-est

• (UK, US) enPR: ĭst, IPA^(key): /ɪst/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (General Australian) enPR: əst, IPA^(key): /əst/

From Middle English -est, from Old English -est, -ost, from Proto-West Germanic *-ist, *-ōst, from Proto-Germanic *-istaz, *-ōstaz, related to comparative -er. Cognate of Afrikaans -ste, Dutch -st, German -(e)st, Danish -(e)st, Swedish -(a)st.

Via PIE cognate with Ancient Greek -ιστος (-istos), see Pleistocene, protist.

-est

1. Used to form the superlative of adjectives and adverbs.

   longest, biggest, fastest, motliest

• See -er for notes on the usage of this suffix to form superlatives.
• Occasionally, the -est suffix is added to a verbal adjective as a substitute for most. An example is winningest.

• -er

• -most

From Middle English -est, -st, from Old English -est, -ast, -st, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *-zi, from Proto-Indo-European *-si. The -t was by transfer from inverted order where thou followed the verb, which also occurred in most dialects of Middle Dutch and Middle High German (compare modern German -st).

-est

1. (archaic, dialectal) Used to form the second-person singular present tense and past tense of verbs. (if thou is the subject; not used with you)

   goest, makest, wentest, madest

• -'st, -st

• -eth
• thou

• tes, Tse, StE, set, TSE, Set, seṭ, ETS, STE, tse, ETs, TEs, Ste, Ste., SET

From Latin -istī.

-est

1. Used to form the second person plural preterite indicative of second conjugation verbs

• This form fell out of use, being largely replaced by the analogical ending -eres.

From -es (adjective-forming suffix) +‎ -t (adverb-forming suffix).

• IPA^(key): [ɛʃt]

-est

1. (adverb-forming suffix) Added to a word to form an adverb.

   ‎öröm (“joy”) + ‎-est → ‎örömest (“with joy”)

• (adverb-forming suffix) Variants:

  -st

  -est

• -ist

-est

1. Used to form the second-person singular present indicative of verbs.

Inherited from Old English -est, from Proto-West Germanic *-ist, from Proto-Germanic *-istaz, from Proto-Indo-European *-istHos, from *-yōs + *-tHós.

-est

2. Forms the superlative of adjectives

• English: -est
• Scots: -est

• IPA^(key): /est/

From Proto-Germanic *-ustaz, *-istaz.

• -ost, -ust

-est

1. suffix forming feminine nouns, originally from verbs

   eornost ― earnest

   þēnest ― service

   ofost ― haste

   orrest ― battle, combat

Strong ō-stem:

Inherited from Proto-West Germanic *-ist, from Proto-Germanic *-istaz, from Proto-Indo-European *-istHos, from *-yōs + *-tHós.

-est

1. alternative form of -ost (“used to form superlative adjectives and adverbs”)

   ‎glēaw (“wise”) + ‎-est → ‎glēawest (“wisest”)

   ‎late (“late”) + ‎-est → ‎latest (“latest”)

   ‎smæl (“narrow; small”) + ‎-est → ‎smælest (“narrowest; smallest”)

• Middle English: -est
  • English: -est
  • Scots: -est

• -es — Anglian

-est

1. Forms the second-person singular of class I weak verbs

   ‎fremman (“to perform”) + ‎-est → ‎fremest (“you perform”)

• -aist

• • IPA^(key): /ɛsd/, [ɛst]

-est

1. (colloquial) verb suffix for the second-person singular preterite