioniert, the indirect question has verb-final order.
Meine Tasche ist genauso schwer wie deine.
My bag is just as heavy as yours.
Ich weiß nicht, wie dieses Gerät funktioniert.
I do not know how this device works.
Overlap and context
English as may translate as als for a role and wie for resemblance: Sie arbeitet als Lehrerin says she is working as a teacher; sie erklärt es wie eine Lehrerin compares her explanation to a teacher's. Regional comparative wie and als wie are real usage, but do not make them the standard recommendation. Also, nicht so groß wie uses the equal-degree construction even though the whole sentence denies equality; the adjective form and frame decide the connector.
Common mistakes
- For standard writing, use größer als, not größer wie or größer als wie.
- Use so groß wie, not so groß als in the ordinary modern standard comparison.
- Do not add a comma before every short als or wie phrase; distinguish a phrase from a complete clause.
- Do not keep main-clause order inside an indirect wie question: wie das funktioniert has the verb at the end.
Memory aid: More or less: comparative + als. As … as: so + adjective + wie. Then ask whether you have a role, time clause or how-question instead of a comparison.
Try it
Complete: Der neue Kurs ist günstiger ___ der alte, aber genauso lang ___ der alte.
Show the answer
als; wie
Günstiger is comparative and takes als. Genauso lang is the equal-degree frame and takes wie.