ALL meanings of less
less
L l - noun less Even though less has been used before plural nouns (less words; less men) since the time of King Alfred, many modern usage guides say that only fewer can be used in such contexts. Less, they say, should modify singular mass nouns (less sugar; less money) and singular abstract nouns (less honesty; less love). It should modify plural nouns only when they suggest combination into a unit, group, or aggregation: less than $50 (a sum of money); less than three miles (a unit of distance). With plural nouns specifying individuals or readily distinguishable units, the guides say that fewer is the only proper choice: fewer words; fewer men; no fewer than 31 of the 50 states. Modern standard English practice does not reflect this distinction. When followed by than, less occurs at least as often as fewer in modifying plural nouns that are not units or groups, and the use of less in this construction is increasing in all varieties of English: less than eight million people; no less than 31 of the 50 states. When not followed by than, fewer is more frequent only in formal written English, and in this construction also the use of less is increasing: This year we have had less crimes, less accidents, and less fires than in any of the last five years. 1
- adverb less to a smaller degree 1
- pronoun less smaller amount 1
- adjective less smaller 1
- preposition less minus 1
- preposition less before subtracting 1
- adjective less with plural countable noun: fewer 1
- pronoun less plural countable: fewer 1
- suffix less to form adjectives meaning 'without' 1
- adverb less not at all (used before a verb): He little knows what awaits him. 1
- adverb less in only a small amount or degree; not much; slightly: a little-known work of art; little better than a previous effort. 1
- adverb less seldom; rarely; infrequently: We see each other very little. 1
- adjective less small in size; not big; not large; tiny: a little desk in the corner of the room. 1
- adjective less short in duration; not extensive; short; brief: a little while. 1
- adjective less small in number: a little group of scientists. 1
- adjective less small in amount or degree; not much: little hope. 1
- adjective less of a certain amount; appreciable (usually preceded by a): We're having a little difficulty. 1
- adjective less being such on a small scale: little farmers. 1
- adjective less younger or youngest: He's my little brother. 1
- adjective less not strong, forceful, or loud; weak: a little voice. 1
- adjective less small in consideration, importance, position, affluence, etc.: little discomforts; tax reductions to help the little fellow. 1
- adjective less mean, narrow, or illiberal: a little mind. 1
- adjective less endearingly small or considered as such: Bless your little heart! 1
- adjective less amusingly small or so considered: a funny little way of laughing. 1
- adjective less contemptibly small, petty, mean, etc., or so considered: filthy little political tricks. 1
- noun less a small amount, quantity, or degree: They did little to make him comfortable. If you want some ice cream, there's a little in the refrigerator. 1
- noun less a short distance: It's down the road a little. 1
- noun less a short time: Stay here for a little. 1
- preposition less minus; without: a year less two days; six dollars less tax. 1
- idioms less in little, on a small scale; in miniature: a replica in little of Independence Hall. 1
- idioms less little by little, by small degrees; gradually: The water level rose little by little. 1
- idioms less make little of, belittle: to make little of one's troubles. to understand or interpret only slightly: Scholars made little of the newly discovered text. 1
- idioms less not a little, to a great extent; very much; considerably: It tired me not a little to stand for three hours. 1
- idioms less think little of, to treat casually; regard as trivial: They think little of driving 50 miles to see a movie. 1
- noun less A smaller amount of; not as much. 1
- determiner less You use less to indicate that there is a smaller amount of something than before or than average. You can use 'a little', 'a lot', 'a bit', 'far', and 'much' in front of less. 0
- determiner less Less is also a pronoun. 0
- determiner less Less is also a quantifier. 0
- phrase less You use less than before a number or amount to say that the actual number or amount is smaller than this. 0
- adverb less You use less to indicate that something or someone has a smaller amount of a quality than they used to or than is average or usual. 0
- adverb less If you say that something is less one thing than another, you mean that it is like the second thing rather than the first. 0
- adverb less If you do something less than before or less than someone else, you do it to a smaller extent or not as often. 0
- phrase less You use the expressions still less, much less, and even less after a negative statement in order to introduce and emphasize a further statement, and to make it negative too. 0
- preposition less When you are referring to amounts, you use less in front of a number or quantity to indicate that it is to be subtracted from another number or quantity already mentioned. 0
- determiner less (as pronoun; functioning as sing or plural) 0
- determiner less lower in rank or importance 0
- adverb less the comparative of little (sense 1) 0
- preposition less subtracting; minus 0
- abbreviation LESS little 0
- adjective less not so much; smaller in size or amount 0