superlative

[sjuːˈpɜː.lə.tɪv]

[suˈpɝː.lə.tɪv]

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A superlative is a form of a word that shows which one of three or more things is the best. For example, "New York City is the biggest city," here 'biggest' is a superlative.

When you compare two or more things and want to tell which one is the most something, you often use a superlative. Imagine you're talking about your favorite books with friends. You might say "Jane Austen's novels are among my favorites" but if someone asks who you like best, you could say "I love Pride and Prejudice the most."

How common is "superlative"?

Word superlative is considered rare in modern English.
It has a balanced usage among all categories: speech, fiction, newspapers and academic texts.

Definitions

noun

The highest extent or degree of something.
(grammar) The form of an adjective that expresses which of several items has the highest degree of the quality expressed by the adjective; in English, formed by appending "-est" to the end of the adjective (for some short adjectives only) or putting "most" before it.
Example: The superlative of "big" is "biggest".
An adjective used to praise something exceptional.
Example: Daniel is amazing, wonderful, fantastic, and many other superlatives I can’t think of right now!

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