# almost

> English word · Adverb · IPA /ˈɔːl.məʊst/ · frequency rank #395

## Definitions
1. Very close to, but not quite.
2. Up to, except for a negligible set (where negligible is not universally but contextually defined).
3. Up to, except for a negligible set (where negligible is not universally but contextually defined).

## Etymology
Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der.?
Proto-Indo-European *h₂elnós
Proto-Germanic *allaz
Proto-Germanic *ala-
Proto-West Germanic *ala-
Old English æl-
Proto-Indo-European *meh₂-der.
Proto-Germanic *maiz
Proto-Germanic *maistaz
Proto-Germanic *maist
Proto-West Germanic *maist
Old English mǣst
Old English eallmǣst
Middle English almost
English almost
From Middle English almost, from Old English eallmǣst (“nearly all, almost, for the most part”), equivalent to al- (“all”) + most.

## Easily confused with
- **alot** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/almost-vs-alot)
- **Amos** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/almost-vs-amos)
- **alms** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/almost-vs-alms)
- **aloft** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/almost-vs-aloft)
- **atmos** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/almost-vs-atmos)
- **allot** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/allot-vs-almost)
- **almond** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/almond-vs-almost)

## Common misspellings (9)
`allmost`, `almmost`, `almosst`, `almostt`, `almots`, `almsot`, `alomst`, `amlost`, `lamost`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/almost