why 'lo' in this sentence

Question

In a text im reading about how to contruct an argument in Spnish, it says "su objectivo fundamental es ofrece una información lo más completa posible". Im a bit confsed as to why it says "lo" because I assume it refers back to "una información" which is why it says "competa" in feminine, but if this is the case, shouldn't it be "la más completa" instead of "lo más completa"? Thanks.

Understanding phrases with "lo" such as lo que, lo cual, lo más, etc. is definitely hard for me to grasp! Good question, looks like I'll be awaiting an answer with you! - modrak, Feb 25, 2013

Answer 1

"Lo" can be a little difficult. "Lo más" just means "the most," as Spanish doesn't have qualifiers like "most, best, etc." Just know that it doesn't agree with the subject, and it is always "Lo." In a general sense, it might mean something like "thing" or "part" e.g. Lo importante= the important thing/aspect. Lo mejor= the best thing/aspect. Lo bueno= the good part. Lo bueno es que... The good thing is that... etc. I hope this makes sense, sorry I can't explain it better.

It is a big vague, but Mike´s explanation seems pretty good. Especially the part about it being invariate (i.e. it is always lo, and never la, in this construction) It maybe be helpful to think of it as ¨the information WHiCH is most complete¨ . - rogspax, Feb 25, 2013

I wouldn't be offended even if you were. I'm doing the best I can, but I'm no Spanish teacher! So no worries. - BigMike, Feb 25, 2013

That was supposed to say ¨Lo is a bit vague...¨ I hope my typos don´t make it sound like I though BigMike´s answer was vague. Sidebar, I hate that we can´t edit comments. /minirantoff - rogspax, Feb 25, 2013

Answer 2

Maybe the "lo" is referring to the action of offering, or a typo lol.