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单词 superlative
释义

superlativeadj.n.

Brit. /suːˈpəːlətɪv/, /sjuːˈpəːlətɪv/, /sᵿˈpəːlətɪv/, /sjᵿˈpəːlətɪv/, U.S. /səˈpərlədɪv/
Forms: Middle English superlatyf, Middle English superlatyfe, Middle English superlatyff, Middle English superlatyue, Middle English 1600s superlatif, Middle English– superlative, 1500s sewperlatyve, 1500s superlatyve, 1500s–1600s superlatiue, 1600s suparlative.
Origin: Of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from French. Partly a borrowing from Latin. Etymons: French superlatif; Latin superlātīvum; Latin superlātīvus.
Etymology: < (i) Anglo-Norman and Middle French superlatif (French superlatif ) (adjective) (of God) that is above all (c1170 in Old French as supellatif ), that is excellent, extraordinary, or a supreme example of its kind (13th cent.), (in grammar) having a form expressing the highest degree of comparison, of, relating to, or designating such a form or degree (beginning of the 14th cent.), excessive, exaggerated (1566), (noun) (in grammar) highest degree of comparison (2nd half of the 13th cent.), form of an adjective or adverb expressing the highest degree of comparison (1550; also in corresponding adjectival use), and (ii) its etymons classical Latin superlātīvum (neuter noun) (in grammar) highest degree of comparison, and superlātīvus (masculine noun) form of an adjective or adverb expressing the highest degree of comparison (attested in an 8th-cent. epitome of a 2nd-cent. grammarian), in post-classical Latin also superlativus (adjective) (of an adjective or adverb) having a form expressing the highest degree of comparison, of, relating to, or designating such a form or degree (4th cent.), exaggerated, hyperbolical (a636 in Isidore), excellent, remarkable (second half of the 12th cent.) < superlātus (used as past participle of superferre ; < super- super- prefix + lāt- (for *tlāt- ), past participial stem of tollere to take away: see tollent adj.) + -īvum and -īvus respectively (see -ive suffix). Compare Catalan superlatiu (1490), Spanish superlativo (15th cent.), Portuguese superlativo (15th cent.), Italian superlativo (14th cent.).Compare the following early use of the Latin word (in senses A. 1a and B. 1a) in an English context:OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 15 Sume [naman] synd svperlativa, þæt synd oferstigendlice, þa geswuteliað ða mæstan and ða betstan: maximus se mæsta, optimus se selosta.OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 16 svperlativvs is se ðridda stæpe: iustissimus ealra rihtwisost.OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 240 On ðissere geendunge gað ealle comparativa: ocius hrædlicor, ac heora svperlativa geendiað on e: ocissime hrædlicost.
A. adj.
1.
a. Grammar. Of an adjective or adverb: having a form expressing the highest or a very high degree of a quality or attribute; of, relating to, or designating such a form or degree. Also figurative. Cf. positive adj. 12, comparative adj. 2.In English the superlative degree of an adjective or adverb can be expressed with inflection, as with the suffix -est (e.g. truest, sweetest, oftenest); with a modifier, as most, least (e.g. most true, most sweet, least often); or with a word from a different root, as best and worst (being the superlatives of good and bad).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > other grammatical categories or concepts > [adjective] > degree of comparison > superlative
superlativec1400
c1400 in D. Thomson Middle Eng. Grammatical Texts (1984) 192 (MED) A superlatif gre sal haf genitif case plurele afftir hym or ellys a genitif singuler off a nown collectiue.
1495 Accedence (de Worde) sig. Av After a nowne..distributif, comparatif or superlatif, is ye signe of ye genytif case.
1568 W. Fulwood Enimie Idlenesse i. f. 1v Of superlatiue, comparatiue, positiue or diminutiue termes, we must vse but three at once at the most.
a1637 B. Jonson Eng. Gram. ii. iv, in Wks. (1640) III These Adverbs, more, and most, are added to the Comparative, and Superlative degrees themselves.
1651 T. Hobbes Philos. Rudim. xv. §14. 249 He..must use such [titles] as are either Negative, as infinite, eternall, incomprehensible, &c., or superlative, as most good, most great, most powerfull.
1668 Bp. J. Wilkins Ess. Real Char. ii. xii. 290 Better, best, are the Comparative and Superlative adjectives.
1755 W. Massey Corruptae Latinitatis Index 30/1 Ignominiosissime, I have not found this superlative Adverb in any Classic Author; but some Moderns do not scruple to use it.
