Put सबसे sabse before an adjective to express a relative superlative: सबसे लंबा “tallest,” सबसे आसान “easiest,” सबसे कम महँगा “least expensive.” The construction selects an extreme member of a comparison set supplied by context and builds on the same scale used by comparatives with से.
Although सबसे is historically transparent as “than all,” modern learners should treat it as one productive superlative marker, normally written together. The adjective after it still follows its own agreement class.
Basic structure and agreement
| Head noun | Superlative phrase |
|---|---|
| masculine singular direct | सबसे नया कमरा |
| masculine plural direct | सबसे नए कमरे |
| masculine singular oblique | सबसे नए कमरे में |
| feminine singular | सबसे नई योजना |
| feminine plural | सबसे नई योजनाएँ |
सबसे is invariant. Declinable नया changes to नए/नई according to the noun; an indeclinable adjective such as आसान remains fixed.
यह इस सड़क की सबसे ऊँची इमारत है।
yah is saṛak kī sabse ū̃cī imārat hai.
This is the tallest building on this street.
ये इस दुकान के सबसे सस्ते जूते हैं।
ye is dukān ke sabse saste jūte haiṃ.
These are the cheapest shoes in this shop.
Attributive and predicative uses
Attributively, सबसे + adjective precedes the noun. Predicatively, it follows the subject.
हमने सबसे शांत कमरा चुना।
hamne sabse śānt kamrā cunā.
We chose the quietest room.
तीनों कमरों में यह कमरा सबसे शांत है।
tīnoṃ kamroṃ meṃ yah kamrā sabse śānt hai.
Of the three rooms, this room is the quietest.
Invariant शांत has the same form in both positions. The second sentence states the domain explicitly with तीनों कमरों में.
The comparison set must be recoverable
हमारी टीम में फ़राह सबसे अनुभवी हैं।
hamārī ṭīm meṃ farāh sabse anubhavī haiṃ.
Farah is the most experienced member of our team. (respectful)
इन चार रास्तों में नदी वाला रास्ता सबसे सुरक्षित है।
in cār rāstoṃ meṃ nadī vālā rāstā sabse surakṣit hai.
Of these four routes, the riverside route is the safest.
The domain phrase can be locative टीम में, partitive इन चार रास्तों में, or simply understood from the conversation. Hindi needs no definite article before the superlative. Context and the comparison domain make the referent identifiable.
Honorific singular Farah takes plural हैं; indeclinable अनुभवी does not display gender or number.
Direct and oblique noun phrases
सबसे पुराने मकान में अब कोई नहीं रहता।
sabse purāne makān meṃ ab koī nahīṃ rahtā.
No one lives in the oldest house now.
Masculine singular पुराना मकान becomes oblique पुराने मकान before में. सबसे does not block the case change.
Compare a feminine phrase, which keeps -ई across case:
हम सबसे छोटी गली से बाज़ार पहुँचे।
ham sabse choṭī galī se bāzār pahũce.
We reached the market by the narrowest/smallest lane.
Relative superlative is not absolute intensity
सबसे लंबा means longest within a set; it does not entail that the item is long by an external standard.
इन छोटे पौधों में यह सबसे लंबा है, फिर भी केवल बीस सेंटीमीटर का है।
in choṭe paudhoṃ meṃ yah sabse lambā hai, phir bhī keval bīs seṇṭīmīṭar kā hai.
Among these small plants, this one is the tallest, yet it is only twenty centimeters tall.
For absolute intensity, use expressions such as बहुत लंबा, बेहद लंबा, or अत्यंत लंबा. This logical distinction prevents the English word tallest from being confused with “extremely tall.”
Least and lexical comparatives
सबसे कम + adjective selects the lowest degree. सबसे अधिक + adjective is a formal way to select the highest degree with adjectives that favor analytic modification.
यह योजना सबसे कम खर्चीली है।
yah yojnā sabse kam kharcīlī hai.
