Hello wonderful English students. Join me each day for an interesting question about the English language, British culture, or just life in general. Please feel free to add your comments below, or to contact me directly on italki.
If you have a topic you'd like me to write about, just let me know.
In the meantime, good luck with today's question 😊

Question

Hello wonderful English students. Join me each day for an interesting question about the English language, British culture, or just life in general. Please feel free to add your comments below, or to contact me directly on italki. 
If you have a topic you'd like me to write about, just let me know.
In the meantime, good luck with today's question 😊

Answer

I added this question because comparatives and superlatives are often a tricky area for students. Many try to say it was 'more bigger' or 'the most best'. This set phrase offers a nice way to avoid having to remember the grammar rules. Hopefully one day my student will use the sentence 'Cambridge David's lessons are second to none!' 😊

Answer

Hello Song. many thanks for your comment. The phrase 'second to none' is an idiomatic expression that cannot be changed at all. Basically it means that there is no restaurant better than it. Unfortunately, we cannot alter the idiom to say 'first to none' or 'third to none'. These would sound unnatural to a native speaker.
Think of idioms as fixed phrases to be used in specific situations. For example, if the IELTS examiner asks you to talk about your favourite building / movie / park / city etc.., you can reply 'I believe that this (+ noun) is second to none'.

Answer

It’s certainly a tricky idiom. Very funny!!