English
rank|says|wife|hear|310|least|person|case|fact
Pronunciation
IPA|/li�st/, SAMPA|/li:st/
audio|en-us-least.ogg|Audio (US)
Rhymes: Rhymes:English:-i�st|-i�st
Homophones
leased
Adjective
infl|en|adjective|negative superlative
- The smallest amount of [something Appendix:Glossary#uncountable|uncountable].
#:He earns the least money in his family.
#:Of all the sisters, she has the least patience.
#* 1857, Edmund March Blunt, The American Coast Pilot: Containing Directions for the Principal Harbors, E. & G.W. Blunt, page 135:
#*: The least water we could find there was 4 fathoms, which bears from the point S.E., and is distant 1½ mile.
#* 2004, Jim Baggott, Beyond Measure: Modern Physics, Philosophy, and the Meaning of Quantum Theory, Oxford University Press, page 48:
#*: Light does not need to know in advance which is the path of least time because it takes all paths from its source to its destination.
- obsolete|modern usage is|_|proscribed|or|only in poetic contexts form of|The superlative|little|nodot=none; the smallest.
#:He earns the least amount of money.
Usage notes
Some grammarians recommend to use least only with uncountable nouns, as in the examples above with the smallest amount of sense:
1965, H. W. Fowler, Fowler�s Modern English Usage: Second Edition:
To such grammarians least is the superlative of a little, not that of little, so it does not mean smallest, but the smallest amount of. With plural nouns, they recommend fewest.
Adverb
infl|en|adverb|negative superlative
- Used for forming superlatives of adjectives, especially those that do not form the superlative by adding -est.
#:It was the least surprising thing.
Antonyms
most
Related terms
less
Translations
Finnish: t-|fi|vähiten
French: t+|fr|moindre; t+|fr|moins
Italian: t+|it|meno
Noun
en-noun|-
- The smallest.
#:I can only afford to pay the least of the bills.
Category:English determiners
fr:least
ko:least
io:least
it:least
hu:least
pt:least
simple:least
fi:least
ta:least
te:least
vi:least
zh:least
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