at most

Thân thiện

You should spend at most twenty dollars on lunch.

Definition

1. Adverb:
   • Not more than; as a maximum limit: Used to indicate the highest possible amount, number, or degree, but not exceeding it.

Usage

• The phrase "at most" sets an upper boundary. It is used to state that a quantity is less than or equal to a specified maximum.
• It is often used with numbers, amounts, or estimates to express a limit.
• It is the opposite of "at least."

Examples

• Adverb:
  • The repair should take at most two hours. (The repair will take two hours or less.)
  • There were at most fifty people at the meeting. (The number of people was fifty or fewer.)
  • You can spend at most $20 on the lunch. (The maximum amount you can spend is $20; you cannot spend more.)

Advanced Usage

• "at the very most": An emphatic form of "at most," used to stress the absolute maximum limit.
  • The project will be finished in a week, at the very most.
• Used to express a conservative or pessimistic estimate.
  • He is at most a minor contributor to the problem. (He is, in the worst/broadest interpretation, only a minor contributor.)

Variants and Related Words

• At the outside (idiom): An informal synonym meaning "at the most" or "as a maximum estimate."
  • It'll cost $100 at the outside.
• Maximum (noun/adjective): The greatest possible amount or degree.
  • The maximum speed is 70 mph.

Synonyms

• No more than
• At the maximum
• At the utmost

Antonyms

• At least: Not less than; as a minimum.
  • You need at least eight hours of sleep.

Related Phrases

• At best: Used to indicate the most positive or favorable interpretation of a situation, often when it is not very good.
  • His performance was mediocre at best. (This is different from "at most," which sets a numerical/quantitative upper limit.)
• At worst: Used to indicate the most negative interpretation.
  • At worst, we'll lose a small amount of money.

Học thuật

Adverb

1. not more than
   • spend at most $20 on the lunch

Từ đồng nghĩa

• at the most