/ məʊst; NAmE moʊst/ determiner , pronoun , adverb
■ determiner , pronoun (used as the superlative of 'much', 'a lot of', 'many')
1.
the largest in number or amount :
Who do you think will get (the) most votes?
She had the most money of all of them.
I spent most time on the first question.
Who ate the most?
The director has the most to lose .
HELP NOTE : The can be left out in informal BrE .
2.
more than half of sb/sth; almost all of sb/sth :
I like most vegetables.
Most classical music sends me to sleep.
As most of you know, I've decided to resign.
Most of the people I had invited turned up.
There are thousands of verbs in English and most (of them) are regular.
HELP NOTE : The is not used with most in this meaning.
•
IDIOMS
- at (the) most
■ adverb
1.
used to form the superlative of adjectives and adverbs of two or more syllables :
the most boring / beautiful part
It was the people with the least money who gave most generously.
HELP NOTE : When most is followed only by an adverb, the is not used:
This reason is mentioned most frequently
, but
This is the most frequently mentioned reason
.
2.
to the greatest degree :
What did you enjoy (the) most?
It was what she wanted most of all .
HELP NOTE : The is often left out in informal English.
3.
( formal ) very; extremely; completely :
It was most kind of you to meet me.
We shall most probably never meet again.
This technique looks easy, but it most certainly is not.
4.
( NAmE , informal ) almost :
I go to the store most every day.
••
WORD ORIGIN
Old English māst , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch meest and German meist .