Irina Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 Hi,Would anyone be so kind to explain the difference between "most" & "the most"?For example:- What I like most is ... and- What I like the most is ...I don't understand what the difference is.Any help is appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kristi Posted August 1, 2013 Report Share Posted August 1, 2013 I think in the first example "most" is an adverb, and in the second one "the most" is a superlative.I think the difference between the two sentences is in meaning. "Most" does not imply comparison while "the most" does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anderson Posted August 13, 2013 Report Share Posted August 13, 2013 The most reffers to something individually while most is more generalized. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Believeinsomething Posted August 14, 2013 Report Share Posted August 14, 2013 On 8/1/2013 at 2:23 PM, Irina said: Hi,Would anyone be so kind to explain the difference between "most" & "the most"?For example:- What I like most is ... and- What I like the most is ...I don't understand what the difference is.Any help is appreciated.The sentence should read, what I like the most is... (and then you describe whatever the item is).Most, is used in sentences like "Most people want to be happy." or "Most the of the workers went home that night." - meaning more of them went home than did not. It is quantitative."The most" is a finite qualifier, and therefore does not work in the two sentences shown above.I hope that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mleocasas Posted August 18, 2013 Report Share Posted August 18, 2013 Try using similar terms like these in context to get clarity:ex) I eat the most apples out of all of my friends. I eat most apples, but not all of them.'The most' implies a comparison involving the subject, and 'most' implies a majority of the predicate. You can say how when using 'the most' we are talking about how YOU are eating more apples then THEM. When we use 'most', however, we are talking about of you eat the majority of APPLES. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfonso Posted August 29, 2013 Report Share Posted August 29, 2013 It pretty much means the same thing if you ask me. The difference would be sentence use "the most" would be used to when your comparing among other things, it has to do more with rank. Using most is more general if you ask me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firelily99 Posted December 3, 2013 Report Share Posted December 3, 2013 Everybody has it covered, there isn't much more that I could add to that. Very well done everybody! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidney Posted December 4, 2013 Report Share Posted December 4, 2013 I agree with what has been said, I think "the most" is a more superlative way of referring to things. It implies a more intense feeling towards what is being referred to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoanMcWench Posted December 5, 2013 Report Share Posted December 5, 2013 The comparison argument was the most useful one for me. If something is 'most' it may stand alone but in reference to 'the most' there has to be something less than the one you are about to refer to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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