1
[ adverb ] used to form the superlative

Examples

"the king cobra is the most dangerous snake"

Used in print

(The Atlanta Constitution...)

The bond issue will go to the state courts for a friendly test_suit to test the validity of the act , and_then the sales will begin and contracts let for repair work on some of Georgia 's most heavily traveled highways .

(The Dallas Morning News,...)

Statements by other legislators that Dallas is paying for all its water_program by local bonds , and that less populous places would benefit most by the pending bill , did not sway Cotten 's attack .

The report called racial discrimination in employment `` one of the most serious causes of family breakdown , desertion , and ADC dependency '' .

(The Dallas Morning News,...)

Moritz does n't even have a nose guard or hip_pads but he 's one of the most valuable members of the Longhorn team that will be heavily favored Saturday over Oklahoma in the cotton_bowl .

(The New York Times,...)

The 53 - year old Shea , a prominent corporation lawyer with a sports background , is generally recognized as the man most responsible_for the imminent return of a National_League club to New_York .

Related terms

least

2
[ adjective ] (superlative of `many' used with count nouns; often preceded by `the') quantifier meaning the greatest in number

Examples

"who has the most apples?" "most people like eggs" "most fishes have fins"

Used in print

(Rocky Mountains News, [Denver, Colorado],...)

Of the two cherished achievements the elderly Spahn 's hitless pitching probably reached the most hearts .

(St. Louis Post-Dispatch,...)

Like the Yankees ' slugger , Mays , the terror of the Giants , has had seasons that would be considered the ultimate by most players , but not by - or for - Willie .

(The Providence Journal...)

Most of the female faces are new , or at_least not too familiar .

(Edward E. Kelly, S.J., "Christian Unity in England"...)

On my first Guy_Fawkes_Day here , I found Catholics as well as non Catholics celebrating with the traditional fireworks and bonfires , and was told that most Englishmen either do not know or are not concerned with the historical significance of the day .

(Mr. America, 4:6...)

Definition of the thighs at the uppermost part is quite commonly seen in most championship Olympic lifters which is easily understandable .

Related terms

fewest superlative

3
[ adverb ] (intensifier) very

Examples

"a most welcome relief"

Used in print

(St. Louis Post-Dispatch,...)

The opinion continues here that with a 162 - game schedule , pitching spread thin through a 10 - team league and a most inviting target in Los_Angeles ' Wrigley_Field_Jr. , Mantle just might break the most glamorous record on the books , Babe_Ruth 's 60 homers of 1927 .

(Chicago Daily Tribune...)

Not the noblest performance we have heard him play , or the most spacious , or even the most eloquent .

Not the noblest performance we have heard him play , or the most spacious , or even the most eloquent .

It is one of the most entertaining and irresponsible novels of the season .

And the subtleties of the dialogue are most helpfully conveyed .

Related terms

intensifier

4
[ adjective ] (superlative of `much' used with mass nouns; usually preceded by `the') quantifier meaning the greatest in amount or extent or degree; used with mass nouns; usually follows `the'

Examples

"made the most money he could" "what attracts the most attention?"

Used in print

(Norman Kent, "The Watercolor Art of Roy M. Mason"...)

Long observation has taught Mason that most landscape can be reduced to three essential planes : a foreground in sharp focus - either a light area with dark accents or a dark one with lights ; a middle_distance often containing the major motif ; and a background , usually a silhouetted form foiled against the sky .

(Randall Stewart, "A Little History, a Little Honesty: A...)

And it is precisely in this poorer economic class that one finds , and has always found , the most racial friction .

(Brainard Cheney, "Christianity and the Tragic Vision-Ut...)

But the most notable thing about the incantation of these ex liberals was that the one-time shibboleth of socialism was conspicuously absent .

(H. A. Gleason, "Review of African language studies...)

Most others have been content to give only the most general attention to the broadest and most obvious features of the phonology when designing orthographies .

(A.L. Kroeber, "Semantic Contribution of Lexicostatistic...)

If adjectival meanings show relatively low retentiveness of stems , as I am confident will prove to be the case in most languages of the world , why should our basic lists include 15 per_cent of these unstable forms , but only 8 per_cent of animals and plants which replace much more slowly ?

Related terms

least superlative

5
[ noun ] the greatest number or amount or degree

Examples

: "she has the most to lose"

Used in print

(Doris Miles Disney, Mrs. Meeker's Money....)

She wanted to make a more equitable distribution of it among the groups that would benefit the most ; particularly the scholarship fund .

(Jim Thompson, The Transgressors....)

Why did these yokels still wear boots , anyway , when most had scarcely sat a horse in years ?

(Jesse Hill Ford, Mountains of Gilead....)

And most of all it is not having the only man you could love , whether he drives a bread truck or delivers the mail or checks the berry crates down at the sheds , or owns seventeen oil_wells and six diamond mines , for if you are anybody what he is or does makes no difference if he is the one .

Related terms

relative_quantity

6
[ adverb ] (of actions or states) slightly short of or not quite accomplished

Examples

"the job is (just) about done" "the baby was almost asleep" "we're almost finished" "the car all but ran her down" "he nearly fainted" "well-nigh perfect" "virtually everyone"

Used in print

(Christopher Davis, First Family....)

The doctors had suggested Scotty remain most of every afternoon in bed until he was stronger .

7
[ noun ] Last name, frequency rank in the U.S. is 22781
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