least

Etymology 1
From, , , from , a contraction of , , , from , related to Old English. Cognate with 🇨🇬, 🇨🇬. More at.

Determiner
(comparative less)


 * 1) The most little; the smallest amount or quantity of something.

Usage notes
Some grammarians recommend to use least only with uncountable nouns, as in the examples above with the smallest amount of sense: 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. However, other authorities disagree; the OED lists least as a synonym of fewest without any usage notes discussing this meaning.

Translations

 * Albanian: më pak
 * Arabic: أَقَلَّ
 * Chinese:  Mandarin: ,,
 * Czech:
 * Dutch:
 * Esperanto:
 * Finnish: ,
 * French:, le plus petit
 * Galician:
 * German: geringst, kleinst, minimalst
 * Gothic: 𐌼𐌹𐌽𐌽𐌹𐍃𐍄𐍃
 * Greek:
 * Ancient: ὀλίγιστος, ἥκιστος
 * Hungarian:
 * Irish: íosta
 * Italian:
 * Japanese:
 * Korean: 가장 적게
 * Latin:
 * Norwegian:
 * Bokmål:
 * Nynorsk: minst
 * Polish:
 * Portuguese:
 * Russian:
 * Serbo-Croatian: ,
 * Spanish:
 * Swedish:
 * Ukrainian: найменший
 * Zazaki: peyênên

Adverb

 * 1) Used for forming superlatives of adjectives, especially those that do not form the superlative by adding -est.
 * It was the least surprising thing.
 * 1) In the smallest or lowest degree; in a degree below all others.
 * to reward those who least deserve it
 * I never hid the truth, least of all from you.
 * I don't much like housework, and I like cooking least.

Translations

 * Albanian: më pak
 * Finnish:
 * French: ;
 * Greek:
 * Ancient: ἥκιστα
 * Italian:
 * Latin:
 * Spanish:
 * Swedish:
 * Ukrainian: найменше

Noun

 * 1)  Something of the smallest possible extent; an indivisible unit.

Adjective

 * 1)  ; smallest

Etymology 2
.

Prepositional phrase

 * 1)  At least.