little
little Lexical Profile
little Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Small in physical size, extent, or stature.
"They rented a charming little cottage near the coast for the summer."
Small in amount, degree, or duration; not much.
"There is little chance that the flight will depart on schedule in this weather."
Young or younger, such as a child or a younger sibling.
"Her little brother just started kindergarten this autumn."
Relatively unimportant, trivial, or minor in scale or significance.
"We encountered a few little problems during the software installation."
• adverb
To a small extent or degree; slightly (usually preceded by 'a').
"She felt a little tired after the long train journey."
Hardly at all, scarcely, or not at all (used without an article, often before verbs such as 'know', 'think', or 'care').
"Little did they know that the discovery would transform modern medicine."
• noun
A small amount, quantity, or degree of something (typically preceded by 'a').
"Add just a little of the seasoning to the soup before serving."
A short distance or a brief period of time.
"After walking a little farther down the trail, we reached the overlook."
• pronoun
Not much; only a small amount of something.
"Very little is known about the early life of the ancient philosopher."
Word Nuance & Usage
When modifying uncountable nouns, 'a little' conveys a positive or sufficient quantity (e.g., 'we have a little time left'), whereas 'little' without the article emphasizes scarcity or near absence (e.g., 'we have little time left'). For physical size, 'littler' and 'littlest' are used informally, while 'less' and 'least' serve as the comparative and superlative forms for quantity or degree.
• Rhymes for little
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
From Old English lytel, meaning 'not large, small in size or amount,' from Proto-Germanic *luttila-, which is related to Old Saxon luttil and Old High German luzzil.