Superlatives
Superlativos
El más… de, and the absolute superlative in -ísimo.
The rule
Spanish has two superlatives doing different jobs. The RELATIVE superlative picks one item out of a group: el/la/los/las (+ noun) + más/menos + adjective + de. 'Es el chico más alto de la clase': he's the tallest boy in the class. The trap for English speakers is that last word: the group is introduced by 'de', never 'en' ('la ciudad más grande del país', not 'en el país').
The four irregular comparatives carry over: el mejor, el peor, el mayor, el menor ('Es el mejor restaurante de la ciudad', not 'el más bueno'). The ABSOLUTE superlative doesn't compare with anything; it just turns the volume up, the equivalent of 'extremely'. Drop the final vowel and add -ísimo/-ísima/-ísimos/-ísimas: alto → altísimo, caro → carísimo, guapa → guapísima.
It always carries a written accent on the í, and the original accent disappears: rápido → rapidísimo, difícil → dificilísimo. Three spelling changes protect the sound: c → qu (rico → riquísimo), g → gu (largo → larguísimo), z → c (feliz → felicísimo). 'Muy caro' and 'carísimo' mean much the same thing, but the -ísimo form is stronger and more expressive. Finally, 'lo más … posible' is the fixed way to say 'as … as possible': 'Corre lo más rápido posible'.
Examples
Es el chico más alto de la clase.
He's the tallest boy in the class. (the group takes de, not en)
Es el mejor restaurante de la ciudad.
It's the best restaurant in the city. (irregular: el mejor, not 'el más bueno')
Este coche es rapidísimo.
This car is extremely fast. (absolute superlative; rápido loses its accent)
La paella estaba riquísima.
The paella was absolutely delicious. (rico → riquísimo (c → qu))
Ven lo más pronto posible.
Come as soon as possible. (lo más … posible)
Try it yourself
Three quick questions, straight from the app. No sign-up needed.
Es la ciudad más grande ___ país.
It's the biggest city in the country.
All 24 Superlatives questions, free in Hablaba
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