1. at (the) best至多，充其量，就最樂觀的一面來看。
如：Life is short at best. 生命再長也是短暫的'。
At best a few hundred people attended the meeting. 充其量只有幾百人參加了會議。
We can’t arrive before Friday at best. 我們無論如何也無法在星期五以前趕到。
2. do [try] one’s best 盡力， 竭盡全力。
如：As long as you do your best, we’ll be happy. 只要你盡力，我們就滿意了。
It doesn’t matter if you don’t win---just try your best. 贏不了也沒關係，只要努力即可。
注：其後有時可接不定式。如：We did our best to help them. 我們盡力幫了他們。
3. had best 最好，應該。
如：You had best stay here. 你最好呆在這兒。
I think we had best sell it. 我想我們還是把它賣掉的好。
注：had best 與 had better had best 同義。
4. It’s best for sb to do sth 某人最好去做某事。
如：It’s best for us to start early. 我們最好早點出發。
It’s best for you to buy a dictionary. 你最好買臺電腦。
5. make the best of 充分利用，儘量往好處做，將就用。
如：We must make the best of the fine weather. 我們必須要充分利用這好天氣。
The only thing to do now is to make the best of things. 現在唯一的辦法就是隨遇而安。
