If something is less, there's not as much of it as there was before, or compared to something else. For example, your cranky uncle might complain that there's less common sense in the world than there used to be.
Unless.
Adjective S.
(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"
Adjective S.
(usually preceded by `no'') lower in esteem; "no less a person than the king himself"
Adjective S.
(usually preceded by `no'') lower in quality; "no less than perfect"
Adverb
used to form the comparative of some adjectives and adverbs; "less interesting"; "less expensive"; "less quickly"
Adverb
comparative of little; "she walks less than she should"; "he works less these days"
conj.
Unless.
a.
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.
adv.
Not so much; in a smaller or lower degree; as, less bright
or loud; less beautiful.
n.
A smaller portion or quantity.
n.
The inferior, younger, or smaller.
v. t.
To make less; to lessen.
Less
Less
Thus in less [time] than a hundred years from the coming of Augustine, all England became Christian.
Less
Less
The children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less.2.
The less is blessed of the better.
Less
Unless.
Smaller; not so large or great; not so much; shorter; inferior;
Not so much; in a smaller or lower degree;
A smaller portion or quantity.
To make less; to lessen.
Usage Examples
A friend told me that teenage girls are always looking for someone to pin their dreams on. That doesn't make it any less weird though.
A shift is necessary toward lifestyles less geared to environmental damaging consumption patterns.
A perfect storm is in the making: financial uncertainty, economic downturn, government cuts, rising unemployment and a future that looks less clear the more we try to fathom it.
A good leader takes a little more than his share of the blame, a little less than his share of the credit.
A world without nuclear weapons would be less stable and more dangerous for all of us.
A broad margin of leisure is as beautiful in a man's life as in a book. Haste makes waste, no less in life than in housekeeping. Keep the time, observe the hours of the universe, not of the cars.
A woman asking 'Am I good? Am I satisfied?' is extremely selfish. The less women fuss about themselves, the less they talk to other women, the more they try to please their husbands, the happier the marriage is going to be.
A man's friendships are, like his will, invalidated by marriage - but they are also no less invalidated by the marriage of his friends.
Misspelled Formless, kless, oless, pless, :less, kess, oess, pess, :ess, lkess, loess, lpess, l:ess, lwess, l3ess, l4ess, lress, lsess, ldess, lwss, l3ss, l4ss, lrss, lsss, ldss, lewss, le3ss, le4ss, lerss, lesss, ledss, leass, lewss, leess, ledss, lexss, lezss, leas, lews, lees, leds, lexs, lezs, lesas, lesws, leses, lesds, lesxs, leszs, lesas, lesws, leses, lesds, lesxs, leszs, lesa, lesw, lese, lesd, lesx, lesz, lessa, lessw, lesse, lessd, lessx, lessz.
Other Usage ExamplesA very intimate sense of the expressiveness of outward things, which ponders, listens, penetrates, where the earlier, less developed consciousness passed lightly by, is an important element in the general temper of our modern poetry.
A tyrant must put on the appearance of uncommon devotion to religion. Subjects are less apprehensive of illegal treatment from a ruler whom they consider god-fearing and pious. On the other hand, they do less easily move against him, believing that he has the gods on his side.
A man's ability to haggle is never a turn-on. The only thing less romantic than how much you paid is how much you saved. The last thing we want to hear is how you talked the jeweler down on our new earrings.
A powerful attraction exists, therefore, to the promotion of a study and of duties of all others engrossing the time most completely, and which is less benefited than most others by any acquaintance with science.
A first-generation fortune is the most likely to be given away, but once a fortune is inherited it's less likely that a very high percentage will go back to society.
A society that has more justice is a society that needs less charity.
A little less complaint and whining, and a little more dogged work and manly striving, would do us more credit than a thousand civil rights bills.
A year from now, you're gonna weigh more or less than what you do right now.
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