Comparative and superlative clauses 173
(133) Pottra-na Bu Nus lebbi bannya' katembang Bu Rita.
child-DEF Mrs Nus more many than Mrs Rita
‘Bu Nus has more children that Bu Rita.’
(134) Buku-na Ali lebbi bannya' katembang Bambang.
book-DEF Ali more many than Bambang
‘Ali has more books than Bambang.’
(135) Pottra-na Bu Rita lebbi sakone' banding Bu Nus.
child-DEF Mrs Rita more few than Mrs Nus
‘Bu Rita has fewer children than Bu Nus.’
(136) Buku-na Bambang lebbi dhiddhi' katembang Ali.
book-DEF Bambang more few than Ali
‘Bambang has fewer books than Ali.’
As an alternative to this structure, the quantifier can be nominalized by
affixing the definite suffix, as in (137) and (138).
(137) Bannya'-an pottra-na Bu Nus banding Bu Rita.
many-NOM child-DEF Mrs Nus than Mrs Rita
‘Bu Nus has more children that Bu Rita.’
(138) Dhiddhi'-an buku-na Bambang katembang Ali.
few-NOM book-DEF Bambang than Ali
‘Bambang has fewer books than Ali.’
The nominalized quantifiers bannya'nan ‘many’ in (137) and dhiddhi'an ‘few’
in (138) stand in a predicative relationship to the focus of comparison, Bu Nus’s
children in (137) and Bambang’s books in (138). As with so many sentences,
there is fluidity in the ordering of the major constituents of these clauses.
To assert an equal number of some entity, the quantifier bannya' is mod-
ified by padha ‘same’. There are a number of ways in which this structure is
instantiated.
(139) Buku-na Ali so (buku-na) Bambang padha bannya'.
book-DEF Ali and book-DEF Bambang same many
‘Ali and Bambang have the same number of books.’
lit. ‘Ali’s and Bambang’s books are the same amount.’
(140) Buku-na Ali bi' Bambang padha banya'-eng.
book-DEF Ali with Bambang same many-DEF
‘Ali and Bambang have the same number of books.’