the

[Allen165]

"Of all the languages she speaks, she speaks Spanish the best."

Is "the" optional?

Thanks!

 

[masuas]

I would say:
of all the languages she speaks, Spanish she does the best.

Not a teacher.
Saludos.

 

[Rover_KE]

"Of all the languages she speaks, she speaks Spanish the best."

Is "the" optional? Yes, it is.

Thanks!

Native speaker.

Rover

 

[masuas]

I thought it was imperative when speaking in the superlative form.
Maybe the native speaker could extend a little?
Thank you.

 

[SoothingDave]

Another native.

It's not required. "She speaks Spanish best" or "She speaks Spanish the best" mean the same thing.

I think "the best" would be more common and the "the" provides a bit of emphasis. But it's not required.

 

[Raymott]

I would say:
of all the languages she speaks, Spanish she does the best.

Not a teacher.
Saludos.

This might be a common construction in Spanish, but it's uncommon in English (though it does occur).
What is the rule about the superlative that you mention?

 

[masuas]

You know...good, better the best, the brightest, I remember it from grammar school. Maybe I'm too old and rules have changed, that's possible. So the question still remains...it's not required but it's not wrong
either? What say you natives?

Thanks again.

 

[Raymott]

You know...good, better the best, the brightest, I remember it from grammar school.
Yes, I know what the superlative is. But you said that something was imperative when using the superlative.

Maybe I'm too old and rules have changed, that's possible.
It is possible, but I was asking what the rule actually was/is.

So the question still remains...it's not required but it's not wrong
either? What say you natives?
What is not wrong or required?

Thanks again.

If you mean that putting the object before the subject and verb is necessary when using a superlative, that's not true. If that's not what you mean, what do you mean?

 

[masuas]

What I meant was, isn't it required to use "the", before best,worst, largest, etc. Like in: of all the languages he speaks, English he does
the best ?
I do remember learning that, this was the way for superlative.
Am I wrong?:shock:

 

[Raymott]

What I meant was, isn't it required to use "the", before best,worst, largest, etc. Like in: of all the languages he speaks, English he does
the best ?
I do remember learning that, this was the way for superlative.
Am I wrong?:shock:

I see. You're right in that "the" is usually used with the superlative. But it's not always needed; and it's not always the best way of saying it.
Compare:
Jane speaks Spanish well, French better, and English best. Her best language is English.
Of the three students, Jane speaks French the best.
So, Jane speaks English best, but French the best of the three students.

By the way, putting the object first, as in your example, is still not usual English, even if it's beside the point.

 

[masuas]

I agree that not always is required, but I also see what you were concerned about. Thanks for your observation.
Masuas.