GoalSay “the biggest”, “the fastest” and “the eldest” in two ways.
New words
الْأَكْبَر (al-ʾakbar) · the biggest, the eldestالْأَصْغَر (al-ʾaṣghar) · the smallest, the youngestالْأَسْرَع (al-ʾasraʿ) · the fastestالْأَطْوَل (al-ʾaṭwal) · the tallestالْأَحْسَن (al-ʾaḥsan) · the bestبَلَد (balad) · country, townعَالَم (ʿālam) · world
Explanation
In Unit 11 you learned الْأَرْخَص “the cheapest”. There are two ways to say “the most”. First, add الْ to the comparative and put it after a masculine noun: الْقَمِيص الْأَرْخَص. Second, and easier for every noun, put the comparative before a noun without الْ: أَكْبَر مَدِينَة “the biggest city”, أَجْمَل يَوْم “the most beautiful day”. Add فِي to say where: أَطْوَل وَلَد فِي الصَّفّ. For the family, الْأَكْبَر is “the eldest” and الْأَصْغَر is “the youngest”: أَخِي الْأَكْبَر.
Comparative
With الْ
Before a noun
أَكْبَر
الْأَكْبَر
أَكْبَر مَدِينَة
أَصْغَر
الْأَصْغَر
أَصْغَر غُرْفَة
أَسْرَع
الْأَسْرَع
أَسْرَع سَيَّارَة
أَطْوَل
الْأَطْوَل
أَطْوَل وَلَد
أَحْسَن
الْأَحْسَن
أَحْسَن طَالِب
Worked examples
The eldest, the youngest, the most beautiful. Listen and repeat.
Yusuf
مَن أَطْوَل وَلَد فِي صَفِّكِ؟
Fatima
أَطْوَل وَلَد هُوَ كَرِيم.
Yusuf
وَمَن أَسْرَع طَالِبَة؟
Fatima
أَسْرَع طَالِبَة هِيَ لَيْلَى.
Yusuf and Fatima talk about the class. Press each line.
With الْ after a masculine noun.
Class activity
Write five sentences about “the most” in your city, your school or your family: the biggest, the smallest, the fastest, the tallest, the best. Use the second way (comparative before a noun) and add فِي to say where.
Practice
1
Press Listen. Which house: the newest, the oldest or the biggest?
The oldest: أَقْدَم بَيْت (ʾaqdam bayt). أَقْدَم is new, from قَدِيم “old”.
2
Write: “the fastest car”.
أَسْرَع سَيَّارَة (ʾasraʿ sayyāra).
3
The picture shows a city. Write: “It is the biggest city in the country.”
