Adjectives
Superlative adjectives
Much the same as in English ('tall' and 'tallest') in German you add '-st' to the end of an adjective for the superlative form. Sometimes, after adjectives ending in 't', 'd' or 's' for example, you add '-est'.
Examples of superlative adjectives
'Barbara ist das kleinste Mädchen.' - Barbara is the smallest girl.
'Schneewittchen ist die Schönste.' - Snow White is the prettiest.
The second example here shows that you can turn an adjective in the superlative into a noun - 'the prettiest' - simply by making the first letter in German a capital.
Adding an Umlaut
Those adjectives which add an Umlaut (a double dot above a letter) in the comparative form also add the Umlaut in the superlative.
| Adjective | Phrase using the superlative adjective | English translation |
| lang | der längste Fluß | long/the longest river |
| alt | die älteste Dame | old/the oldest woman |
| jung | das jüngste Mädchen | young/the youngest girl |
| groß | das größte Haus | big/the biggest house |
Irregular forms of the superlative
Some superlative forms are irregular.
| Adjective | Irregular form of superlative | English translation |
| gut | der/die/das beste | good/the best |
| hoch | der/die/das höchste | high/the highest |
| nah | der/die/das nächste | near/the nearest |
For example:
- 'the best wine' - 'der beste Wein'
- 'next, please' - 'der/die Nächste bitte' (male/female)
Agreement of superlative adjectives with nouns
Both the comparative and superlative form of the adjective must be made masculine, feminine or neuter, or plural to agree with a noun.
When the superlative form of the adjective stands alone, ie is not followed by a noun, it takes the form 'am ...sten'.
For example:
Glasgow ist groß, London ist größer, aber Tokyo ist am größten. - Glasgow is big, London is bigger, but Tokyo is the biggest.
You will not need to use these forms very often.