Él es el menor
Superlative Adjectives in Spanish
Adjectives are essential components of language that are used to compare people, places, or things by expressing their qualities or characteristics.
Now, superlative adjectives are used for comparing people or things to a group, indicating the highest degree of a particular quality. Here are some examples:
Also, it is not always necessary to mention the group to which something or someone is compared:
Some superlative adjectives are irregular:
Sometimes, superlative adjectives express superiority:
el / la / los / las (+ nombre) + más + adjective (+ de)
El más bonito The prettiest
La más rápida The fastest
Los más interesantes The most interesting
Las más pequeñas The smallest
In English, this can be translated as:
the most + adjective: I think that it is the most expensive car I have ever seen.
article + adjective + -est: This building is the oldest.
Sometimes, inferiority:
el / la / los / las (+ nombre) + menos + adjective (+ de)
El menos cómodo The least comfortable
La menos luminosa The least bright
Los menos prácticos The least practical
Las menos eficaces The least efficient
In English, this can be translated as:
the least + adjective: These pants are the least dirty.
Adjectives in the superlative degree can be either relative or absolute.
Relative
They restrict a quality to a specific group of entities. They are formed with a definite article (el, la, los, las) + más/menos + adjective. Examples:
Absolute
They do not restrict a quality to a specific group of entities. They are formed by adding -ísimo or -ísima to the adjective. Examples:
Este libro es interesantísimo.
(This book is extremely interesting)
interesante → interesantísimo
Trabajar en este proyecto ha sido dificilísimo.
(Working on this project has been extremely difficult)
difícil → dificilísimo
Some are irregular:
Keep in mind that not all adjectives can be used in the superlative form. There are cases where adjectives do not admit degrees, meaning they cannot appear in comparative sentences either:
- Adjectives that express extreme qualities, like “precioso” (gorgeous), “delicioso” (delicious), “extraordinario” (extraordinary), “gigante” (gigantic), “pésimo” (awful), “excelente” (excellent), “horroroso” (dreadful):
Correct: Esta comida está excelente. (This food is excellent)
Incorrect: Esta comida está más excelente que la de ayer.
- Colors:
Correct: Su casa es blanca. (His / Her house is white)
Incorrect: Su casa es la más blanca o Su casa es blanquísima.
- Numeral Adjectives
Correct: Ésta es la cuarta vez que llamo a Mónica.
(This is the fourth time I call Monica)
Incorrect: Esta es la vez más cuarta.
- Relational Adjectives:
Correct: Tenemos una reunión familiar. (We have a family reunion)
Incorrect: Esta reunión fue la más familiar de todas.
- Adverbial Adjectives:
Correcto: Mi jefe tiene una solución posible. (My boss has a possible solution)
Incorrect: Esta solución es la más posible de todas.
Exercises / Ejercicios
(I think that the most delicious fruit of all is mango)
2. Rusia es el país del mundo. (grande)
(Russia is the largest country in the world)
3. ¿Cuál es la ciudad de México? (antiguo)
(Which is the oldest city in Mexico?)
4. Para mí, el animal de todos es el koala. (bonito)
(For me, the most beautiful animal of all is the koala)
5. Antonia es de sus hermanos. (joven)
(Antonia is the youngest of her siblings)
6. Los pantalones de todos son los jeans. (cómodo)
(The most comfortable pants of all are jeans)
7. El padre de Valeria siempre fue del pueblo. (trabajador)
(Valeria’s father was always the most hardworking of all in the town)
8. El animal del mundo es la ballena azul. (grande)
(The largest animal in the world is the blue whale)
9. Para Rogelio, la cualidad de todas es la honestidad. (importante)
(For Rogelio, the most important quality of all is honesty)
10. Ayer fue día para nosotros en la oficina. ¡Todo salió mal! (malo)
(Yesterday was the worst day for us in the office. Everything went wrong!)
Exercises / Ejercicios
(Who is the strongest? Paco or Mario?)
2. Ayer, durante el examen, Rebeca era de todos. (nervioso)
(Yesterday, during the exam, Rebeca was the most nervous of all)
3. ¿Cuál es la verdura de todas? (nutritivo)
(Which is the most nutritious vegetable of all?)
4. María dice que la clase de física es de todas. (aburrido)
(Maria says that Physics class is the most boring of all)
5. El perezoso es uno de los animales del mundo, ¿no? (lento)
(The sloth is one of the slowest animals in the world, isn’t it?)
6. Sin duda, Pepe es el chico de nuestro grupo de amigos. (simpático)
(Without a doubt, Pepe is the friendliest boy in our group of friends)
7. Carlo es de mi clase. (alto)
(Carlo is the tallest in my class)
8. Barcelona es una de las ciudades de España. (turístico)
(Barcelona is one of the most touristy cities in Spain)
9. Yo soy de todos mis primos. (joven)
(I am the youngest of all my cousins)
10. La casa de mis vecinos de enfrente es de todo el barrio. (colorido)
(My neighbors’ house across the street is the most colorful in the entire neighborhood)
In this lesson, you have explored the use of superlative adjectives in Spanish, which allow you to express the highest degree of a quality in comparison to a group. You have also learned about the formation of superlative adjectives, including irregular ones, examined examples, and learned about the importance of gender and number agreement. We suggest exploring our lessons on Comparative and Superlative Adjectives in Spanish and Spanish Articles and Agreement.