Meaning & use
smiliest
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“smiliest” is a form of “smiley”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meaning
adjectivenot comparable
smiling the most, or having the happiest and most smiling expression of a group.
Grammar: This is already a superlative form, so it is not used with 'more' or 'most'.
Patterns
- the smiliest person in something
- the smiliest of a group
Out of all the babies at the party, Mia was the smiliest.
She is the smiliest person I know, always grinning at everyone.
His yearbook photo was the smiliest of the whole class.
Common combinations
- the smiliest baby
- The nurses called him the smiliest baby on the ward.
- the smiliest face
- She made the smiliest face when she saw the cake.
- the smiliest person in the room
- He was the smiliest person in the room during the whole meeting.
- one of the smiliest
- She is one of the smiliest children in the school.
Synonyms and how they differ
- happiest
- Focuses on feeling joy rather than on the act of smiling.
- cheeriest
- Suggests a bright, lively mood, not just a smiling face.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: smiliest or smiley?
smiliest vs smiley
Smiley is the base adjective; smiliest is the superlative form meaning 'most smiley'.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'smiliest' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The superlative 'smiliest' already means 'most smiley', so it is used with 'the' and not with 'more' or 'very'. Option 1 is wrong because 'more' cannot go with a superlative; option 2 is wrong for the same reason with 'than'; option 3 is wrong because 'very' does not combine with superlatives.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “smiliest”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.