English Superlative

Summary

Superlatives are used to describe the highest or lowest degree of a quality among three or more things or people. We use superlatives to show that something is the “most” or “least” of all.

In-depth Explanation

We can create superlatives with adjectives and adverbs. For example:

• Adjective: Ryan is the tallest of all his siblings. (None of Ryan’s siblings are taller than he is.)

• Adverb: Catherine always arrives earliest to the office. (No one arrives to the office before Catherine.)

How to Use Superlatives in Sentences

Superlatives are often (but not always) preceded by “the.” Here are some examples of sentences with superlative adjectives:

She is the best soccer player on the team.

Henry is the most generous person I know.

The weather is coldest here in January.

Here are some examples of sentences with superlative adverbs:

Liam talks the loudest of everyone in the office.

Sarah worked the hardest on the project.

Of all the students, Tom answers questions the most quickly.

How to Form Superlatives

Words with One Syllable

Generally, you can make the superlative form of one-syllable adjectives or adverbs by adding -est to the end of the word:

• cold → coldest

• near → nearest
• quick → quickest

When adjectives or adverbs end with -e, simply add -st:

• brave → bravest
• safe → safest
• wide → widest

When the word ends with a single vowel and a consonant that is not -w or -y, double the final consonant before adding -est:

• mad → maddest
• big → biggest
• wet → wettest

Words with Two or More Syllables

The superlative form of some two-syllable adjectives also requires adding -est or -st to the end of the word:

• clever → cleverest
• narrow → narrowest
• simple → simplest

If the two-syllable adjective ends in -y, change the -y to -i and then add -est:

• funny → funniest
• noisy → noisiest
• pretty → prettiest

Beyond those, the superlative form of many two-syllable adjectives requires putting “most” in front of the word and leaving it as is:

• honest → most honest
• patient → most patient
• thoughtful → most thoughtful

Hint: If you are not sure whether to use -est or “most” to form the superlative, use “most.” Even if it is not the most common form, it will be grammatically correct.

Many two-syllable adverbs end with -ly. For these, add “most” in front and leave the word unchanged:

• bravely → most bravely
• slowly → most slowly
• quickly → most quickly

For adjectives and adverbs with three or more syllables, again use “most” and leave the word as is:

• comfortable → most comfortable
• dangerous → most dangerous
• seriously → most seriously

Irregular Superlatives

There are a few adjectives and adverbs that have irregular superlative forms that must be memorized:

For example:

That was the worst movie I’ve ever seen.

She’s the best player on the team.

This is the farthest I’ve ever traveled from home.

I had the least amount of homework this week.

Julia practices the most out of her whole team.