1795 L. Murray Eng. Gram. 104 Adjectives that have in themselves a superlative signification do not properly admit of the superlative form..such as, ‘Chief, extreme, perfect’.
1882 Education Mar. 426 He enlarges the capacity of his words by adding to them adjectives in the superlative degrees.
1886 T. L. Kington-Oliphant New Eng. II. 189 [Miss Burney] is fond of the French idiom that places the Superlative Adjective after the Substantive; as ‘a facility the most happy’.
1910 J. W. Harper Social Ideal xiii. §3. 150 Liberty is the positive, equality the comparative, and brotherhood the superlative agency of social progress.
1934 M. K. Pope From Lat. to Mod. French iv. ii. 317 The few superlative forms that survived..lost superlative force and served merely as emphatic positives.
1941 Classical Jrnl. 37 76 A revised language in which the superlative degree of the adjective ‘good’ is ‘functional’.
2006 Mod. Lang. Jrnl. 90 363/2 He then proceeded to review comparative and superlative adjective forms.
b. In extended use: (esp. of language) characterized by exaggeration, hyperbolical.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > exaggeration, hyperbole > [adjective]
hyperbolical?a1475
overchargeda1542
magnificate1568
amplified1580
superlative1586
fulsome1602
hyperthetical?1611
hyperbolous1638
hyperbolic1646
bloata1657
exaggerated1725
overshot1774
overstuffed1808
overdrawn1841
fine-drawn1888
steep1895
larger-than-life1937
blown-up1961
1586 W. Fulke Confut. Treat. W. Allen ii. ii. 354, in Treat. against Def. of Censure Bks. W. Charke & M. Hanmer If the pope speake vnproperlie, when he vttereth such emphatical and superlatiue speeches, how shal plaine men vnderstand what he meaneth.
1588 A. Fraunce Lawiers Logike Ded. sig. ¶¶ To disgrace the one, or aduance the other in comparison wise, by superlatiue woordes, and hyperbolicall amplifications.
?1611 G. Chapman in tr. Homer Iliads xv. Comm. 199 These hypertheticall or superlatiue sort of expressions & illustrations.
1698 J. Collier Short View Immorality Eng. Stage v. 231 As for the Profane part, 'tis hideous and superlative.
1711 J. Kirkwood Hist. Twenty Seven Gods Linlithgow 69 Let's now draw near a Close, humbly beseeching the Reader not to think, that we have set out this Plea with hyperbolical and superlative Words.
1783 Eng. Rev. Dec. 451 Frightful beyond expression, Mr Knipe, is, in the present case, rather a superlative mode of diction.
1828 M. R. Mitford Our Village III. 119 To all who knew Nelly's opinion of her own doings, this praise appeared superlative.
1881 Times 14 Oct. 8/3 If I do not launch out into the use of superlative or exaggerated epithets, it is because I believe that a simple expression of thanks will, perhaps, best convey to you that which I have in my mind.
1906 Manch. Guardian 22 Mar. 8/5 He [sc. Winston Churchill] remarked that..he hoped he would not be drawn..into attempting to imitate the protracted, superlative, and rather laboured exhibition with which he had just occupied the House.
1938 Mississippi Valley Hist. Rev. 25 28 Travelers soon became suspicious of the superlative language and vaunt of the Kentucky ‘red-horse’.
1992 London Rev. Bks. 26 Mar. 2/3 His playing forces anyone who tries to describe it into a rhetoric of outdoing, a zone of superlative babbling which one is helpless to avoid.
2. Raised above or surpassing all others; supreme, utmost. Also (in weakened sense): of the highest quality or degree; excellent.
a. Of an immaterial thing, action, quality, etc.
ΚΠ
c1405 (c1395) G. Chaucer Merchant's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 131 Ther nys no thyng in gree superlatyf As seith Senec, aboue an humble wyf.
1447 O. Bokenham Lives of Saints (Arun.) (1938) l. 5593 In loue among þese thre, To spekyn aftyr degrees of comparysoun, Mary stood in þe superlatyue degre.
a1540 (c1460) G. Hay tr. Bk. King Alexander l. 9657 Quhilkis saul makis all thare operationis Obeysand to the sprite superlative.
1575 J. Rolland Treat. Court Venus i. f. 14v Thay..Ponderat weill the falt superlatiue.
1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 149 Reason of State, which as the times then were, was evident and superlative.
