little
Americanadjective
-
littler,
comparative
-
less,
comparative
-
lesser,
comparative
-
littlest,
superlative
-
least
superlative
-
small in size; not big; not large; tiny.
a little desk in the corner of the room.
-
short in duration; not extensive; short; brief.
a little while.
-
small in number.
a little group of scientists.
-
small in amount or degree; not much.
little hope.
-
of a certain amount; appreciable (usually preceded bya ).
We're having a little difficulty.
-
being such on a small scale.
little farmers.
-
younger or youngest.
He's my little brother.
-
not strong, forceful, or loud; weak.
a little voice.
-
small in consideration, importance, position, affluence, etc..
little discomforts;
tax reductions to help the little fellow.
-
mean, narrow, or illiberal.
a little mind.
-
endearingly small or considered as such.
Bless your little heart!
-
amusingly small or so considered.
a funny little way of laughing.
-
contemptibly small, petty, mean, etc., or so considered.
filthy little political tricks.
adverb
noun
-
a small amount, quantity, or degree.
They did little to make him comfortable.
If you want some ice cream, there's a little in the refrigerator.
-
a short distance.
It's down the road a little.
-
a short time.
Stay here for a little.
idioms
-
think little of, to treat casually; regard as trivial.
They think little of driving 50 miles to see a movie.
-
little by little, by small degrees; gradually.
The water level rose little by little.
-
make little of,
-
to belittle.
to make little of one's troubles.
-
to understand or interpret only slightly.
Scholars made little of the newly discovered text.
-
-
in little, on a small scale; in miniature.
a replica in little of Independence Hall.
-
not a little, to a great extent; very much; considerably.
It tired me not a little to stand for three hours.
determiner
-
(often preceded by a)
-
a small quantity, extent, or duration of
the little hope there is left
very little milk
-
( as pronoun )
save a little for me
-
-
not much
little damage was done
-
See make of
-
-
very
-
a lot
-
-
a considerable amount
-
to have a low opinion of
adjective
-
of small or less than average size
-
young
a little boy
our little ones
-
endearingly familiar; dear
my husband's little ways
-
contemptible, mean, or disagreeable
your filthy little mind
-
(of a region or district) resembling another country or town in miniature
little Venice
-
a person's secret intention or business
so that's his little game!
-
considerable
adverb
-
(usually preceded by a) in a small amount; to a small extent or degree; not a lot
to laugh a little
-
(used preceding a verb) not at all, or hardly
he little realized his fate
-
not much or often
we go there very little now
-
by small degrees
Usage
What is a basic definition of little? Little describes something that is small in size. Little also describes a short time. And little can refer to a small amount of something. Little has many other senses as an adjective, adverb, and noun. If something is little, it is tiny or physically small. Little is the opposite of words like big, huge, and gigantic. The noun form of this sense is littleness. Real-life examples: Newborn babies are little. A single grain of sand is little. A dime is a little coin compared to quarters and nickels. Used in a sentence: I found a little piece of paper tucked inside the small book. Little also describes a short amount of time. This sense is commonly used as “a little while” or “a little bit.” This sense is a synonym of words like brief or short. Real-life examples: A five-minute rest is a little break. You might go away for a weekend and call it a little vacation. You might stay at a friend’s house for a little while before saying goodbye. And 367 days is a little over a year. Used in a sentence: We stopped at the gas station for a little bit to fill up the car before continuing our trip. Little can also describe a small amount of something. Real-life examples: A chef might add a little salt to a recipe. There might be a little rain on a cloudy day. A new chess player usually has little chance of beating a professional. Used in a sentence: She added to the romantic atmosphere by playing a little music. Little is also used in this sense as a noun. Used in a sentence: If you are looking for paint, there is a little in the supply closet.
Synonym Usage
Little, diminutive, minute, small refer to that which is not large or significant. Little (the opposite of big ) is very general, covering size, extent, number, quantity, amount, duration, or degree: a little boy; a little time. Small (the opposite of large and of great ) can many times be used interchangeably with little, but is especially applied to what is limited or below the average in size: small oranges. Diminutive denotes (usually physical) size that is much less than the average or ordinary; it may suggest delicacy: the baby's diminutive fingers; diminutive in size but autocratic in manner. Minute suggests that which is so tiny it is difficult to discern, or that which implies attentiveness to the smallest details: a minute quantity; a minute exam.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of little
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English lȳtel ( lȳt “few, small” + -el diminutive suffix), cognate with Dutch luttel, Old High German luzzil, Old Norse lītill
Explanation
Anything small, brief, young, or unimportant can be described as little. If you live in a little cottage, it means your house is very small, and quite possibly adorable. The word little describes something tiny and sweet, like a little kitten or a little doll house rocking chair. Little can also mean some, but not much, like when you only want a little soup — not a big bowl, or when you put little effort into your appearance when you are doing yard work. The expression little by little means very slowly, or by tiny increments, like learning a new language little by little.
