most

1 of 6

adjective

1
: greatest in quantity, extent, or degree
the most ability
2
: the majority of
most people

most

2 of 6

adverb (1)

1
: to the greatest or highest degree
often used with an adjective or adverb to form the superlative
the most challenging job he ever had
2
: to a very great degree
was most persuasive

most

3 of 6

noun

: the greatest amount
it's the most I can do

most

4 of 6

pronoun

singular or plural in construction
: the greatest number or part
most become discouraged and quit

most

5 of 6

adverb (2)

: almost
we'll be crossing the river most any time nowHamilton Basso
Can most be used in place of almost?: Usage Guide

Although considered by some to be unacceptable in all cases, most is often used to mean "almost" in both spoken and, to a lesser extent, written English to modify the adjectives all, every, and any; the pronouns all, everyone, everything, everybody, anyone, anything, and anybody; and the adverbs everywhere, anywhere, and always. Other uses of this sense of most are dialectal.

-most

6 of 6

adjective suffix

: most
innermost
: most toward
headmost
Phrases
at most or at the most
: as an extreme limit
took him an hour at most

Examples of most in a Sentence

Adjective Choosing a color took the most time. That family owned the most land. Unfortunately the negative aspects of our schools get the most attention. Noun this room will accommodate 50 people at the most
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Advice columnist Carolyn Hax takes your comments and questions most Fridays about life, family, relationships and more. Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 15 Sep. 2023 The current record for most consecutive days spent in space overall belongs to Russian cosmonaut Valery Polyakov, who spent 437 days in space. Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 12 Sep. 2023 Nearly two months later, the court is hearing arguments from eight petitioners against the law, most of them civil society organizations that campaign for good governance, as well as representatives of the government and parliament. Patrick Kingsley, BostonGlobe.com, 12 Sep. 2023 Authenticity, no matter what that looks like for your brand, is a refreshing change of pace for most consumers — and one that will create a longer-lasting, more positive impression than hyper-targeted or gimmicky storytelling. Rolling Stone Culture Council, Rolling Stone, 12 Sep. 2023 Now people get most of their information from the internet and social media. Spin Staff, Spin, 12 Sep. 2023 Her show airs on most local stations between 7 p.m. and midnight and reaches some 8.3 million listeners each month, according to her radio reps who cite a Nielsen Fall 2022 Nationwide survey. Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 1 Sep. 2023 White set Super Bowl records for most points (20) and most receptions (14) and became just the second running back with more than 100 receiving yards in a Super Bowl. Jeff Potrykus, Journal Sentinel, 1 Sep. 2023 The Wildcats return most of their offensive starters from last season, so most of the open positions are on defense. Justin Spears, The Arizona Republic, 1 Sep. 2023
Adverb
On Wednesday, in his first public comments since his team’s season-opening 36-34 loss to Miami, Jackson took responsibility for his most glaring error, the 30-yard, second-quarter infraction that allowed the Dolphins to kick a field goal with no time left. Jeff Miller, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2023 Ladapo, whom DeSantis appointed in September 2021, has become one of the nation’s most prominent Covid vaccine skeptics. Matt Dixon, NBC News, 13 Sep. 2023 But global climate goals generally require not only fully electrifying most driving but also driving significantly less. Aarian Marshall, WIRED, 13 Sep. 2023 The Jalisco New Generation Cartel is considered Mexico’s second most powerful drug cartel after the Sinaloa Cartel. Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork, 13 Sep. 2023 The company has undergone multiple financial woes over the past few months, with two of its most recent movies, Haunted Mansion and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, greatly underperforming at the box office. Asher Notheis, Washington Examiner, 13 Sep. 2023 The Jonas Brothers' latest tour features material from five different albums, including their most recent, The Album, which came out in May, and previous hits like 2019’s Happiness Begins and 2008’s A Little Bit Longer. Daniela Avila, Peoplemag, 13 Sep. 2023 Allure: What is the item most unlikely to be in your makeup bag? Gabi Thorne, Allure, 13 Sep. 2023 The bomb attack, which was the nation's most powerful until the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, killed 33-year-old graduate student Robert Fassnacht, who was doing research in the middle of the night. CBS News, 1 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'most.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Adverb (1), Noun, and Pronoun

Middle English, from Old English mǣst; akin to Old High German meist most, Old English māra more — more at more

Adverb (2)

by shortening

Adjective suffix

Middle English, alteration of -mest (as in formest foremost)

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

12th century, in the meaning defined above

Pronoun

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Adverb (2)

circa 1538, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of most was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near most

Cite this Entry

“Most.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/most. Accessed 21 Sep. 2023.

Kids Definition

most

1 of 5 adjective
1
: the majority of
most people believe this
2
: greatest in amount or extent
the most ability

most

2 of 5 adverb
1
: to the greatest or highest level or extent
often used with an adjective or adverb to form the superlative
most active
most actively
2
: to a very great extent
a most careful driver

most

3 of 5 noun
: the greatest amount, number, or part

most

4 of 5 adverb
: almost
the cost of most everything is higher

-most

5 of 5 adjective suffix
ˌmōst
: most
innermost
Etymology

Adjective suffix

Middle English -most "most"

More from Merriam-Webster on most

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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