The relative superlative singles out one member of a group as the most or least of some quality: the tallest student in the class, the best pizza in the city. In Brazilian Portuguese the formula is definite article + mais/menos + adjective + de + the set. The two things English speakers must watch are the obligatory article and the preposition de — not em — for the set.
The core formula
o / a / os / as + mais (or menos) + adjective + de + set
The article agrees in gender and number with the noun, and the whole comparison sits naturally after the noun it describes.
O João é o aluno mais alto da turma.
João is the tallest student in the class.
Essa é a praia mais bonita do litoral.
This is the prettiest beach on the coast.
Foram os dias mais felizes da minha vida.
They were the happiest days of my life.
Notice that the article appears twice when there's a noun: once with the noun (o aluno) and again logically tied to mais — but you don't write a second article. The structure is o aluno mais alto, with one o. When the noun is dropped, the article carries the whole phrase: o mais alto da turma (the tallest in the class).
De todos os irmãos, ele é o mais responsável.
Of all the brothers, he is the most responsible.
The set is marked by DE, never EM
This is the highest-value point on the page. The group within which something is the "most" is introduced by de (often contracted: de + o = do, de + a = da). English uses in, which tempts learners to use em — this is wrong.
É o melhor restaurante da cidade.
It's the best restaurant in the city.
Ela é a funcionária mais dedicada da empresa.
She's the most dedicated employee in the company.
Esse é o quarto mais barato do hotel.
This is the cheapest room in the hotel.
Inferiority: o menos
To say the least of something, swap mais for menos. Everything else stays the same.
Esse é o caminho menos perigoso da região.
This is the least dangerous route in the region.
Foi a parte menos interessante da palestra.
It was the least interesting part of the lecture.
In practice Brazilians often rephrase with an antonym (o mais seguro instead of o menos perigoso), but o menos is fully correct.
Irregular relative superlatives
The four irregular comparatives keep their irregular forms in the superlative — you simply add the article. You never say o mais bom.
| Adjective | Comparative | Relative superlative | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| bom / boa | melhor | o/a melhor | the best |
| ruim / mau | pior | o/a pior | the worst |
| grande | maior | o/a maior | the biggest |
| pequeno | menor | o/a menor | the smallest |
Esse é o melhor sorvete da cidade.
This is the best ice cream in the city.
Foi a pior decisão da minha carreira.
It was the worst decision of my career.
O Amazonas é o maior rio do mundo em volume.
The Amazon is the largest river in the world by volume.
These irregular forms are invariable in gender (one form for masculine and feminine: o melhor / a melhor) but do take a plural: os melhores, os piores, os maiores, os menores.
Essas são as melhores fotos da viagem.
These are the best photos from the trip.
o mais ... que + clause
When the set isn't a simple noun but a relative clause (the most X that ...), use o mais + adjective + que plus the clause. The verb inside often appears in the subjunctive or a past form, depending on meaning.
Foi o filme mais emocionante que eu já vi.
It was the most moving film I've ever seen.
Essa é a coisa mais estranha que já me aconteceu.
This is the strangest thing that has ever happened to me.
This que-clause version is extremely common in speech, especially with já (ever): o melhor que já comi, o mais difícil que já fiz.
Article agreement
The article must agree with the noun in gender and number. This is easy to forget when the adjective itself is invariable (like melhor), because only the article shows the agreement.
| Noun | Article | Example |
|---|---|---|
| masc. sing. | o | o aluno mais alto |
| fem. sing. | a | a aluna mais alta |
| masc. pl. | os | os alunos mais altos |
| fem. pl. | as | as alunas mais altas |
As alunas mais aplicadas receberam o prêmio.
The most diligent students (female) received the award.
Comparison with English
Three differences stand out for English speakers:
- No -est suffix. English shortens (tall → tallest); Portuguese always uses o mais + adjective. There is nothing to spell-change.
- The article is obligatory. English can sometimes drop "the" (Mount Everest is highest), but Portuguese requires o/a/os/as in the relative superlative. Leaving it out turns the phrase into a plain comparative or a bare adjective.
- "In" becomes de. This is the error to drill: the best in the world → o melhor *do mundo*.
Common Mistakes
❌ É o melhor restaurante na cidade.
Incorrect — the set takes 'de' (→ da), not 'em' (→ na).
✅ É o melhor restaurante da cidade.
It's the best restaurant in the city.
❌ Ele é mais alto aluno da turma.
Incorrect — the relative superlative needs the article 'o'.
✅ Ele é o aluno mais alto da turma.
He is the tallest student in the class.
❌ Esse é o mais bom sorvete da cidade.
Incorrect — use the irregular 'o melhor', never 'o mais bom'.
✅ Esse é o melhor sorvete da cidade.
This is the best ice cream in the city.
❌ Foi a pior decisão na minha carreira.
Incorrect — 'na' should be 'da' for the defining set.
✅ Foi a pior decisão da minha carreira.
It was the worst decision of my career.
❌ Essas são as melhor fotos da viagem.
Incorrect — the irregular pluralizes to 'melhores'.
✅ Essas são as melhores fotos da viagem.
These are the best photos from the trip.
Key Takeaways
- Formula: o/a/os/as + mais/menos + adjective + de + set.
- The set is always marked by de (→ do/da), never em.
- Irregulars use the article: o melhor, o pior, o maior, o menor — never o mais bom.
- The article must agree in gender and number, even when the adjective is invariable.
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Start learning Portuguese→Related Topics
- Absolute Superlative (-íssimo)A2 — The Brazilian Portuguese absolute superlative means 'extremely' — built synthetically with -íssimo (lindíssimo, facílimo), analytically with muito, or colloquially with super-/mega- and pra caramba.
- Superlative SentencesA2 — How to say 'the most', 'the best', and 'extremely' in Brazilian Portuguese — relative superlatives with 'o mais ... de', absolute superlatives in '-íssimo', and colloquial intensifiers.
- Comparative: Irregular FormsA2 — Four Brazilian Portuguese adjectives have irregular comparatives you must never make analytic: bom→melhor, ruim/mau→pior, grande→maior, pequeno→menor.
- Comparative: Regular FormsA2 — How to build regular comparatives in Brazilian Portuguese — superiority with mais...(do) que, inferiority with menos...(do) que, and equality with tão...quanto/como.