el más largo
/el mas laɾɡo/from spelling rules
The English phrase "the longest" is translated into Spanish as el más largo.
Used to describe the person or thing with the greatest length or duration.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is constructed literally as the definite article el (the), the adverb más (more) and the adjective largo (long).
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase must agree in gender with the noun it modifies, using la más larga for feminine nouns. The phrase must agree in number with the noun it modifies, using los más largos for masculine plural nouns and las más largas for feminine plural nouns.
How do you pronounce it?
/el mas laɾɡo/
Did you know?
- While largo means 'long', it is a false friend to the English word 'large'. In Spanish, if you want to say something is 'large', you should use grande instead.
- In music, a largo is a very slow tempo. This uses the sense of 'longest' to describe the duration of a beat rather than a physical distance.
- The word largo is a historical replacement for the Old Spanish word luengo, which was derived directly from the Latin 'longus'.
Examples in context
- El dedo del medio es el más largo.The middle finger is the longest.This sentence shows how to use the phrase to describe a finger.Tatoeba #2088919 by marcelostockle, translation #715802 by darinmex
- El río Nilo es el más largo del mundo.The Nile is the longest river in the world.This sentence illustrates the use of the phrase when describing a river's length globally.Tatoeba #1869240 by Shishir, translation #36535 by CM
- El Amazonas es el río más caudaloso y tal vez el más largo.The Amazon is the river with the largest water flow and perhaps also the longest.This sentence uses the phrase to discuss a river that might be the longest.Tatoeba #2775314 by wallebot, translation #10612157 by sangelo
- Este puente es el más largo del país.This bridge is the longest in the country.
- El río Amazonas es el de mayor longitud en Sudamérica.The Amazon River is the longest in South America.
- Esta película es la más larga de todas.This movie is the longest of them all.
- Este partido de fútbol es el que más dura.This soccer game is the longest.
- La historia más larga del mundoThe longest story in the world
- Nunca me canso de escuchar la historia más larga del mundo.I never get tired of hearing the longest story in the world.
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
María and Mateo are comparing the lengths of their commutes to work.
- MaríaMi camino al trabajo es muy lento.My commute to work is very slow.
- MateoEl mío es el más largo de todos.Mine is the longest of all.
- María¿Cuánto tiempo tardas en llegar, Mateo?How long does it take you to get there, Mateo?
- MateoTardo una hora porque el trayecto es el más largo.It takes me an hour because the route is the longest.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries el, largo, más, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
