longest

Thân thiện

She stayed longest at the library.

Definition

1. Adverb:
   • For the greatest duration of time: Used to indicate that an action or state continues for a more extended period than any other in a comparison.
   • To the greatest extent or degree in terms of length or duration: Used to modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs to express the superlative form of 'long'.

Usage Examples

• Adverb:
  • Of all the guests, she stayed longest. (This directly compares her duration of stay to others, indicating hers was the greatest.)
  • This is the longest I have ever waited for a bus. (Here, 'longest' modifies the implied duration of waiting, forming a superlative comparison with all past waits.)
  • Which river flows longest through the country? (This asks for a comparison of the rivers' flow durations within the country.)

Advanced Usage

• "At (the) longest": Used to indicate the maximum possible duration, setting an upper limit.
  • The repair will take an hour at the longest. (This means one hour is the absolute maximum time it will take.)
• "Longest-running": This is a compound adjective. It describes something that has continued for a greater period than any other of its kind.
  • It is the longest-running show on television. (This is a fixed compound comparing the show's duration to all other shows.)

Variants and Related Words

• Long (adjective/adverb): Of great duration or extent.
• Longer (adjective/adverb): Comparative form of 'long'.
• Length (noun): The measurement of something from end to end; duration.
• Lengthy (adjective): Of considerable or unusual length, often excessively so.

Synonyms

• For the most time: This is a direct synonym for the adverbial sense.
• Most enduringly: Lasting for the greatest period.
• Furthest in time: Extending to the most distant point in time within a set.

Related Phrases

• Last the longest: To endure or remain for a greater time than others.
  • In the marathon, the seasoned runners lasted the longest.
• Take the longest: To require the most time to complete.
  • This complicated route takes the longest to drive.

Related Idioms

• Go the longest way round: To take the most indirect or time-consuming route.
  • If you avoid the highway, you'll go the longest way round.
• The longest day of the year: Refers to the summer solstice, the day with the most daylight hours.
  • We celebrate the longest day of the year with a festival.

Học thuật

Adverb

1. for the most time
   • she stayed longest