1665 G. Wither Medit. upon Lords Prayer Preamb. sig. Bv This superlative Form of Prayer.
1762 W. Falconer Shipwreck iii. 43 Thy state..Gain'd, like thine arms, superlative applause.
1798 S. Lee Young Lady's Tale in H. Lee Canterbury Tales II. 27 Miss Archer's advice she treated with superlative contempt.
1832 Times 10 July 3/6 A melodrama containing more than the usual portion of exaggerated sentiment, superlative horrors, and tremendous personal conflict.
1878 R. B. Smith Carthage 189 This religious mission he..carried out to the best of his superlative ability.
1924 S. J. Record & C. D. Mell Timbers Trop. Amer. 247 A superlative quality of the wood.
1956 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 2 June 1299/2 Without superlative nursing and physiotherapy services some 30% of patients over 70 fail to survive three months of recumbency.
1970 H. E. Roberts Third Ear 5/2 Come on strong, to do something to a superlative degree, to an extreme; to ‘pour it on’.
2006 Stud. Romanticism 45 422 Having a door slammed in her face as she tried to enter Westminster (a superlative metaphor of her marital experience).
b. Of a person or material thing.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > surpassing excellence > [adjective]
sunderlyOE
noblec1330
precellentc1384
passantc1385
especialc1386
passinga1387
surmountingc1407
superlative?a1430
precelling?1435
pre-eminenta1460
outrepassed1477
divine1488
pre-excellenta1500
superexcellent1508
transcending1528
pre-ordinate1543
exceeding1552
superexcelling1554
exquisite1578
surpassingc1580
summary1587
paragon1593
transcendent1598
overmatchful1609
termless1609
overtoppinga1615
paramounta1626
overtowering1639
surpassant1654
transcendental1701
superior1711
towery1731
prize1739
supernala1817
tiptopsome1819
tip-topping1826
par excellence1839
superfine1850
towering1894
?a1430 T. Hoccleve Mother of God l. 9 in Minor Poems (1970) i. 52 Modir of mercy,..Þat of al vertu art superlatyf.
1477 Earl Rivers tr. Dictes or Sayengis Philosophhres (Caxton) (1877) lf. 62 The .viij. leches.., whiche were all .viij. superlatyff aboue all other lechis.
c1500 (?a1437) Kingis Quair (1939) cxcvii Gowere and Chaucere..Superlative as poetis laureate.
1592 T. Nashe Strange Newes sig. I4 Betweene you and me declare..whether you be not a superlatiue blocke for al you readd the Philosophie Lecture at Cambridge.
a1628 F. Greville Life of Sidney (1651) vi. 75 A Peer of this Realm,..superlative in the Princes favour.
1630 T. Dekker Second Pt. Honest Whore v. ii. 119 O euerlasting, supernaturall superlatiue Villaine!
1657 tr. A. Thevet Prosopographia 19 in T. North tr. Plutarch Lives (new ed.) Natural Philosophy, wherein Aristotle was so superlative.
1707 E. Ward Wooden World Dissected 105 He..allows Newcastle-Ale and Salmon to be the most superlative Diet in the Universe.
1732 H. Baker & J. Miller tr. Molière Forc'd Marriage iv. 43 in Sel. Comedies VII A Man learned, most learned... A man that possesses superlative Fables, Mythologies, and Histories.
1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby xxxiv. 327 You are the demdest, knowing hand,..the cunningest, rummest, superlativest old fox.
1868 A. P. Stanley Hist. Mem. Westm. Abbey iii. 124 Its Chapter House, its ornaments..were to be superlative of their kind.
1929 Time 26 Aug. 18/3 Such entertainments usually profit from the services of a superlative clown.
1949 Times 10 Dec. 5/7 There are some fine tapestries, including a set of superlative and very large hunting scenes from Chatsworth.
2005 Amer. Sociol. Rev. 70 93/2 Until fairly recently, even the most superlative nonwhite players were barred from captaining their clubs or national teams.
