What does steepest mean?
Steepest is the superlative of steep and is used when a slope, gradient, incline, or descent has a greater degree of steepness than all the others being considered. It is especially common in descriptions of roads, mountain paths, hills, and ski slopes, where the severity of the incline may be important for safety, difficulty, or physical effort. For example, a sign may identify the steepest section of a trail or the steepest descent on a road. The word can also be used adverbially, as in a phrase such as “the path descends steepest,” although this construction is less frequent in ordinary speech. Steepest should not be confused with steep: the former makes an explicit comparison among multiple slopes, while the latter simply describes something as sharply inclined. Its usefulness lies in providing a direct, readily understood way to identify a maximum degree of steepness.
Having the greatest degree of slope or incline.
"The climbers carefully ascended the steepest face of the cliff."
This is the standard adjectival use and normally compares two or more slopes, gradients, hills, or similar features.
In the steepest manner or to the greatest degree of steepness.
"The road fell steepest beyond the ridge."
This use is relatively uncommon and is more typical of formal, literary, or descriptive writing.
The steepest part of a journey is often the point where a small change in direction makes the biggest difference.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of steepest
Steepest is formed by adding the superlative suffix -est to steep. Steep comes from Old English stēap and is related to forms in other Germanic languages, including Dutch steil and German steil, meaning steep or sharply inclined. The regular English comparative and superlative endings developed from earlier inflectional patterns and later became productive for many adjectives.
How steepest is actually used
Usually used in comparative contexts, especially with nouns such as slope, gradient, incline, hill, and descent. The adverb form is less common and normally appears in formal or literary writing.
Easily confused with steepest
Steep describes a slope that rises sharply, whereas steepest is the superlative used to identify the sharpest of several slopes.