<p>We don't say <em>good, gooder, goodest</em>, but: <em>good, better, best</em>. <em>best</em> is the superlative of <em>good</em>.</p>
<p>最好 corresponds with best.<br />
better corresponds with 更好。</p>
<p>You haven't met the man yet, so I might say:</p>
<p>It's best if you don't meet him.<br />
你最好不要见他。</p>
<p>But, you didn't listen to me and went ahead and met the man.</p>
<p>That cannot be undone, so now I use the subjunctives <em>would</em> and <em>had</em> to express an unreal, unachievable state:</p>
<p>It <em>would</em> have been better if you <em>had</em> not met him yesterday.<br />
如果你昨天没有见到他，那就更好了。</p>
<p>I have heard of people calling this use of <em>would</em> and <em>had</em> Past Subjunctive, but the idea is ridiculous. What you speak about in the subjunctive either has not happened or will not happen. It has no time. And certainly, it did not happen in the past.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-27T06:42:04.047Z
2024-09-27T06:42:04.047Z
Pedroski
<p>The answer is positive.</p>
<p><strong>最好</strong> - <strong>have/had better</strong>.</p>
<ul>
<li>It would've been better if you hadn't met him yesterday, otherwise... - 你昨天最好<strong>沒有</strong>看见他, 否則... (I wish/hope you hadn't met him yesterday, otherwise...)</li>
</ul>
<p>Better example:</p>
<ul>
<li>Did you see her yesterday? <strong>Better you had not</strong>. - 你昨天見到她了嗎? <strong>最好沒有</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<p>Note the difference between &quot;不要(don't; must not; refrain from)&quot; and &quot;沒有(haven't; hadn't)&quot;.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-26T22:27:32.650Z
2024-09-26T23:14:33.460Z
2024-09-26T23:14:33.460Z
r13
<ul>
<li>最好 (better/ best) followed by a statement indicates the statement is an advice/ warning/ hypothesis. If it is an advice or warning, it doesn't work in past tense</li>
</ul>
<p>Example:</p>
<p>你昨天最好不要看见他 = &quot;You better not to see him yesterday&quot; (it is too late to advise what someone should have done because he can't go back in time to do it)</p>
<p>If '最好' in '你昨天最好不要看见他' (You better not have seen him yesterday) indicates a hypothesis then you are in fact, threatening that person (implying if you had, then there would be bad consequences)</p>
<ul>
<li>最好的 (the best) followed by a noun, on the other hand, is an adjective  that can appear in any tense</li>
</ul>
<p>Example:</p>
<p>三十年前最好的投資選擇就是買屋 (Thirty years ago, the best investment option was to buy a house.)</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-26T22:12:51.513Z
2024-09-26T22:34:36.710Z
2024-09-26T22:34:36.710Z
Tang Ho
<p>i'm studying for hsk2 and while looking for topics with 最 i found that 最好 can be used to expresse &quot;it's better&quot; for advice/suggestion, and i wanted to know if i can also use it to refer to past situations... something like &quot;i've should've known better&quot;...</p>
<p>for example:
你最好别看见他 - it's better (for you) to not meet him
你昨天最好不要看见他 - it would've been better if you haven't meet him yesterday (?)</p>
<p>thanks!!</p>

<grammar>
Can I use 最好 for past tense？
# Can I use 最好 for past tense？

(Asked by: username_0 on 2024-09-26)

i'm studying for hsk2 and while looking for topics with 最 i found that 最好 can be used to expresse "it's better" for advice/suggestion, and i wanted to know if i can also use it to refer to past situations... something like "i've should've known better"...

for example:
你最好别看见他 - it's better (for you) to not meet him
你昨天最好不要看见他 - it would've been better if you haven't meet him yesterday (?)

thanks!!

**Tags:** grammar


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## 3 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2024-09-27. Score: 0 | Accepted answer

We don't say *good, gooder, goodest*, but: *good, better, best*. *best* is the superlative of *good*.

最好 corresponds with best.  
better corresponds with 更好。

You haven't met the man yet, so I might say:

It's best if you don't meet him.  
你最好不要见他。

But, you didn't listen to me and went ahead and met the man.

That cannot be undone, so now I use the subjunctives *would* and *had* to express an unreal, unachievable state:

It *would* have been better if you *had* not met him yesterday.  
如果你昨天没有见到他，那就更好了。

I have heard of people calling this use of *would* and *had* Past Subjunctive, but the idea is ridiculous. What you speak about in the subjunctive either has not happened or will not happen. It has no time. And certainly, it did not happen in the past.


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### Answer by username_2 on 2024-09-26. Score: 1

The answer is positive.

**最好** - **have/had better**.

* It would've been better if you hadn't met him yesterday, otherwise... - 你昨天最好**沒有**看见他, 否則... (I wish/hope you hadn't met him yesterday, otherwise...)

Better example:

* Did you see her yesterday? **Better you had not**. - 你昨天見到她了嗎? **最好沒有**.

Note the difference between "不要(don't; must not; refrain from)" and "沒有(haven't; hadn't)".


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### Answer by username_3 on 2024-09-26. Score: 0

* 最好 (better/ best) followed by a statement indicates the statement is an advice/ warning/ hypothesis. If it is an advice or warning, it doesn't work in past tense

Example:

你昨天最好不要看见他 = "You better not to see him yesterday" (it is too late to advise what someone should have done because he can't go back in time to do it)

If '最好' in '你昨天最好不要看见他' (You better not have seen him yesterday) indicates a hypothesis then you are in fact, threatening that person (implying if you had, then there would be bad consequences)

* 最好的 (the best) followed by a noun, on the other hand, is an adjective that can appear in any tense

Example:

三十年前最好的投資選擇就是買屋 (Thirty years ago, the best investment option was to buy a house.)


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