Is it always ok to have a superlative hyphenated with a present participle ending in -ing acting as an adjective (so long as the superlative describes the base verb of the participle)? For example:
- most-burping woman
- fastest-drinking college student
- quietest-singing bird
Such a phrase that is commonly used is "highest-grossing film." Is this just a particular idiom?
Best Answer
It is, but the hyphenated version will often give a meaning different from the unhyphenated one. The quietest-singing bird is the bird whose song is the quietest of all birds. The quietest singing bird is the singing bird who sings most quietly. Without the hyphen, highest grossing film would be absurd.