Did you do a double think on the grammar here?

[Awumminnscotland]

My 7 yr old was reading the "blub" as she calls it on the back of her reading book and tells me that her teacher said this was wrong, that it should be "strongest". I'm afraid my eyebrows couldn't get any higher on my head and my mouth dropped. But maybe my expectations are too high?
I'm 52 and in primary didn't get taught much grammar but I knew this...
Not a teaching bashing thread just a v surprised mum and I know most mums of 7 yr olds are younger so just looking for perspective really.

Jolly good. I knowed that.

@Awumminnscotland

OP and her child’s teacher: she is the intelligenter of the two.

Stronger is correct if comparing two.

Strongest is used if three or more are being compared.

@CoffeeCantata
You're my kind of teacher.

We haven't taught grammar prescriptively for at least 30 years so I'd imagine most teachers (the ones I train are certainly trained to use descriptivist teaching techniques and would be unlikely to pass their module on grammar if they insisted on teaching with prescriptivist "rules") would (or should) be doing exactly that. Telling the child that they won't see many examples like that, except in older, more formal texts, and to keep a lookout for them.

'The stronger' is correct.

Contrary to the opinions of others here, I wouldn't consider it archaic or even old-fashioned.

wrong :)

to say who is stronger is a comparison, but doesn't define what is being compared, so for example you could have the sentence:

Bob couldn't open the jar of honey, so the teacher said, Mary, Jo, come here and let us see - who is stronger

stronger because it is a comparison between two - either child and Bob (and the answer could be both of them - whereas who is the strongest is an absolute and only one of the three could be the strongest...)

but not 'the stronger' as it is not specific which two

if instead we had:

The teacher said, Bob, Mary, come here and let us see who is the stronger

then that defines the strength comparison directly as being between those two

so this is correct in saying 'the stronger'

The book is correct, the teacher is wrong. However, common usage differs - it would sound a bit pedantic (and old-fashioned) if someone said "the stronger" of two in daily conversation. Grammatical rules, like most things, move wit the times. Let's not get too hung up on it. That said, a teacher should know better - but then, who would've told her/him?

I think it's worthwhile pointing out to a 7 year old that they are unlikely to encounter many people using that phrase. Learning "who is the stronger" might complicate some children's understanding when they're learning how to use stronger/strongest in sentences. It's not wrong but people don't really use it so I would expect a teacher to tell a child most people would say "who is stronger". At 7 I expect the focus is on phrases they are likely to use themselves.

I feel the same. If 'the stronger', 'the bigger' etc are old-fashioned, it is only to the same extent that formal English is old-fashioned. Definitely not 'archaic', which I would reserve for completely obsolete usages like 'betwixt' or 'thine' which you generally only encounter in proverbs of certain fixed expressions.

Yes yes yes 🙌

I disagree that children would be confused by use of 'the stronger' when learning to use 'stronger' or 'strongest' in a sentence - I'm sure they would be capable of understanding "Who is the strongest?" in a context of three or more being compared. I think it would actually reinforce the lesson.

Correct. Children actually like learning properly. But hey, don’t let that stop the posters who think they can’t deal with anything too difficult.

I have to dash off to work in a minute so haven't read the full thread, so sorry if this has already been shared!

Anyone else remember 'Spy Watch'? It was fab! Almost worth going to school for!

A lot is two words?

Alot really annoys me and I had to override the autocorrect then which annoys me even more!

Strongest is absolute.

Stronger is relative to others in a group.

The strongest is also always the stronger, but the stronger is not always the strongest in absolute terms.

Me too. Looks wrong to me, but I have no idea

Teacher is technically wrong and you are technically right but the “correct” version you have identified is quite old fashioned so the teacher’s version would be more normal in common usage.

Essentially it’s not a breach of grammar which would exercise me.

What are you saying is wrong with it? I don't like the capitalisation but otherwise it's correct.

Grammar isn't my strong(est!) point - I don't remember really doing it at school beyond full stops, capital letters and commas.
So I would have thought the same as the teacher, so this has been educational for me!

Ah. What we were taught. Using a superlative (e.g. 'biggest'), for one of two items has been in continuous & widespread use for centuries. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary of English Usage refers to objections to this as 'a perfect shibboleth, serving no practical function except to separate those who observe the rule from those who do not.'.

Like fewer and less, less being for things that can’t be counted and fewer for things that can. It’s a style preference that turned into a rule. “Nine items or less” is not actually incorrect. I heard this on a Radio 4 programme.

I agree with PP that stronger is correct. However, please tell your daughter that the correct term for the part of the book she was reading is “blurb” and not blub (meaning to cry, noisily or uncontrollably) nor blerb (no such word)…

Who Is stronger
Who Is the strongest

It happens a lot

Yes, the comparative and the superlative - as has already been established. What is wrong with the original terminology? 🙄