| Let's look at the sentence pattern. |
| This pattern is the structure that all of our examples will follow. |
| [Verb Phrase] was [Superlative Adjective] [Noun Phrase] |
| Let’s see how a line from the dialogue follows this pattern. |
| Making note of everything was the smartest thing I ever did. |
| The verb phrase is "Making note of everything." |
| Then, we have "was." You can also use "is" for the present tense, or "will be" for the future tense, so long as all of the tenses in the sentence match. |
| After that is "the smartest," which is the superlative form of "smart." |
| Lastly is the noun phrase, "thing I ever did." |
| Superlative adjectives are formed in one of three ways. All involve putting "the" before the adjective. |
| For one-syllable adjectives, like the "smart" we used in the dialogue, we append "-est" to the end of the word. "Smart" becomes "THE smartEST." |
| For adjectives that end in "-y," we turn that "y" into an "i," and then add "-est." So, "funny" would become "the funniest." |
| For adjectives longer than one syllable that don't end in -y, we put "most" between the word "the" and the adjective. Let's use "intelligent" as an example. Instead of "the intelligentEST," we say "the MOST intelligent." |
| With just the superlative adjective, it suggests that the subject - which refers to the verb phrase - was uniquely special. If you want to make clear that it was NOT unique, you can add "one of" before the word "the." So, instead of "the smartest," you would say "ONE OF the smartest." |
| Now let's look at some speaking examples. |
| It was hard, but coming back to New York was the best decision I've ever made. |
| Can you see how the pattern applies here? |
| "Coming back to New York" is the verb phrase, and it's followed by "was." |
| "The best" is the superlative adjective. "Best" is actually an irregular superlative. The base adjective of "best" is "good." |
| Finally, we have the noun phrase, which is "decision I've ever made." |
| Next... |
| When my team lost, it was one of the worst days of my life. |
| The first clause, "When my team lost,” plus "it" from the second clause is the verb phrase, followed by "was." |
| "One of the worst" is the superlative adjective phrase. "Worst" is another irregular superlative. "Worst" comes from "bad." |
| Finally, we have the noun phrase, "days of my life." |
| Let's try one more, |
| Traveling to Hawaii was the most exciting trip I've ever taken. |
| "Traveling to Hawaii" is the verb phrase. |
| "The most exciting" is the superlative form of "exciting." |
| "Trip I've ever taken" is the noun phrase. |
| One last example. |
| Deciding to open the coffee shop was one of the scariest things I've ever done. |
| "Deciding to open the coffee shop" is the verb phrase. |
| "One of the scariest" is the superlative. "Scariest" is the superlative of "Scary." |
| "Things I've ever done" is the noun phrase. |
Comments
Hide