pior

Pior is a Portuguese adjective meaning worse, used to indicate that something is of lower quality or more negative than another thing. It is the standard comparative form of mal, the word for bad. Pior is used to compare two or more items or situations, as in “Este caminho é pior do que aquele” or “A situação ficou pior.”

Etymology and related forms: Pior derives from the Latin peior, the comparative form of malus (bad). It is cognate with similar forms in other Romance languages, such as Italian peggiore, though the exact development differs by language. In Portuguese, pior is used across genders and is inflected for number: singular pior, plural piores.

Morphology and usage: Pior is invariable with respect to gender, and forms the plural as piores. It can function as an adjective modifying nouns (uma ideia pior, dias piores) and as part of predicate constructions (ficou pior, está pior). The phrase o pior is used to denote the worst in a given set (the worst day, the worst option). Common fixed expressions include pior ainda (even worse) and pior de tudo (worst of all).

See also: melhor, mal, piorado. While pior is the standard comparative for bad, its superlative is expressed with o pior, the phrase meaning “the worst.” Pior is widely used in everyday language, journalism, and formal writing alike, serving as a core term in expressions of comparative quality and degree.