German · A2 · Everyday language
Your Personal Favourites in German
Talk with your child about favourite hobbies, enjoyable activities and the times when things work best. German often uses am + a superlative ending in -sten or -esten to express “best,” “most” or “hardest.”
What you'll learn
- Ask your child about their favourite activities.
- Use am besten, am liebsten and am meisten correctly.
- Describe what is easiest, hardest or quietest.
- Distinguish between superlatives that describe something and those that describe an action.
German phrases for your personal favourites
Welches Hobby magst du am liebsten?
Which hobby do you like best?
Use am liebsten with mögen to ask about someone's favourite.
Du konzentrierst dich morgens am besten.
You concentrate best in the morning.
Sich konzentrieren means “to concentrate.” With du, use du konzentrierst dich. Morgens means “in the morning.”
Ich fahre am liebsten mit dir Fahrrad.
I like cycling with you best.
Am liebsten expresses a favourite activity. Fahrrad fahren means “to cycle.”
Welcher Teil des Projekts ist am schwierigsten?
Which part of the project is hardest?
Schwierig means “difficult” or “hard.” Des Projekts means “of the project.”
Dieses Puzzle ist am einfachsten.
This puzzle is easiest.
Einfach means “easy” here. Am einfachsten describes the puzzle.
Dein Zimmer ist abends am ruhigsten.
Your room is quietest in the evening.
Ruhig means “quiet” or “calm.” Abends means “in the evening.”
Welches Spiel spielst du am meisten?
Which game do you play most?
Am meisten asks about the amount of play, not necessarily which game is the favourite.
Welche Aktivität macht dir am meisten Spaß?
Which activity is most fun for you?
Spaß machen means “to be fun.” Dir tells us who enjoys it.
Hear these phrases and practise them
Tildi plays every phrase out loud, tests you in five-minute lessons and builds them into bedtime stories from your own picture books.
Try it free for 7 daysKey words
das Hobby
hobby
Plural: die Hobbys.
sich konzentrieren
to concentrate
Use a reflexive pronoun: ich konzentriere mich; du konzentrierst dich.
Fahrrad fahren
to cycle; to ride a bicycle
For “I cycle,” say ich fahre Fahrrad.
der Teil
part; section
Plural: die Teile. Use der Teil for a section of a project.
das Puzzle
jigsaw puzzle
For a riddle or brain teaser, use das Rätsel instead.
ruhig
quiet; calm
Can describe a place, a person or a situation.
morgens / abends
in the morning / in the evening
These words often describe regular times or routines.
Spaß machen
to be fun
Das macht mir Spaß means “That is fun for me.”
Forming superlatives with am
To express the highest degree, use am + adjective + -sten. Some adjectives take -esten to make pronunciation easier, including many ending in -d, -t, -s, -ß or -z. Learn each form with the adjective.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Regular: einfach | einfach → am einfachsten | Dieses Puzzle ist am einfachsten. |
| Regular: schwierig | schwierig → am schwierigsten | Dieser Teil ist am schwierigsten. |
| Regular: ruhig | ruhig → am ruhigsten | Dein Zimmer ist abends am ruhigsten. |
| Extra e: leicht | leicht → am leichtesten | Diese Aufgabe ist am leichtesten. |
Three useful irregular forms
Am besten describes what works best or is done best. Am liebsten expresses preference. Am meisten expresses the greatest amount or quantity.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Quality or performance | gut → besser → am besten | Du konzentrierst dich morgens am besten. |
| Preference | gern → lieber → am liebsten | Ich spiele am liebsten mit dir. |
| Amount or quantity | viel → mehr → am meisten | Dieses Spiel macht mir am meisten Spaß. |
Describing something or describing an action
A predicative superlative describes the subject, often after sein (“to be”). An adverbial superlative describes an action. Both use the same am form, which does not change with gender or number. Do not place this form directly before a noun.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Predicative: describes the puzzle | subject + sein + am-superlative | Das Puzzle ist am einfachsten. |
| Adverbial: describes concentrating | verb + am-superlative | Du konzentrierst dich am besten. |
| Same form with a plural subject | plural subject + sind + am-superlative | Diese Spiele sind am einfachsten. |
More examples
Ich male am liebsten.
I like painting best.
A simple answer when discussing favourite hobbies.
Welches Spiel ist am einfachsten?
Which game is easiest?
Am einfachsten describes the game.
Radfahren macht mir am meisten Spaß.
Cycling is the most fun for me.
Mir means “for me” in this expression. Radfahren is a noun here, so it starts with a capital letter.