Word Study
less
CIDE DICTIONARY
less, conj.
Unless. B. Jonson. [1913 Webster]
less, a. [OE. lesse, AS. l; akin to OFries. l; a compar. from a lost positive form. Cf. Lesser, Lest, Least. Less has the sense of the comparative degree of little.].
Smaller; not so large or great; not so much; shorter; inferior; as, a less quantity or number; a horse of less size or value; in less time than before. [1913 Webster]
" The substantive which less qualifies is often omitted; as, the purse contained less (money) than ten dollars. See Less , n. " [1913 Webster]
"Thus in less [time] than a hundred years from the coming of Augustine, all England became Christian." [1913 Webster]
Not so much; in a smaller or lower degree; as, less bright or loud; less beautiful. [1913 Webster]
less, n.
- A smaller portion or quantity. [1913 Webster]"The children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less." [1913 Webster]
- The inferior, younger, or smaller. [1913 Webster]"The less is blessed of the better." [1913 Webster]
less, v. t.
To make less; to lessen. Gower. [1913 Webster]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
less, adj., adv., n., & prep.
--adj.
1 smaller in extent, degree, duration, number, etc. (of less importance; in a less degree).
2 of smaller quantity, not so much (opp. MORE) (find less difficulty; eat less meat).
3 disp. fewer (eat less biscuits).
4 of lower rank etc. (no less a person than; James the Less).
--adv. to a smaller extent, in a lower degree.
--n. a smaller amount or quantity or number (cannot take less; for less than {pound}10; is little less than disgraceful).
--prep. minus (made {pound}1,000 less tax).
--adj.
1 smaller in extent, degree, duration, number, etc. (of less importance; in a less degree).
2 of smaller quantity, not so much (opp. MORE) (find less difficulty; eat less meat).
3 disp. fewer (eat less biscuits).
4 of lower rank etc. (no less a person than; James the Less).
--adv. to a smaller extent, in a lower degree.
--n. a smaller amount or quantity or number (cannot take less; for less than {pound}10; is little less than disgraceful).
--prep. minus (made {pound}1,000 less tax).
Idiom
in less than no time joc. very quickly or soon. much (or still) less with even greater force of denial (do not suspect him of negligence, much less of dishonesty).
Etymology
OE l{aelig}ssa (adj.), l{aelig}s (adv.), f. Gmc
THESAURUS
less
abated, ablated, at a disadvantage, at the nadir, attenuated, barring, bated, belittled, below, below the mark, common, consumed, contracted, curtailed, decreased, decreasingly, decrescendo, deflated, demeaning, diminished, diminishingly, diminuendo, disadvantaged, discounting, dissipated, dropped, eroded, ever less, except, excepting, exception taken of, excluding, exclusive of, fallen, fewer, from, humble, in the gutter, in the shade, inferior, infra dig, junior, least, least of all, leaving out, less and less, lesser, low, lower, lowered, lowly, miniaturized, minor, minus, modest, not counting, not so much, off, ordinary, reduced, retrenched, sans, save, scaled-down, second rank, second string, secondary, servile, shorn, short of, shorter, shrunk, shrunken, smaller, sub, subaltern, subject, subordinate, subservient, third rank, third string, under, under par, underprivileged, vulgar, watered-down, weakened, without, wornROGET THESAURUS
less
Inferiority
N inferiority, minority, subordinacy, shortcoming, deficiency, minimum, smallness, imperfection, lower quality, lower worth, commonalty, inferior, smaller, small, minor, less, lesser, deficient, minus, lower, subordinate, secondary, secondrate, sub, subaltern, thrown into the shade, weighed in the balance and found wanting, not fit to hold a candle to, can't hold a candle to, least, smallest &c (little) (small), lowest, diminished, reduced, unimportant, less, under the mark, below the mark, below par, at the bottom of the scale, at a low ebb, at a disadvantage, short of, under, inferiority, minority, subordinacy, shortcoming, deficiency, minimum, smallness, imperfection, lower quality, lower worth, commonalty, inferior, smaller, small, minor, less, lesser, deficient, minus, lower, subordinate, secondary, secondrate, sub, subaltern, thrown into the shade, weighed in the balance and found wanting, not fit to hold a candle to, can't hold a candle to, least, smallest &c (little) (small), lowest, diminished, reduced, unimportant, less, under the mark, below the mark, below par, at the bottom of the scale, at a low ebb, at a disadvantage, short of, under.Subtraction
N nonaddition, subtraction, subtraction, subduction, deduction, retrenchment, removal, withdrawal, ablation, sublation, abstraction, garbling mutilation, detruncation, amputation, abscission, excision, recision, curtailment, minuend, subtrahend, decrease, abrasion, subtracted, subtractive, in deduction, less, short of, minus, without, except, except for, excepting, with the exception of, barring, save, exclusive of, save and except, with a reservation, not counting, if one doesn't count.For further exploring for "less" in Webster Dictionary Online
