X 比 Y + Adjective +
Reach for this when you want to compare two things AND say BY HOW MUCH — 'X is faster than Y by a minute,' 'X is taller than Y by ten centimeters.' The 比 comparison sets up X against Y; the adjective names the dimension; the quantity AFTER the adjective spells out the gap. Common in news reports of records, statistics, prices, and any moment a precise comparison matters.
Structure
[X] 比 [Y] [ADJECTIVE] [QUANTITY / DEGREE]
bǐ... + adj + quantity
How to Think About It
Chinese puts the gap AFTER the adjective, not before. English says 'X is one minute faster than Y'; Chinese says 'X 比 Y 快一分钟' — the 'one minute' lands at the end. Two adverbs commonly slip in before the adjective: 还 ('even more') and 更 ('more'). The position is the trap: 还/更 BEFORE the adjective, quantity AFTER. Swap them and the sentence breaks.
Examples
他比我高十厘米。
Tā bǐ wǒ gāo shí límǐ.
He's ten centimeters taller than me.
今年的销售比去年多两倍。
Jīnnián de xiāoshòu bǐ qùnián duō liǎng bèi.
This year's sales are double last year's (twice as much).
这件衣服比那件便宜五十块钱。
Zhè jiàn yīfu bǐ nà jiàn piányi wǔshí kuài qián.
This piece of clothing is fifty yuan cheaper than that one.
Common Mistake
Learners place the quantity BEFORE the adjective, on the English 'X is one minute faster' model. In Chinese, the quantity must come AFTER the adjective. Also, learners insert 很 or 非常 inside 比 comparisons, but those don't belong there — comparisons can't take plain intensifiers.
他比我一分钟快。
他比我快一分钟。
Don't Confuse With
X 跟 Y 一样 + adj
跟 Y 一样 = 'the same as Y' — equality, no gap. 比 Y = 'compared to Y' — different. Pick 一样 when X and Y match; 比 when one exceeds the other.
X 没有 Y + adj
没有 Y 那么 + adj = 'not as adj as Y' — negative comparison. Use this for 'X is not as fast as Y.' 比 can't take 不 directly (不比 means 'no faster than').
X 比 Y 还 / 更 + adj
还/更 before the adjective adds emphasis ('even faster than Y'). Quantity still goes after the adjective. 他比我还快一分钟 = 'he's even faster than me, by a minute.'
Practice
萨维比基普图姆的纪录还快 ___ 一分多钟。
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了
他 ___ 我高十厘米。
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比
Arrange: 比 / 我 / 五分钟 / 他 / 快 / 早到
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他比我早到五分钟。
She is two years older than her brother.
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她比她弟弟大两岁。
Use 比 to compare two things and specify the size of the difference.
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今天比昨天冷五度。
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 1 Fluentide episode: