핵심 명제
셋 이상 중 최고. 1~2 음절 -est, 3+ 음절 the most. 항상 the.
비교급과 같은 룰 + 정관사 the.
설명
최상급 만들기
| 음절 | 규칙 | 예 |
|---|---|---|
| 1음절 | + est | tall → tallest |
| 1음절 -e | + st | nice → nicest |
| 1음절 단모음+자음 | 자음 중복 + est | big → biggest |
| 2음절 -y | -y → -i + est | happy → happiest |
| 3음절 이상 | most + 원급 | beautiful → most beautiful |
불규칙 최상급
| 원급 | 비교급 | 최상급 |
|---|---|---|
| good / well | better | best |
| bad / ill | worse | worst |
| many / much | more | most |
| little | less | least |
| far | farther / further | farthest / furthest |
형태 — the + 최상급
최상급 앞에 보통 정관사 the.
✓ He is the tallest in our class.
✓ This is the best book I've ever read.
✓ Mt. Everest is the highest mountain in the world.
in / of — 범위 표시
| 전치사 | 범위 |
|---|---|
| in + 단수 (장소·집단) | in the world, in our class, in Korea |
| of + 복수 | of all, of the three, of his friends |
✓ She is the smartest in our class.
✓ He is the tallest of his brothers.
✓ This is the best of all.
강조 — much / by far / very
| 강조 | 위치 |
|---|---|
| much / by far | the 앞 |
| very | the 뒤 + 최상급 앞 (드물게) |
✓ This is much the best book.
✓ This is by far the best movie I've ever seen.
✓ This is the very best. (very 가 the 와 most/best 사이)
one of the + 최상급 + 복수명사 — ~중 하나
✓ He is one of the best players in the world.
✓ This is one of the most beautiful places.
복수명사 (players, places) 주의. 단수 명사 X.
✗ He is one of the best player.
✓ He is one of the best players.
최상급 패턴 변환 — 원급·비교급으로
the tallest in ~ 을 다른 형태로 표현 가능.
He is the tallest boy in the class.
= No other boy in the class is as tall as he. (원급)
= No other boy in the class is taller than he. (비교급)
= He is taller than any other boy in the class. (비교급)
시험에 단골 변환 패턴.
관용 표현
| 표현 | 의미 |
|---|---|
| at (the) most | 많아야 |
| at (the) least | 적어도 |
| at best | 잘 봐줘야 |
| do one's best | 최선을 다하다 |
| make the best of | ~를 최대한 활용하다 |
✓ He has at most $10. (많아야 10달러)
✓ At least try once.
✓ Do your best.
대표 문장 (외우기)
He is one of the best students in our class — by far the smartest.
그는 우리 반에서 최고의 학생 중 하나다 — 단연코 가장 똑똑하다.
one of the best students (~중 하나, 복수) + by far the smartest (강조). 핵심 패턴.