little

1 of 4

adjective

lit·​tle ˈli-tᵊl 

littler ˈli-tᵊl-ər 

ˈlit-lər

or less ˈles  or lesser ˈle-sər  ; littlest ˈli-tᵊl-əst 

ˈlit-ləst

or least ˈlēst 

1

: not big: such as

a

: small in size or extent : tiny

has little feet

b

: young

was too little to remember

c

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

—used in vernacular names

d

: having few members or inhabitants

a little group

little towns

e

: small in condition, distinction, or scope

big business trampling on the little fellow

f

: narrow, mean

the pettiness of little minds

g

: pleasingly small

a cute little thing

h

—used as an intensive

why, you little devil!

2

: not much: such as

a

: existing only in a small amount or to a slight degree

has little money

b

: short in duration : brief

There is little time left.

c

: existing to an appreciable though not extensive degree or amount

—used with a

had a little money in the bank

3

: small in importance or interest : trivial

a few little problems to be dealt with

littleness

ˈli-tᵊl-nəs 

noun

little

2 of 4

adverb

less ˈles  ; least ˈlēst 

1

a

: in only a small quantity or degree : slightly

facts that were little known at the time

b

: not at all

cared little for their neighbors

2

: rarely, infrequently

little

3 of 4

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.

little

4 of 4

noun

plural littles

1

: a small amount or quantity

She felt better after she'd eaten a little.

There's still some money left, but only a very little.

They didn't understand much but they did understand a little.

They understood more than a little [=much] of what was going on.

The family worked hard to earn what little they could.

With quality perfumes a little goes a long way.

—Gerry Cupido

2

: a short time or distance

We sat and rested for a little.

It's on the right, just a little past the school.

3

: a young child : little one

How you introduce your littles to the trail helps determine what they think of hiking as they grow.

—Backpacker

… Beyoncé and JAY-Z don't post many photos of their littlest littles.

—Azure Hall

As a mom determined to nurse each of her littles, I've tucked myself away in airplane bathrooms dozens of times to pump ounces of milk.

—Kourtney Gibson

see also a little

Phrases

in little

: on a small scale

especially : in miniature

Synonyms

Adjective

• low
• low-lying
• low-slung
• sawed-off
• short

Adverb

• negligibly
• nominally
• slightly

Noun

• ace
• bit
• crumb
• dab
• dram
• driblet
• glimmer
• hint
• lick
• mite
• nip
• ounce
• particle
• peanuts
• ray
• scintilla
• scruple
• shade
• shadow
• shred
• skosh
• smack
• smell
• smidgen
• smidgeon
• smidgin
• smidge
• snap
• soupçon
• spark
• spatter
• speck
• splash
• spot
• sprinkling
• strain
• streak
• suspicion
• tad
• touch
• trace

Choose the Right Synonym for little

small, little, diminutive, minute, tiny, miniature mean noticeably below average in size.

small and little are often interchangeable, but small applies more to relative size determined by capacity, value, number.

a relatively small backyard

little is more absolute in implication often carrying the idea of petiteness, pettiness, insignificance, or immaturity.

your pathetic little smile

diminutive implies abnormal smallness.

diminutive bonsai plants

minute implies extreme smallness.

a minute amount of caffeine in the soda

tiny is an informal equivalent to minute.

tiny cracks formed in the painting

miniature applies to an exactly proportioned reproduction on a very small scale.

a dollhouse with miniature furnishings

Examples of little in a Sentence

Adjective

I have very little money, so I can't lend you any.

I have less money than I did before.

I got very little sleep last night.

There's little hope of a rescue now.

You have little choice but to pay attention.

The new version bears little resemblance to the original.

These programs have very little chance of succeeding.

These trinkets have little or no value.

We're having a little party this weekend.

a little group of people

Adverb

She works very little and sleeps even less.

Please speak as little as possible.

We had little more than we needed.

His art is little known in this country.

Noun

there's just a little of the pie left

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Communities that faced a large-scale disaster once in a generation now confront these threats annually, and those that had little apparent disaster risk now struggle to recover. —Trevor Riggen, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024

Just that little beautiful face with the glasses, got the little glasses. —Emily Brooks, The Hill, 1 Nov. 2024

Adverb

Businesses with fewer than 50 workers were little changed, contributing just 4,000 of the total. —Jeff Cox, CNBC, 30 Oct. 2024

Novo’s American depositary receipts were little changed at the close of trading in New York. —Madison Muller, Fortune, 29 Oct. 2024

Noun

And yet the government has done precious little to keep it from happening again. —Lily Hay Newman, WIRED, 13 July 2017

Passive resistance is more shielded and often takes the form of a manager doing little to support the change. —Peter Follows, Forbes, 14 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Adverb, and Noun

Middle English littel, from Old English lȳtel; akin to Old High German luzzil little

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Pronoun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing little

• a big fish in a little pond
• a little
• a little goes a long way
• a little something
• as little as
• bear little relationship to/with
• dirty little secret
• every little thing
• have little to recommend it
• in little
• leave little to the imagination
• leave someone (with) no/little choice
• let someone in on a (little) secret
• little better than
• little bitty
• little bluestem
• little brother/sister
• little brown bat
• little by little
• little finger
• little guy
• little if any
• little leaf
• little magazine
• little man
• little more than
• little one
• little people
• little person
• little slam
• little theater
• little toe
• little tuna
• little tunny
• little woman
• little wonder
• live a little
• makes little/no sense
• meet with little success
• more than a little
• no little
• of little avail
• place/put little credence in
• precious little
• put/have little faith in
• the little guy
• the little man
• the little/small matter
• the little woman
• to little/no effect
• too little, too late
• very little love lost
• what little
• wired (a little) too tight/tightly
• wrap (someone) around one's (little) finger

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