little

pronoun

: not much : almost nothing

Little has changed.

There was little to spare.

They ate little that morning.

The child recalled/understood little of what happened.

There is little we can do to help.

His argument did little to change their minds.

They told us precious little about the situation.

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for little

• acquittal
• belittle
• committal
• hospital
• popliteal
• submittal
• transmittal
• brittle
• kittel
• kittle
• spital
• spittle

Kids Definition

little

1 of 3 adjective

lit·​tle ˈlit-ᵊl 

littler ˈlit-ᵊl-ər 

ˈlit-lər

or less ˈles  or lesser ˈles-ər  ; littlest ˈlit-ᵊl-əst 

ˈlit-ləst

or least ˈlēst 

1

a

: small in size

b

: young entry 1 sense 1a

was too little to remember

c

: small in comparison with related forms

little blue heron

d

: narrow entry 1 sense 3, mean

people with little minds

2

a

: small in quantity

there was little food to feed them

b

: short in duration

little time left

3

: small in importance

life's little problems

4

: being younger

my little brother

littleness

ˈlit-ᵊl-nəs 

noun

little

2 of 3 adverb

less ˈles  ; least ˈlēst 

1

: in a very small quantity or degree : slightly

had little more than we needed

a little known fact

2

: not very often

travels little

little

3 of 3 noun

1

: a small amount or quantity

2

: a short time or distance

Medical Definition

little

adjective

lit·​tle ˈlit-ᵊl 

littler ˈlit-ᵊl-ər, ˈlit-lər  or less ˈles  or lesser ˈles-ər  ; littlest ˈlit-ᵊl-əst, ˈlit-ləst  or least ˈlēst 

: not big: as

a

: small in size or extent

has little feet

b

of a plant or animal : small in comparison with related forms

—used in vernacular names