Vocabulary lists containing little
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"We have exchanged a little bit," he said.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
These weather patterns have therefore meant only occasional bouts of stronger winds across the north-west of the UK, with little disruption.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh said little about his thinking on rates in a public appearance Friday morning local time in Bangkok.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
“We were a little bit out on our own,” Michelle said of figuring out the approach to take with Bo.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
Then he decided to have a little fun, and agreed.
From "Adventures of Don Quixote" by Argentina Palacios
While he recognised nightclubs were spaces for meeting others, Adam said there was also a trend of younger people going out and drinking less - which was good for their health.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
"If obtaining permanent residency becomes difficult, people will see less benefit in staying in Japan for the long term," he said, adding that the weak yen and low wages may also push people away.
From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2026
Over the last three years, negotiators repeatedly held talks to try to reach a seven-state agreement to take less water, but the three downstream states, California, Arizona and Nevada, deadlocked with the four upstream states.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
Small companies would face less pressure from financing costs.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
“New Orleans is less than two hours away. We’ll go and come back same day.”
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Policy wonks are not typically famous: If they are, that fame is restricted to a league of Beltway professionals—famous in the way that really good brain surgeons are famous to other, presumably lesser brain surgeons.
From Slate ● Oct. 15, 2026
But analysts at JPMorgan Chase wrote in a note last week that current market valuations for commercial insurers and, to a lesser extent, reinsurers, reflect “returns which are not necessarily sustainable.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
“It doesn’t feel good in the moment, but this was the lesser of all evils,” Appel said.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
“I’m better for having known him and the world is lesser for his leaving.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026
But lesser failures of coherence are among the commonest flaws in writing.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
The program included a little bit of everything, and the littler the bits, the better.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 1, 2025
"You wouldn't think there were that many places to hide but when Ramona was littler, I think she'd been in every cupboard in one of those trailers," says Drew-Honey, now 28.
From BBC ● Dec. 25, 2024
No surprise there—as the term accelerates toward a contentious finale, the tensions roiling major cases are bound to spill over into littler ones.
From Slate ● Jun. 17, 2024
Birch said he and his colleagues solved a "geometry problem" regarding how long it would take for the littler rivers to fill the deltas that the Perseverance and Curiosity rovers explored on Mars.
From Salon ● Jul. 10, 2023
But also in the littler things, having a partner lightened the load, could even make the arduous task of filling my family's table enjoyable.
From "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins
It is currently in the midst of its 25th programme with the Fund -- at least 11 of which have been outright bailouts -- since gaining independence in 1947.
From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2026
And if this relationship-building is done well, when the inheritance inevitably leads to disagreement, at least the people sitting across the table won’t feel like strangers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2026
Only Aguero and Hernandez, of players to have scored at least 10 goals as a sub, have better goals-per-game ratios than him.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
At least one of those customers said his reservation was converted into an order for a Roadster capable of using SpaceX thrusters to reach high speeds.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
Again, it’s the least I can do for someone I might be sentencing to such a cruel fate.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
"We didn't abandon seatbelts because people didn't want to buckle up, and we will not flinch at holding tech companies to account when our littlest citizens are at stake."
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
The scarcity of Apple’s littlest Mac comes at a time of high interest from AI power users and a potential product refresh.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
"It's the littlest things that can trigger you. Even cutting a piece of fruit with a knife or seeing blood can be triggering; just normal, mundane things," she said.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2025
Caiazzo was part of a research team that in 2021 reported on one with a petite diameter slightly larger than Earth's moon that boasted the greatest mass and littlest size of any known white dwarf.
From Reuters ● Jul. 21, 2023
The littlest children and some of the older women rode in the open wagons, but everyone else walked.
From "The Devil's Arithmetic" by Jane Yolen
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
