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### The Ultimate Extremes

When we write dramatic reviews—declaring an experience "the best," "the worst," or "the most disgusting"—we are using **superlatives**. If a superlative is followed by a relative clause (e.g., "the best food *that exists*"), that clause usually requires the **Subjunctive** mood.

Because superlatives are inherently subjective or express a theoretical limit, the subjunctive acknowledges that this is the extreme limit of what you personally know, have experienced, or can imagine.

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Notice how the relative clauses above use the present subjunctive (*conheça*, *exista*). 

### Emphasizing Possibilities

To make these reviews even more dramatic, we frequently use verbs of existence or ability in the subjunctive, such as **haver** (to be/exist), **poder** (can/to be able to), or **imaginar** (to imagine). This emphasizes that a noun is the most extreme example *possible*.

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### Past Extremes

Just like with other subjunctive triggers, tense agreement matters. If your main superlative statement is set in the past (e.g., "It *was* the worst..."), the verb in the relative clause must shift to the **Pretérito Imperfeito do Conjuntivo** (Imperfect Subjunctive).

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Subjunctive with superlatives (o melhor que)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

prefix

prep

preposition

pron

pronoun

sentence

verb

Demonstratives and the verb to be (isto é, o, a)

Subject pronouns and negation (eu, não)

Yes/no questions and question words (quem, o que)

Plural pronouns, articles, and verbs (somos, são, os, as)

Origin and possession (de, do, da)

Introductions (chamar-se)

Indefinite articles (um, uma, uns, umas)

The verb to be for locations (estar)

Contrasting the two verbs to be (ser vs. estar)

Preposition for locations (em, no, na)

Numbers 0 to 10 (zero, um, dois)

The verb to have (tenho, tem)

Regular -ar verbs (falar, trabalhar)

Regular -er verbs (comer, beber)

Regular -ir verbs (abrir, partir)

My, your, and our (o meu, a nossa)

His, hers, and theirs (dele, dela)

Adjective agreement and placement

Days of the week (segunda-feira)

Months of the year (janeiro)

Counting by tens to 100 (trinta, quarenta...)

Telling time (é uma, são...)

Asking about time (quando, a que horas)

The verb to go (ir)

Prepositions of direction (a, para)

Preposition a contractions (ao, à, aos, às)

Prepositions of place (ao lado de, em frente de...)

Demonstratives (este, esse, aquele)

Contractions with demonstratives (neste, desse, daquele)

Asking which and how many (qual, quanto)

Plurals ending in -ão (-ões, -ãos, -ães)

Plurals ending in consonants (-ns, -is, -es)

The verb to like (gostar de)

The verb to need (precisar de)

The verb to want (querer)

The verb can or may (poder)

Expressing obligation (ter de)

Adverbs of degree (muito, pouco)

Quantifiers (muito, pouco)

Comparatives (mais... do que, menos... do que)

Equality comparisons (tão... como)

The preposition com (comigo, contigo)

Coordinating conjunctions (e, mas, ou, porque)

The preposition por (pelo, pela)

Double negation (nunca, nada, ninguém)

Present continuous (estar a)

Near future (ir)

Past tense of regular -ar verbs

Past tense of regular -er and -ir verbs

Past tense of ser and ir (fui, foi)

Direct object pronouns (me, te, o, a, nos, os, as)

Pronoun placement with negatives and questions

Greetings and courtesy (bom dia, obrigado)

Physical states with ter (ter fome, ter frio)

Asking the way (à direita, sempre em frente)

Colours (vermelho, amarelo, cor-de-rosa)

Money and shopping (custar, a moeda)

Getting around (o motorista, a paragem de autocarro)

Weather and seasons (faz calor, o inverno)

Omitting the subject pronoun

Where things are: ficar (Onde fica...?)

Richer questions: que + noun and é que

Numbers above 100 (cento e vinte, mil)

First-person sound changes (durmo, prefiro)

Advice and ability: dever and saber

Asking why: porquê and porque

When one thing happens: quando-clauses

Here and there: aqui, aí, ali (cá e lá)

Formal and plural possessives: o seu, o vosso

Irregular presents: ver, vir, dar

Present irregulars

Reflexive verbs (me, te, se, nos)

Stem-changing reflexives

Attached object pronouns (-lo, -la, -los, -las)

Nasal attached pronouns (-no, -na, -nos, -nas)

Pronoun placement with adverbs

Past tense of fazer, dizer, and trazer

Past tense of ter, estar, poder, and saber

Past tense of querer and vir

Past tense of ver, dar, and ler

Past tense reflexive verbs (-se)

Time elapsed in the past (há)

Question	Answer
the wonder	a maravilha
stunning	deslumbrante
This beach is the most stunning wonder that exists in the country.	Esta praia é a maravilha mais deslumbrante que exista no país.
disgusting	nojento
the hygiene	a higiene
It is the most disgusting room that I know of; they do not have any hygiene.	É o quarto mais nojento que eu conheça; não têm nenhuma higiene.
overrated	sobrevalorizado
Since the service is awful, this is the most overrated restaurant that there is.	Como o serviço é péssimo, este é o restaurante mais sobrevalorizado que haja.
the rudeness	a grosseria
absolutely	absolutamente
The manager's rudeness is absolutely the worst that you can imagine.	A grosseria do gerente é absolutamente a pior que tu possas imaginar.
fascinating	fascinante
incomparable	incomparável
It is the most fascinating and incomparable book that we can read.	É o livro mais fascinante e incomparável que nós possamos ler.
the catastrophe	a catástrofe
The movie was the most overrated catastrophe that I could imagine, and I had already read the script.	O filme foi a catástrofe mais sobrevalorizada que eu pudesse imaginar, e já tinha lido o guião.
The food is absolutely the least tasty that exists; even the water has a disgusting flavor.	A comida é absolutamente a menos saborosa que exista; até a água tem um sabor nojento.
This trip is the most fascinating wonder that money can buy.	Esta viagem é a maravilha mais fascinante que o dinheiro possa comprar.
It is the most stunning castle that we can find, with an incomparable view over the river.	É o castelo mais deslumbrante que nós possamos encontrar, com uma vista incomparável sobre o rio.
Since the hygiene was awful, it was the greatest rudeness that I could endure.	Como a higiene era péssima, foi a maior grosseria que eu pudesse suportar.
It was the worst catastrophe that we could remember.	Foi a pior catástrofe de que nós nos pudéssemos lembrar.
The incredible thing is that this is the most fascinating wonder that exists.	O incrível é que esta é a maravilha mais fascinante que exista.