This plan is the least expensive.
यह अध्याय नए पाठकों के लिए सबसे अधिक उपयोगी है।
yah adhyāy nae pāṭhkoṃ ke lie sabse adhik upyogī hai.
This chapter is the most useful for new readers. (formal)
Lexical बेहतर “better” can combine naturally with सबसे to mean “best”: सबसे बेहतर विकल्प is common, especially where speakers treat बेहतर as a gradable adjective. सबसे अच्छा is the everyday core expression.
Conventional meanings
वह मेरा सबसे बड़ा भाई है, लेकिन क़द में मुझसे छोटा है।
vah merā sabse baṛā bhāī hai, lekin qad meṃ mujhse choṭā hai.
He is my eldest brother, but he is shorter than I am.
Here सबसे बड़ा भाई ranks age, while क़द में छोटा ranks height. The noun and context select the relevant scale; adjective agreement remains masculine singular.
Agreement in a ने-clause
रीना ने प्रदर्शनी की सबसे नई साड़ी खरीदी।
rīnā ne pradarśanī kī sabse naī sāṛī kharīdī.
Reena bought the newest sari in the exhibition.
Feminine नई and खरीदी agree with unmarked object साड़ी, not with रीना ने as agent. The superlative marker does not alter perfective agreement.
Common Mistakes
1. Letting सबसे replace adjective agreement
❌ यह सबसे नया योजना है।
Incorrect: सबसे is invariant, but declinable नया must still agree with feminine योजना.
✅ यह सबसे नई योजना है।
yah sabse naī yojnā hai.
This is the newest plan.
2. Putting the adjective after the noun in an attributive phrase
❌ हमने सबसे रास्ता आसान चुना।
Incorrect for ‘the easiest route’: सबसे आसान must precede रास्ता.
✅ हमने सबसे आसान रास्ता चुना।
hamne sabse āsān rāstā cunā.
We chose the easiest route.
3. Ignoring oblique masculine agreement
❌ सबसे पुराना कमरे में खिड़कियाँ बड़ी हैं।
Incorrect: before में, use पुराने कमरे.
✅ सबसे पुराने कमरे में खिड़कियाँ बड़ी हैं।
sabse purāne kamre meṃ khiṛkiyā̃ baṛī haiṃ.
The windows are large in the oldest room.
4. Declining an invariant adjective
❌ यह सबसे सुंदरी तस्वीर है।
Incorrect: सुंदर is indeclinable; सुंदरी is not its agreement form here.
✅ यह सबसे सुंदर तस्वीर है।
yah sabse sundar tasvīr hai.
This is the most beautiful photograph.
Key Takeaways
- सबसे + adjective forms a relative superlative within an explicit or contextual set.
- सबसे is invariant; a declinable adjective still agrees with its head noun.
- Relative “highest in this set” is not the same as absolute “extremely high.”
- Case, honorific agreement, and ने-clause object agreement continue to work normally.
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Start learning Hindi →Related Topics
- Comparatives with सेB1 — Build unequal comparisons with an oblique standard plus से, while making the adjective agree with the item being described.
- Analytic degree with अधिक and कमB1 — Use invariant अधिक and कम before adjectives for formal more and neutral less, while preserving ordinary adjective agreement.
- Absolute superlative and emphatic reduplicationB1 — Express an extreme quality without comparison, and use repeated adjectives for vivid, plural, or distributive emphasis.
- Declinable adjectives in -āA1 — Form the -ā, -e, and -ī agreement pattern of variable Hindi adjectives across gender, number, case, and predicate position.
- सब and सभी allA2 — Choose conversational सब or explicit सभी for plural all/everyone, and track case, agreement, mass readings, numbers, and negation scope.
- से as comparison standardA2 — Use से to set the standard in unequal comparisons, from ordinary adjective contrasts to pronouns, quantities, and सबसे superlatives.