Idiomatic Vocabulary 7: super

The Phrase

  Super-[adj]

Its Definition

A prefix which makes the adjective which follows much stronger.

Discussion

This phrase is useful because it can describe many more extremes of feeling, and has a fun and upbeat feel. My 9-year-old boy uses this regularly. It is used as a prefix (meaning ‘more than’) in some formal words, such as…

superstar

superstition

supersonic

supergroup

supernatural

superhuman

…and many others, but it can be used playfully to give a more informal feel to the speaking.

Example Sentences

In IELTS Speaking

  • “Oh, I thought the movie was good – super good, in fact.”
  • “I didn’t like the food in America. The deserts were super-sweet, so different to what we have in Taiwan.”

In IELTS Writing

  • In this electronic age, and with this globalised world, media celebrities are often not just rich, but ‘super-rich’.
  • Media celebrities undergo far too much cosmetic surgery, deciding that only ‘super-glamorous’ will serve their purposes.