“The most” and “the least”: Italian grammar lesson 135

Stefano

Italian language tutor, course author. MEng, MBA. Member of the International Association of Hyperpolyglots (HYPIA). After learning 12 languages, I can tell you that we all master languages by listening and mimicking. I couldn’t find an app to recommend to my students, so I made my own one. With my method, you’ll be speaking Italian from Lesson 1.

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What is superlativo relativo in Italian?

How to use superlativo relativo?

Practice with Quizlet

Are there exceptions in the superlativo relativo?

Summary

Get ready to master the art of expressing extremes in Italian! This guide will teach you how to use the superlativo relativo to highlight the best and worst, making your Italian as sharp as a Michelin chef’s knife! 🇮🇹✨

Definite Article + “più”: Combine a definite article with “più” (most) and an adjective to describe the highest degree of quality, followed by “di” or “tra” for comparison.
Definite Article + “meno”: Use a definite article with “meno” (least) plus an adjective to express the lowest degree, again using “di” or “tra” to compare.
Choosing “di” or “tra”: Pick “di” for “of” and “tra” (or “fra”) for “among” when setting up your comparison stage. It’s like choosing the right spice for your pasta! 🍝
Irregular Forms: Some adjectives break the mold with unique forms. Remember, “buono” becomes “migliore”, and “cattivo” turns into “peggiore”—they’re the VIPs of the adjective world!
Omitting “di” or “tra”: When it’s clear who or what you’re comparing, feel free to drop “di” or “tra”. It’s like leaving off that extra slice of cheese when the pizza’s already perfect. 🍕

My thoughts

What is superlativo relativo in Italian?

Sometimes, we want to describe the qualities of something or someone compared to those of other things or people, saying that someone is the most … or the least… .

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To do this, in Italian we use the superlativo relativo, which indicates that an object or a person has the highest or lowest degree of quality compared to others.

Marco è il più forte della squadra.

Marco is the strongest on the team.

Noi siamo i meno eleganti del gruppo.

We are the least elegant of the group.

How to use superlativo relativo?

To form the superlativo relativo we use the following structures:

Definite article + più (the most) + adjective + preposition di or tra

Questa pizza è la più buona della città.

This pizza is the best in town.

Martina è la più bassa tra i suoi amici.

Martina is the shortest among her friends)

Definite article + meno (the least) + adjective + preposition di or tra

Questi piatti sono i meno costosi del menù.

These dishes are the cheapest on the menu.

La lingua ungherese è la meno conosciuta tra quelle europee.

Hungarian is the least known among European languages.

As you have noticed, both di and tra can be used to build a sentence in the superlativo relativo.

Di can be translated as of , while tra (or fra) means among, within a group.

Practice with Quizlet
Here's a set of flashcards and quizzes to practice this grammar topic.

Are there exceptions in the superlativo relativo?

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Some adjectives have two different versions of the superlativo relativo:

The regular form that follows the rules all the others follow
An irregular form that we can see in the table below

Adjective	Regular	Irregular
Buono	Il più buono	Il migliore
Cattivo	Il più cattivo	Il peggiore
Grande	Il più grande	Il maggiore
Piccolo	Il più piccolo	Il minore

Io sono la minore (la più piccola) tra i miei fratelli.

I am the youngest of my siblings.

Questo ristorante è il peggiore (il più cattivo) della città.

This restaurant is the worst in town.

Another thing to note is that sometimes, di and tra can be omitted. This happens when the term comparison is obvious or implied.

Have a look at the examples below.

Hanno scelto solo i giocatori più alti (tra tutti i giocatori).

They only chose the tallest players (among all the players).

Lui è il più piccolo (di tutti i miei figli).

He is the youngest (among all my children).

FAQs

What is the Italian superlative?

In Italian language, creating a superlative adjective is a straightforward process. You only need to add a definite article before the comparative adjective, while ensuring that the definite article matches the person or object being described. For instance, when describing Matteo as the tallest, you would say "Matteo è il più alto".

What does superlativo relativo mean?

Superlative relative is a term used to describe an object or a person that possesses the highest or lowest degree of a particular quality when compared to other objects or people. It is a way to express comparison and indicate the extreme level of a particular characteristic.