-less

8 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Less \Less\, v. t.
     To make less; to lessen. [Obs.] --Gower.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:



  -less \-less\ (-l[e^]s) suff. [AS. le['a]s loose, false; akin to
     OS. l[=o]s loose, false, D. los loose, loos false, sly, G.
     los loose, Icel. lauss loose, vacant, Goth. laus empty, vain,
     and also to E. loose, lose. [root]127. See {Lose}, and cf.
     {Loose}, {Leasing}.]
     A privative adjective suffix, denoting without, destitute of,
     not having; as witless, childless, fatherless.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Less \Less\ (l[e^]s), conj.
     Unless. [Obs.] --B. Jonson.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Less \Less\, a. [OE. lesse, AS. l[=ae]ssa; akin to OFries.
     l[=e]ssa; 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]
  
     Note: 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.                         --E. A.
                                                    Freeman.
           [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Less \Less\, adv. [AS. l[=ae]s. See {Less}, adj., and cf.
     {Lest}.]
     Not so much; in a smaller or lower degree; as, less bright or
     loud; less beautiful.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Less \Less\, n.
     1. A smaller portion or quantity.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              The children of Israel did so, and gathered, some
              more, some less.                      --Ex. xvi. 17.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. The inferior, younger, or smaller.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              The less is blessed of the better.    --Heb. vii. 7.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  less
       adj 1: (comparative of `little' usually used with mass nouns) a
              quantifier meaning not as great in amount or degree;
              "of less importance"; "less time to spend with the
              family"; "a shower uses less water"; "less than three
              years old" [syn: {less(a)}] [ant: {more(a)}]
       2: (usually preceded by `no') lower in quality; "no less than
          perfect"
       3: (usually preceded by `no') lower in esteem; "no less a
          person than the king himself" [syn: {lower}]
       4: (nonstandard in some uses but often idiomatic with measure
          phrases) fewer; "less than three weeks"; "no less than 50
          people attended"; "in 25 words or less"
       adv 1: used to form the comparative of some adjectives and adverbs;
              "less interesting"; "less expensive"; "less quickly"
              [syn: {to a lesser extent}] [ant: {more}]
       2: comparative of little; "she walks less than she should"; "he
          works less these days" [ant: {more}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  89 Moby Thesaurus words for "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, worn