Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Smaller in amount, value, or importance, especially in a comparison between two things.
- adjective Of a smaller size than other, similar forms.
- adverb Less. Used before a participle.
- noun One that is lower in importance, rank, magnitude, or degree.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Less; smaller; minor.
- In a smaller degree; less.
- To less purpose.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Less; smaller; inferior.
- adverb obsolete Less.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective
comparative form oflittle : morelittle - adjective of
two things , thesmaller insize ,value ,importance etc. - noun a
thing that is of smaller size, value, importance etc.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective of less size or importance
- adjective smaller in size or amount or value
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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The term lesser epic includes the numerous forms of narrative poems from the old-time ballad to the modern story-telling poem.
Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 10 The Guide Charles Herbert Sylvester
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The evil is in letting our feelings deny other people their rightful place as human beings inhabiting the same planet, experiencing the universal prospect that one day in the not too distant future, what we call lesser creatures will inhabit the earth, and there will be no more any such thing as one human being harboring racial hatred for another.
Firedoglake » Late Night FDL: The Fork in the Road – The Right and Race Online 2006
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Aides to Rumsfeld insist that this kind of a deployment falls under what he calls a lesser contingency that the U.S. is prepared to take care of even while it's involved in major operation like what's going on in Iraq.
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Consequently the lesser is and to be affected more or less by the greater, and, therefore, we find that this country is gradually assimilating American, ideas with regard to almost everything.
Three Imperial Topics: Imperial Ignorance; Imperial History; Imperial Unity 1904
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Campbell said he also intends to talk testify about the impact of military, which he called the lesser of two evils, on Juarez and its people.
Newspaper Tree 2009
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Campbell said he also intends to talk testify about the impact of military, which he called the lesser of two evils, on Juarez and its people.
Newspaper Tree 2009
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To think of Hinayana as somehow "lesser" is significantly to misunderstand Tibetan views, in which so-called
Hegel on Buddhism 2007
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She has deftly tackled subject matter that in lesser hands could have been maudlin, even trite — but has triumphed in a way that elevates us.
February « 2009 « poetry dispatch & other notes from the underground 2009
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What might, in lesser hands, have evolved into an overly familiar revenge scenario becomes, instead, a viscerally effective narrative and an empathetic reflection on the consequences of male aggression.
"Full Dark, No Stars," four novellas by horror writer Stephen King Bill Sheehan 2010
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What follows is a story about loss and learning to live that could have felt awfully familiar in lesser hands.
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