What Is A Superlative Adjective?
Adjectives are words in the English language that helps us to describe objects, people, places, emotions, etc. Adjectives come in various forms, and these forms help us to describe a certain quality to different degrees. The three forms of an adjective are: positive, comparative, and superlative. These adjectives describe the highest degree of quality and are usually attributed to one object in a group of things. For example, if you have three friends, say, Susan, Tom, and Betty, then you can describe who is the tallest among them by saying: Susan is the tallest among my friends. In this sentence, the word 'tallest' is the superlative degree of the adjective 'tall.'
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How To Form Superlative Adjectives?
Now we can move on to the formation of these adjectives. Before we read about the two types of superlatives, let us keep in mind one important point! The superlative form of adjectives always has a 'the' placed before them. Therefore, we say, 'Rama is the happiest boy in the room.' The article 'the' distinguishes our subject from the others of the group. There are two types of comparative and superlative adjectives, namely:
Short adjectives that end in the syllable 'est.'
Long adjectives that use the word 'most' to describe the highest degree of an adjective.
Let us discuss these two types.
Short Superlatives
Short superlatives are those adjectives whose superlative form is achievable by adding the syllable 'est' to the end of the word. There are several rules for the formation of short superlatives. It is essential to understand, remember, and follow the practices of this superlative grammar. The rules for adding the end syllable 'est' to adjectives are as follows:
The laws for short superlatives are applicable for one-syllable adjectives such as tall, small, etc., and two-syllable adjectives ending in the letter 'y', such as happy and grumpy.
For one-syllable adjectives, one has to just add 'est' at the end.
For adjectives that consist of a single syllable and end with the letter 'e,' the rule is to just add 'st' at the end.
If our adjective is such that it follows the pattern of consonant, vowel, consonant at the end, then the rule is to double the last consonant before adding 'est.' For example, 'big' becomes 'biggest.'
For adjectives ending in 'y', such as 'happy,' the superlative form changes the 'y' to 'i', such as in 'happiest.'
Long Superlatives
Long superlatives are those adjectives whose superlative form is achievable by adding the word 'most' to qualify the adjective. These adjectives are so named because they end up forming a phrase and are thus long. There are rules for the formation of these adjectives as well. These rules are as follows:
Generally, two-syllable words that do not end with the letter 'y' are the ones that form long superlatives. For example, the superlative degree of adjective 'modern' is 'the most modern.'
All adjectives containing three or more syllables also fall under the category that forms long superlatives. For example, 'intellectual' becomes 'the most intellectual,' etc.
Exceptions To The Rules Of Short And Long Superlatives
Like all rules in English grammar, the rules of superlative adjectives also have some exceptions. These exceptions are generally examples that do not fit into the category of any rule and exist separately as an irregular and unique piece. Some of these exceptions are:
The adjective 'good' becomes 'the best.
The adjective 'bad' becomes 'the worst.'
'Far' in its superlative form becomes 'the farthest/furthest.
What Is The Use Of Superlatives?
We use the superlative degree of adjective to describe one entity in a group of three or more entities. The superlative form tells us about the person, place, object, or thing that possesses a quality to the maximum degree among a group of several as members. To understand this, let us study the following examples:
Sam is 8 years old. Roy is 16 years old. Jason is 18 years old. Jason is the oldest.
Australia, America, and Russia are large countries. But, Russia is the largest.
Usain Bolt is the fastest man on Earth.
Did You Know?
We use superlatives when talking about three or more things, but not when discussing a group of two!
Some two-syllable adjectives can use both 'est' as well as the word 'most' in their superlative forms. For example, 'quiet' becomes 'quietest' as well as 'the most quiet.' Other such adjectives are clever, narrow, and simple.
When we compare an entity with itself, we do not use 'the.' For example, we say:
My mother is happiest on my birthday. (and not the happiest)
FAQs on Adjectives Superlative
1. What is a superlative adjective? Explain with certain examples.
A superlative adjective is the highest degree of an adjective. It describes a noun possessing the maximum extent of a certain quality. We use these adjectives to talk about one entity in a group of three or more entities. For example, let us take the case of three planets: Earth, Mars, and Jupiter. We can make the following statements about these three planets according to the data we have. Notice the italicized superlatives in each case.
Jupiter is the largest planet in terms of diameter.
Jupiter is the farthest from the Sun.
Mars has the longest days among the three planets.
Earth has the least number of moons.
Jupiter is the coldest planet of these three.
2. When to use a superlative adjective?
A superlative adjective comes into use when you have some objects to compare your subject with. Suppose you have a group of three or more objects, and you are rating each of those on the same quality, then the object which possesses the quality to the maximum extent will have a superlative adjective describing it. The rule of three or more is important because, in the case of two objects, we can compare them using comparative adjectives. A superlative adjective also comes into play when we describe an object with itself. For example, if you want to talk about England and its weather, you can say: 'England is most pleasant during summer.' Note that in this case, you do not use 'the' in front of the superlative form.
