Skip to content
EN
EnglishالعربيةБългарскиČeštinaDanskDeutschΕλληνικάEspañolSuomiFrançaisMagyarItaliano日本語한국어NorskNederlandsPolskiPortuguêsRomânăРусскийSlovenčinaСрпскиSvenskaไทยTürkçeУкраїнськаTiếng Việt简体中文
Get the app
English (UK) · Comparatives, Superlatives & Adverbs

Superlatives

A superlative picks out the top (or the bottom) of a group. Put the in front of it, and often in or of after it: the highest mountain in the world, the worst day of my life.

  • One-syllable adjectives add -est: high → highest, cheap → cheapest.
  • The spelling rules are the same as for comparatives: big → biggest, funny → funniest, large → largest.
  • Longer adjectives use most: the most beautiful, the most popular.
  • Irregular: good → the best, bad → the worst.

Use in with places and groups (in the world, in our class) and of with time and sets (of the year, of the three). The ... I know and the ... I've ever seen are also very common.

Examples

  • This is the oldest church in the city.
  • July is the hottest month of the year here.
  • It's the most expensive shop in town.
  • He is the best player in the club.

Try it yourself

Mount Everest is the (high) mountain in the world.Show answer
Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.
The Nile is the (long) river in Africa.Show answer
The Nile is the longest river in Africa.
Who is the (young) person in your family?Show answer
Who is the youngest person in your family?
Tom is the (old) student in our class.Show answer
Tom is the oldest student in our class.
This is the (cheap) supermarket in town.Show answer
This is the cheapest supermarket in town.
January is the (cold) month of the year here.Show answer
January is the coldest month of the year here.
The cheetah is the (fast) animal on land.Show answer
The cheetah is the fastest animal on land.
What is the (tall) building in your city?Show answer
What is the tallest building in your city?
In Europe, the (short) day of the year is in December.Show answer
In Europe, the shortest day of the year is in December.
She is the (funny) person I know.Show answer
She is the funniest person I know.
‹ ComparativesAs ... as, Than & The ›