B. n.
1.
a. Grammar. The superlative degree or form of an adjective or adverb; an adjective or adverb in the superlative degree. Also more generally: a word expressing the highest or a very high degree of some quality. See sense A. 1a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > other grammatical categories or concepts > [noun] > comparison of adjectives or adverbs > degree(s) of comparison > specific
superlativec1434
positive1530
comparativea1653
superlative absolute1730
superlative relativea1733
the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > other grammatical categories or concepts > [noun] > comparison of adjectives or adverbs > degree(s) of comparison > specific > adjective or adverb in
superlativec1434
comparative1530
positive1530
c1434 J. Drury Eng. Writings in Speculum (1934) 9 79 (MED) How many degreis ben þer of Comparison? Thre..Posityf, comparatif, and þe superlatyf.
c1434 J. Drury Eng. Writings in Speculum (1934) 9 80 Þese v nownys, bonus, malus, magnus, parvus, & multus..haue þe superlatives out of þe rewle.
c1450 in D. Thomson Middle Eng. Grammatical Texts (1984) 33 How maketh they hure superlatyf? In -limus. Of what case schall the superlatyf be formed? Of the nominatyf case.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement Introd. p. xxviii We and the latines forme our comparatives and superlatyves out of our posytives.
1567 N. Sanders Rocke of Churche ii. 31 According to the Greeke phrase (where the comparatiue standeth for the Superlatiue).
1638 R. Baker tr. J. L. G. de Balzac New Epist. 220 I will now at the end of my Letter, adde a superlative; and say I am; Sir, Your most humble, most faithfull.
1653 R. Lloyd Latine Gram. 32 Superlatives may be changed and diversly rendred, either by Adverbes of intension put unto the Positive..or by Adverbes of remission with a Negative.
a1721 M. Prior Charles & Clenard in Dialogues of Dead (1907) 218 Your very Titles, Your Serenissimus and Augustissimus are superlatives created by the Power of us Grammarians.
1795 L. Murray Eng. Gram. 103 Double comparatives and superlatives should be avoided; such as, ‘A worser conduct’..‘The most straitest sect’.
1802 W. Paley Nat. Theol. xxiv. 476 ‘Omnipotence’, ‘omniscience’; infinite power, infinite knowledge, are superlatives; expressing our conception of these attributes in the strongest, and most elevated, terms.
1886 T. L. Kington-Oliphant New Eng. II. 43 There is the old superlative of the Adverb, ‘the rudeliest welcomed’.
1892 L. Kellner Hist. Outl. Eng. Syntax §255 (heading) The Comparative and Superlative used absolutely.
1924 H. E. Palmer Gram. Spoken Eng. 81 All other classes of qualificatives..form the comparative..and superlative by the non-inflexional method.
1952 R. M. Hare Lang. Morals vi. 104 We must assume that he has learnt, on the analogy with other adjectives, that ‘best’ is the superlative of ‘good’.
2002 D. Lundy Way of Ship (2003) ii. 78 The superlative [of ‘shipshape’] was ‘shipshape and Bristol fashion’, or just ‘Bristol’.
2006 A. Cruse Gloss. Semantics & Pragmatics 44 Comparatives and superlatives may be committed or impartial, according to whether the positive form would also apply.
b. In extended and allusive use.
(a) With the. The highest degree, esp. in respect of excellence; the most extreme mode. Frequently in in the superlative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > greatness of quantity, amount, or degree > high or intense degree > [noun] > quality or fact of being extreme > highest, utmost, or extreme degree
heightOE
perfectiona1398
utterestc1410
uttermosta1425
tiptoec1440
pinnaclec1450
utmost1472
outmostc1535
extremity1543
abyss1548
top1552
furthest, utmost stretch1558
summa summarum1567
superlative1573
strain1576
extreme1595
fine1596
last1602
yondmost1608
super-superlative1623
pitch1624
utmostness1674
pink1720
supreme1817
ultima Thule1828
peak1902
1573 G. Gascoigne Hundreth Sundrie Flowres 246 For the Sonet, were it not a little to much prayse (as the Italians do most commonly offend in the superlatiue) I could the more commend it.
1583 R. Greene Mamillia i. f. 11v Virginity you say is delightful, yet matrimony more pleasant: Virginity you put in the positiue, but matrimonie in the superlatiue.
1658 R. Flecknoe Enigmaticall Characters 124 He speaks of every thing in the superlative, shewing the littlenesse of his minde, by counting all thing so great.
a1667 A. Cowley Verses Several Occasions 83 in Wks. (1668) The Positive parting with a little bow, the Comparative at the middle of the room, the Superlative at the door.
1725 I. Watts Logick ii. iii. iii. §6 Some Persons have a violent and turgid Manner both of Talking and Thinking... They..pronounce concerning everything in the Superlative.
