long s

American  

[es] / ɛs /

Or long ess

noun

1. a style of the letter s, suggesting a lowercase f in form, formerly common in handwriting and as a type character.

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long s British  

noun

1. Also called: long ess.  a lower-case s, printed ʃ, formerly used in handwriting and printing

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

long s

The long "s" does nothing to aid comprehension, and indeed causes problems, noted in the Textual Appendix: e.g. confusion between "besit" and "befit".

From The Faerie Queene — Volume 01 by Spenser, Edmund

In Roman type, the long "s" most closely resembles a lower-case "f" lacking part of the crossbar.

From The Faerie Queene — Volume 01 by Spenser, Edmund

In the Gothic types used by Skinner f might be easily mistaken for a long s.

From The Rowley Poems by Chatterton, Thomas

In this way all the characters of the 1596 edition have been shown except the long "s", which has been throughout converted to its modern equivalent.

From The Faerie Queene — Volume 01 by Spenser, Edmund

The text as printed used incipits and long s font.

From Posthumous Works of the Author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Godwin, William