We need the most determined agent for this particular task. This is because a superlative adjective establishes a singular reference: No higher degree is possible within the scope given.Ĭaitlyn is the smartest student in her class. You may have noticed that superlative adjectives are often preceded by the word the. The same principle applies to irregular adjectives:Īmong Richie, Bobby, and Brian, Richie is the better at golf. To compare more than two items, we use the superlative: Among Richie, Bobby, and Brian, Richie is the tallest.Īs precise and eloquent writers, we will avoid using comparative adjectives for more than two items and superlative adjectives for only two.Īmong Richie, Bobby, and Brian, Richie is the taller. In American English, we use the comparative degree for two items: Richie is taller than Bobby. As discussed, most superlative adjectives are formed by adding -est to shorter words and most or least to longer ones: nicest, most agreeable, least argumentative.
Superlative Adjectives: More about FunctionĪ superlative adjective identifies the attribute of a person or thing that is either the highest or lowest in degree when compared with the other items in a group of nouns. If a two-syllable adjective ends in y, the y must be changed to an i to form the – est superlative: busy > busiest, easy > easiest.
Note that if an adjective has a consonant + single vowel + consonant spelling, the final consonant is doubled before the superlative ending: thin > thinnest, fit > fittest. Some adjectives also form their degrees irregularly: Positive If an adjective is longer-i.e., it has three or more syllables or two syllables and does not end in -y-it will typically form the comparative by including the word more (or less) and the superlative by including the word most (or least). PositiveĪs shown, shorter adjectives often form the comparative degree with -er and the superlative degree with -est. These different forms are likely familiar to many of you.
Understanding superlative adjectives begins with recognizing the three forms (degrees) that most adjectives have: positive, comparative, and superlative. Superlative Adjectives: What Is a Superlative Adjective?
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