1785 E. K. Mathews Constance I. 120 My brother says Lady Maria always talks in the superlative.
1856 R. W. Emerson Eng. Traits vii. 121 An Englishman..avoids the superlative, checks himself in compliments.
1894 H. L. A. Culmer Resources & Attractions of Utah 10 The writer suffers from chronic enthusiasm and cannot describe any resource of the Territory without resorting to the superlative.
1918 J. T. Hillhouse in H. Fielding Trag. of Trag. 35 Since heroic action is always in the superlative, it is always described in the superlative.
2008 E. S. Rosenberg in S. J. Dick Remembering Space Age x. 168 The media coverage of space in the early 1960s was all in the superlative.
(b) An exaggerated or hyperbolical expression. Frequently in plural: effusive language; exaggerated or hyperbolical phraseology.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > vigour or force > [noun] > exaggerated style
superlative1597
hyperbolism1653
1597 M. Drayton Englands Heroicall Epist. f. 40 v His birth from heauen thy Tudor not deriues, Nor stands on typ-toes in superlatiues.
1597 Bp. J. Hall Virgidemiarum: 1st 3 Bks. i. Prol. sig. B1v To..pranck base men in proud Superlatiues.
1640 J. Howell Δενδρολογια 205 Call him the supreme Intelligence, the spirit that moves the heavens and the starres, the Phoenix of the earth, and such like superlatives, and Hyperbole's.
1697 K. Chetwood Life Virgil in J. Dryden tr. Virgil Wks. sig. *4v Nor were they under the constraint..of violent Superlatives at the close of their Letter.
1762 Ld. Kames Elements Crit. III. xxi. 195 Writers of inferior rank are continually upon the stretch to enliven and enforce their subject by exaggeration and superlatives.
1781 R. B. Sheridan Critic i. ii. 34 'Twas I first taught them to crowd their advertisements with panegyrical superlatives, each epithet rising above the other.
1858 Times 8 Sept. 7/3 It is almost useless attempting to convey any adequate idea of Her Majesty's reception. It would merely exhaust superlatives without effecting any result.
1896 Fam. & Pers. Mem. Ld. Selborne I. ix. 137 He thought and felt in superlatives.
1930 F. L. Pattee New Amer. Lit. i. 9 In quantity American literature was flourishing but in quality it was at its lowest ebb. The new generation of critics already was damning it with superlatives.
1974 R. A. Caro Power Broker vi. xl. 926 It's all superlatives when you talk about this bridge.
2001 Premiere Dec. 42/2 During his first earnings conference at Yahoo..he droned superlatives like ‘significant challenge’, ‘terrific opportunity’.
2. A superlative person or thing; one surpassing all others; the supreme or best example (of something).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > excellence > [noun] > excellent person or thing
carbunclea1350
swanc1386
phoenixc1400
diamondc1440
broocha1464
surmounterc1500
sovereign?a1513
primrose peerless1523
superlative1577
transcendent1593
Arabian birda1616
crack1637
first rate1681
peach1710
phoenicle1711
admiration1717
spanker1751
first-raterc1760
no slouch of1767
nailer1806
tip-topper1822
ripper1825
ripstaver1828
apotheosis1832
clinker1836
clipper1836
bird1839
keener1839
ripsnorter1840
beater1845
firecracker1845
pumpkin1845
screamer1846
stunner1847
bottler1855
beaut1866
bobby-dazzler1866
one out of the box1867
stem-winder1875
corker1877
trimmer1878
hot stuff1884
daisy1886
jim-dandy1887
cracker1891
jim-hickey1895
peacherino1896
pippin1897
alpha plus1898
peacherine1900
pip1900
humdinger1905
bosker1906
hummer1907
good egg1914
superstar1914
the berries1918
bee's knee1923
the cat's whiskers1923
smash1923
smash hit1923
brahma1925
dilly1935
piss-cutter1935
killer1937
killer-diller1938
a hard act to follow1942
peacheroo1942
bitch1946
brammerc1950
hot shit1960
Tiffany1973
bollocks1981
1577 R. Smythe tr. M. Bandello Straunge, Lamentable, & Tragicall Hystories sig. L.ij Reason doeth not extend herselfe to this end, that sinne and vertue should be placed alyke, for vertue is the superlatiue aboue her, contrary, which is put vnder her as a subiect.
1602 W. Watson Decacordon Ten Quodlibeticall Questions 359 Amongst the most famous preachers in Rome..three were..all superlatiues in a different kind.
1655 J. Howell 4th Vol. Familiar Lett. ii. 4 This..is the best of all, and may be call'd the superlatif of the three.
1702 D. Defoe Reformation of Manners 61 In vain you strive ill Manners to suppress, By the Superlatives of Wickedness.
1725 I. Watts Logick ii. v. 399 Nature seldom deals in Superlatives.
a1816 R. B. Sheridan School for Scandal (rev. ed.) Portrait in Wks. (1821) II. 4 Nature's best, and Heaven's superlative.
1885 W. F. Crafts Sabbath for Man (1895) 188 The so-called Christians who sanction these Sunday parties are the superlatives of hypocrisy.
1903 Westm. Gaz. 17 Sept. 5/2 I sell bread here made from best ‘London whites’ and ‘superlatives’ at 6d. per loaf.
1954 R. H. Stevens tr. M. Bormann in Bormann Lett. 5 You are the superlative of all the women I know or ever knew.
1992 A. Bell tr. M. Toussaint-Samat Hist. Food xv. 518 Chilli has in a way become the superlative among spices.
3. The utmost point or limit of something; a pinnacle, height, or acme.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > prosperity > advancement or progress > [noun] > state of or advanced condition > highest point
prickOE
heighta1050
full1340
higha1398
pointc1400
roofa1500
top-castle1548
ruff1549
acmea1568
tip1567
noontide1578
high tide1579
superlative1583
summity1588
spring tide1593
meridian1594
period1595
apogee1600
punctilio1601
high-water mark1602
noon1609
zenith1610
auge1611
apex1624
culmination1633
cumble1640
culmen1646
climax1647
topc1650
cumulus1659
summit1661
perigeum1670
highest1688
consummation1698
stretch1741
high point1787
perihelion1804
summary1831
comble1832
heading up1857
climacteric1870
flashpoint1878
tip-end1885
peak1902
noontime1903
Omega point1981
1583 B. Melbancke Philotimus (new ed.) sig. Ffii The prince of whome I speake, is in the Positiue degree of her Superlatiue.
1589 G. Puttenham Arte Eng. Poesie i. vii. 10 Monasticall men then raigning al in their superlatiue.
1653 R. Saunders Treat. Moles Body Man & Woman 4 in Physiognomie The superlative of his good fortunes shall be in Merchandizing.
1685 E. Waller Divine Poems 25 What Mortal can with Heav'n pretend to share In the Superlatives of Wise and Fair?
1791 J. Trapp tr. J. W. von Archenholz Picture of Italy I. iv. 109 Piedmont belongs to the superlative of Italian bigotry.
1837 T. Carlyle French Revol. I. v. ix. 292 So many highest superlatives achieved by man are followed by new higher; and dwindle into comparatives and positives.
1892 Homiletic Rev. Mar. 250/1 No tapering off in a life of sin; but you can taper on from bad to worse eternally, and never reach the superlative.
1959 J. G. Gray Warriors ii. 55 Few men ever reach superlatives in the realm of destruction.
2007 A. J. Twerski Happiness & Human Spirit (2008) iv. 39 Vain people run into a roadblock right from the start: if they think they have already achieved the superlative, they will not see any need to be ‘better’!
4.
a. superlative absolute n. (also absolute superlative) Grammar the form of an adjective expressing a very high degree of a quality, without explicit reference to a standard of comparison (cf. superlative relative n. at sense B. 4b).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > other grammatical categories or concepts > [noun] > comparison of adjectives or adverbs > degree(s) of comparison > specific
superlativec1434
positive1530
comparativea1653
superlative absolute1730
superlative relativea1733
1730 J. Palairet New Royal French Gram. 81 The Superlative absolute, is that which expresses only the Quality of a thing in the highest Degree.
1788 N. Salmon Compl. Syst. French Lang. 31 You will find that tout..que..has the force of an absolute superlative.
1788 J. J. D'Etrouville Ground-work Gram. French Lang. xv. 272 The superlative absolute expresses the highest or lowest degree of the adjective, without effecting comparison.
1829 P. Bachi Gram. Ital. Lang. Introd. 4 The absolute superlative shows that the object spoken of possesses a quality in the superlative degree, but without reference to any other.
1884 Sc. Rev. July 58 Besides verra, ‘very’, several other words are used to express the superlative absolute, such as real, richt, unco', byous.
1903 Amer. Anthropologist 5 516 Gof is..frequently used [in the Chamorro language] to indicate the superlative absolute.
1972 Classical Jrnl. 68 70 For the absolute superlative we may use ‘most’ or ‘very’, and we often hear the substitutes ‘awfully’, ‘terribly’, or ‘real’.
1991 J. I. Hualde Basque Phonol. ii. 51 The comparative and superlative absolute trigger both Mid Vowel Raising with stems ending in a mid vowel and Glide Insertion with stems ending in a high vowel.
b. superlative relative n. (also relative superlative) Grammar the form of an adjective expressing the highest degree of a quality in relation to all other members of the same class; cf. superlative absolute n. at sense B. 4a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > other grammatical categories or concepts > [noun] > comparison of adjectives or adverbs > degree(s) of comparison > specific
superlativec1434
positive1530
comparativea1653
superlative absolute1730
superlative relativea1733
a1733 J. Freebairn New French Gram. (1734) iii. ii. 75 The Relative Superlative expresses the Supreme Degree of the Quality, with a Reference of Comparison, with other Persons or Things.
1798 B. Arleville Pract. Accidence French Tongue 35 Their Superlative relative of superiority or inferiority is formed by putting le before their Comparative.
1841 I. Nordheimer Crit. Gram. Hebrew Lang. II. iii. iv. 58 The relative superlative..intimates a comparison, and is denoted in English by the superlative termination or an adverb and the definite article.
1894 G. Steel Eng. Gram. & Anal. vi. 139 The Superlative Relative must not be used except for the third or highest degree, out of three or more instances.
1962 Jrnl. Amer. Oriental Soc. 82 517/2 In early Middle Indo-Aryan..the relative superlative was weakened and gradually replaced by the comparative.
1991 J. I. Hualde Basque Phonol. ii. 51 The only affixes that show this behaviour are the superlative relative and the genitive indefinite..and a few other indefinite suffixes.
2007 R. Worth in S. S. Magnan Mediating Disc. Online iii. 257 T has upped the ante again, switching from a comparison (Italy is more beautiful) to a relative superlative (Italy is the most beautiful).

Compounds

Superlative Surprise n. Campanology a complicated method of change-ringing, being a variation of treble bob (bob n.5); cf. surprise n. 5.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > performing music > playing instruments > bell-ringing > [noun] > going through all the changes > changes > specific
set peal16..
grandsire1668
whole pull1668
bob1671
peal1671
course1677
set changes1677
single1684
single change1688
Plain Bob1702
Stedman1731
Superlative Surprise1788
touch1788
triple1798
triple bob major1809
maximus1813
royal1813
call changes1837
slam1854
cater1872
cinques1872
triple change1872
plain hunt1874
plain hunting1874
quarter peal1888
method1901
short course1904
1788 W. Jones et al. Key to Art of Ringing xi. 179 Superlative Surprise... The above is an original composition of our own on purpose for this work, and has never yet been rung: the principle upon which it is founded, will..give it credit among amateurs of the art, for..it will plainly appear the most even treble bob peal..discovered.
1845 Cambr. Chron. 6 Dec. 4/3 The company of change-ringers, of Saffron Walden, performing..upwards of 1,200 changes of Superlative Surprise.
1931 E. Morris Hist. Change Ringing 458 Harry Withers..once..conducted a peal of Superlative Surprise at Selly Oak, Birmingham.
2000 Scunthorpe Evening Tel. (Nexis) 19 Sept. 15 The band decided to try and ring a quarter peal..the method was Superlative Surprise Major.

Derivatives

suˈperlativeness n. the quality or state of being superlative; excellence.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > quality of being the best > [noun]
bestness1548
preseance1591
presidency1608
primity1643
superlativenessa1649
supreme1681
optimism1797
a1649 G. Abbott Brief Notes Psalms (1651) cxiii. 112 The superlativeness of glory.
1727 N. Bailey Universal Etymol. Eng. Dict. II Superlativeness, the highest Degree.
1816 W. Butcher Plain Disc. III. xxiv. 32 Of heavenly happiness, the human mind..can form but an imperfect idea; yet, all those images are employed to represent the superlativeness of its felicities.
1888 H. W. Parker Spirit of Beauty (1891) 70 Variation into all forms of use and loveliness and final superlativeness.
2004 Speculum 79 37 The strategic superlativeness of these fortifications in seizing and holding land.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2012; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.c1400
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